Skip to main content

Install an OS via autoinstall

Last update:

Auto-installation is a tool for automatically installing and reinstalling the operating system on a dedicated server via the control panel. Standard OS images and OS images with applications are available for auto-installation. If you want to use your own image, install the OS manually. You can also order Astra Linux installation services for your server.

OS autoinstall is not available for prebuilt servers with upgrades.

Install an OS via autoinstall

carefully

Automatic OS reinstallation will delete data on all disks, even if you partition only the boot disk.

We recommend saving your data or creating a backup before reinstalling the OS.

For your information

Once the OS installation is complete, the number of authorization attempts when connecting via SSH will be limited. After 10 failed password attempts from a single IP address, this IP address will be blocked for 24 hours. If you forgot your server password, you can reset and recover it.

  1. In the control panel, on the top menu, click Products and select Dedicated servers.

  2. In the Servers section, open the server page → Operating System tab.

  3. Click Reinstall OS.

  4. Optional: change the hostname.

  5. Optional: select a public IP address for the server. The IP address will be automatically configured on the port. The list displays IP addresses that are assigned to the server in the control panel and for which a VLAN is configured on the network port.

  6. Optional: select a private IP address for the server to automatically configure it on the port. The list displays the IP addresses that are assigned to the server in the control panel.

  7. Optional: to connect to the server securely, add an SSH key. You can add a new public SSH key or select an existing key from your SSH key storage.

  8. Optional: enter user data. Using user data helps automate server configuration. This field is not available for all OSs. User data can only be specified for servers without hardware HBAs and RAID controllers.

  9. Select an image to install the OS.

  10. Optional: if the server configuration includes RAID controllers, configure hardware RAID arrays. OS auto-installation is only available for RAID1 and RAID0 levels. Only two disks can be added to RAID1.

    If RAID controller settings and disk partitioning are not displayed in the OS configuration, the OS installation will require assistance from Selectel engineers. In this case, after clicking the Install button, a ticket will be created to change the OS configuration. Once the work is complete, the RAID controller will be displayed in the OS configuration, and you will be able to configure hardware RAID and partition disks.

  11. Optional: partition the disks. You can choose the disk on which the root partition / will be created and the OS installed. If four or more disks are installed on the server, you can pair them into different RAID levels, for example, RAID1 and RAID0.

    By default, the optimal RAID level is determined, and only disks with partitions and disks in RAID are partitioned. If you leave the default partitioning, the OS will be installed on the first disk according to the disk installation order on the server — NVMe → SSD → HDD.

  12. Click Install. Installation can take from 7 to 60 minutes; the duration depends on the server's performance and the chosen distribution. If more time has passed, create a ticket.

  13. After OS installation, a password for connecting to the server will be generated. The password can be viewed in the control panel on the server page → Operating System tab. It is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment the OS installation finishes.

Partition disks

You can partition disks in the OS autoinstall process at step 11.

Separate partitioning for each disk can be performed for the following OSs: Ubuntu 24.04LTS, Ubuntu 22.04LTS, AlmaLinux 9.2x86_64, Oracle 9x86_64, Debian 12x86_64, Debian 11x86_64, Proxmox, Rocky 9.2x86_64.

  1. In the Partitioning block, select a disk and click Make system — the root partition / will be created on this disk, and the OS will be installed.

  2. Optional: add disks to a RAID array. You can add disks to different RAID arrays on a single server. For example, if your server has four disks, you can add two of them to RAID1 and the other two to RAID0.

    Select the RAID level:

    • RAID1 – mirroring: all data is written to separate physical disks in the RAID set. A RAID1 array requires at least two disks;

    • RAID0 – striping: disk interleaving. If one of the disks fails in RAID0, all data will be lost without any possibility of recovery. A RAID0 array requires at least two disks;

    • RAID10 – mirroring and striping of disks. All data is written sequentially to multiple disks. A RAID10 array requires at least four disks.

  3. Check the disk or RAID partitioning. The partitioning table will display the mandatory partitions with mount points — /boot, /, swap. The minimum size of the root partition / is 20 GB.

  4. Optional: add a partition — select a file system and enter the partition size in GB. The choice of partition file system depends on OS limitations.

  5. If installing the OS on a disk, ensure there is no unallocated space left on it.

  6. Partition every disk on the server.

  7. Proceed to step 12 in the OS autoinstall process.