Open WebUI Virtual Machine

Last update: March 05 2026

Open WebUI Virtual Machine is a preconfigured cloud server with a ready-to-use tool for deploying and working with large language models (LLMs) through a web interface. The tool is targeted at technical professionals who need full control over the data being processed and support for advanced RAG.

The image from which the server is deployed contains:

• Open WebUI - An extensible web-based LLM interface that supports Ollama and OpenAI-compatible APIs;

• Ollama - a platform to locally download and run LLMs;

• Docker - a platform for running containerized applications;

• drivers required to work with graphics processing units (GPUs).

You can create an Open WebUI Virtual Machine with or without a GPU. In a server without GPU, Open WebUI works as an interface to connect to external LLMs - running on other servers or via API. Ollama is installed automatically only when you create a server with a GPU.

Tasks to be solved

• LLM deployment with full control over the data being processed;
• Web interface access control;
• interaction with the LLM via a chatbot;
• work with external data sources via the built-in RAG.

Minimum resource requirements

Number of vCPUs	1 - for a server without GPU; 2 - for server with GPU
RAM	2 GB.
Boot disk	30 GB.
GPU availability	Optional*

* Ollama is installed automatically only when you create a server with GPU. Without GPU, Open WebUI works as an interface to connect to external LLMs - running on other servers or via API.

Create a cloud server with Open WebUI

1. In the dashboard, from the top menu, click Products and select AI Marketplace.

2. Click Create Server.

3. Fill in the blocks:

   • Name and Location;
   • Source;
   • опционально: GPU;
   • Configuration;
   • Disks;
   • Network;
   • optional: Access;
   • optional: Additional settings;
   • optional: Automation.

4. Check the price of the server.

5. Click Create Server.

Name and location

1. Enter the name of the server.

2. Select the region and pool segment where the server will be created. The list of available GPUs depends on the pool segment. Once the server is created, you cannot change the region and pool segment.

Source

Select an image Open WebUI VM (Ubuntu 22.04 LTS 64-bit).

props.OptionalGpuForTitleGPU

1. Click Add GPU.

2. Select the type of GPU. When selecting a GPU, consider the requirements for ML models and the tools you are using. Refer to the Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) manual for GPU specifications and descriptions.

3. Specify the number of GPUs.

After the server is created, you can change the type and number of GPUs or delete GPUs. For more information, see Change Cloud Server Configuration.

Configuration

1. Specify the number of vCPUs.

2. Specify the size of the RAM.

Once the server is created, you can change the configuration.

Disks

1. Select the type of boot disk. When using the local disk as the boot disk, GPUs are not available.

2. Specify the disk size in GB or TB. The maximum size for all network disks is 10,240 GB (10 TB), and the maximum size for a local disk is 1,256 GB (1 TB).

3. If you selected the SSD Universal v2 disk type, specify the total number of read and write operations in IOPS. After you create the disk, you can change the number of IOPS - decrease or increase. There is no limit to the number of IOPS changes.

4. Optional: to add additional server disks:

   4.1 Click Add Disk.

   4.2 Select the disk type.

   4.3 Specify the disk size in GB or TB. The maximum size for all network disks is 10,240 GB (10 TB), and the maximum size for a local disk is 1,256 GB (1 TB).

   4.4 If you selected SSD Universal v2 disk type, specify the total number of read and write operations in IOPS. After creating the disk, you can change the number of IOPS - decrease or increase. There is no limit to the number of IOPS changes.

   Once the server is created, you can disconnect additional disks from it or connect new ones.

Network

You can add a server to a new subnet or to an existing subnet. The subnet can be:

• private without access from the Internet. You cannot connect to the server from the Internet, including via SSH or RDP;
• private with one public IP address. A static public IP address is connected to the private address of the server via a cloud router. The server will be accessible from the Internet through this public IP address;
• public, in which all addresses are accessible from the Internet.

Private subnet without access from the Internet

1. To add an existing private subnet:

   1.1. In the Subnet field, select an existing subnet.

   1.2 Optional: Change the default private IP address of the server.

2. To add a new private subnet:

   2.1. In the Subnet field, select the Private subnet type.

   2.2 Optional: Change the CIDR of the subnet.

   2.3 Optionally, enable the DHCP toggle switch. Learn more about DHCP in the Selectel blog article DHCP Protocol Principles.

   2.4 Optional: Change the IP address of the default gateway.

   2.5 Optional: change the network where the subnet will be created - you can select an existing network or create a new one. If you are creating a new network, enter a name for the network.

Private subnet with a public IP address

1. If you already have a private subnet and a cloud router with internet access:

   1.1. In the Subnet field, select the subnet type Private + 1 public IP.

   1.2 In the Private field, select an existing subnet.

   1.3 Optional: Change the default private IP address of the server.

2. If you do not have a private subnet and a cloud router with internet access, in the Subnet field, select the subnet type Private + 1 public IP.

   A private nat network, router-nat router and one public address will be automatically created. The server will be connected to a subnet on the nat network.

Public subnet

1. To add an existing public subnet:

   1.1. In the Subnet field, select an existing subnet.

   1.2 Optional: Change the default public IP address of the server.

2. To add a new public subnet:

   2.1. In the Subnet field, select the Public subnet type.

   2.2 In the Subnet Size field, select the subnet size.

Optional: Access

1. In the Password field for "root":

   1.1 Copy the password of the root user - a user with unlimited rights to all actions on the system.

   1.2 Save the password in a safe place and do not transmit it in public.

2. Place an SSH key for the project on the server for secure connection:

   2.1 If the SSH key is not added to the cloud platform, click , enter the key name, insert the public key in OpenSSH format, and click Add.

   2.2 If an SSH key is added to the cloud platform, select the existing key in the SSH Key field.

Optional: Additional settings

1. To create an interruptible server, check the Interruptible Server checkbox.

2. If you plan to create multiple servers and want to improve the fault tolerance of your infrastructure, add the server to a placement group:

   2.1 To create a new group, click , enter a group name, and select a policy to place on different hosts:

   • preferably - the system will try to place servers on different hosts. If there is no suitable host when creating a server, it will be created on the same host;

   • mandatory - servers in the group must be located on different hosts. If there is no suitable host when creating a server, the server will not be created.

   2.2 If a group has been created, select the placement group in the Placement Group field.

3. To add additional information or filter servers in the list, add server tags. A tag with the name of the image is automatically added. To add a new tag, enter a tag in the Tags field.

Optional: Automation

1. To add a script that will be executed by the cloud-init agent when the operating system first starts up, in the User data field:

   • open the Text tab and paste the script with text;
   • or open the File tab and upload the file with the script.

   Examples of scripts and supported formats can be found in the User data instructions.

Create an administrator account

To work in the Open WebUI, first create an administrator account.

1. In the dashboard, from the top menu, click Products and select AI Marketplace.

2. In the Open WebUI Virtual Machine card, click Go to GUI.

3. In the Open WebUI, click Let's Get Started.

4. Enter a user name.

5. Enter email.

6. Enter your password.

7. Click Create an Administrator account.

Start Open WebUI

1. In the dashboard, from the top menu, click Products and select AI Marketplace.

2. In the Open WebUI Virtual Machine card, click Go to GUI.

3. Enter the administrator's e-mail address.

4. Enter the administrator's password.

5. Click Sign In.