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First login: Linux (SSH)

Gather your credentials

Before connecting, you will need:

  • IP address of your VPS (from your Client Area).
  • Root username (default on Linux is root).
  • Initial password for the root account (from email or Client Area). You will change this after logging in.
  • SSH port – default is 22 unless you changed it.

Connect via SSH

You can use a built-in terminal or an SSH client:

  • On Linux/macOS: open Terminal and run: ssh root@your_ip_address. When prompted, enter the initial password and accept the host key fingerprint.
  • On Windows: open PowerShell or Windows Terminal (with OpenSSH installed) and run the same command, or download a client like PuTTY. In PuTTY, enter the IP address in the Host Name field and click Open to start the session.

Initial setup tasks

  • Change the root password: use passwd to set a new, strong password.
  • Update the package lists and upgrade packages: run apt update && apt upgrade (Debian/Ubuntu) or the equivalent for your distribution.
  • Create a new user with sudo privileges: create a non‑root user (adduser youruser) and add it to the sudo group (usermod -aG sudo youruser); then use this account for daily administration.
  • Harden SSH: generate an SSH key pair on your local machine and add the public key to ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the server. Disable password authentication and root login by editing /etc/ssh/sshd_config (PermitRootLogin no, PasswordAuthentication no) and restarting the SSH service (systemctl restart ssh).
  • Set the correct timezone and locale: run timedatectl set-timezone Europe/Paris or your preferred zone.

Generating and using SSH keys (recommended)

Using SSH keys improves security:

  • On your local machine, generate a key pair with ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your email" and follow the prompts.
  • Copy the public key to the server using ssh-copy-id root@your_ip_address or by appending the contents of ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub to ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the server.
  • Once key‑based login works, disable password authentication in /etc/ssh/sshd_config and restart SSH.

Troubleshooting & tips

  • If you cannot connect, verify that the VPS is running (use the client area or virtualization panel to start/reboot).
  • Ensure port 22 (or your custom SSH port) is open in the firewall/security group.
  • Use the web-based VNC/console access in the Client Area to regain access if you lock yourself out.
  • If problems persist, contact IllusionCloud support for assistance.
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