Install the OS by auto-installation

Last update: April 15 2026

carefully

The automatic installation of the OS will delete data on all disks.
We recommend that you save your data or create a backup before installing the OS.

You can install the OS through Terraform only by auto-installation. Automatic OS installation is available only for servers of ready configuration without upgrade. You can install the OS manually from your image on a ready configuration server with an upgrade.

You can install an OS on the server that is different from the current OS or reinstall the current OS.

Install a new OS

1. Open the CLI.

2. Make sure you are in the directory with the configuration file.

3. Specify the desired OS in the selectel_dedicated_os_v1 data source:

   data "selectel_dedicated_os_v1" "server_os" {
       project_id         = selectel_vpc_project_v2.project_1.id
       filter {
           name             = "<os_image_name>"
           version_name     = "<version_name>"
           configuration_id = data.selectel_dedicated_configuration_v1.server_config.configurations[0].id
           location_id      = data.selectel_dedicated_location_v1.server_location.locations[0].id
       }
   }

   Specify:

   • <os_image_name> - OS family name, e.g. Ubuntu;
   • <version_name> - OS version, e.g. 22.04. The OS version can be viewed in the table Standard OS images or by using the List OS configurations via Dedicated Servers API.

4. Check that the configuration file has been compiled without errors:

   terraform validate

5. Format the configuration file:

   terraform fmt

6. Check the changes:

   terraform plan

7. Apply the changes:

   terraform apply

8. Confirm the creation - type yes and press Enter. The changes will be displayed in the control panel.

9. Wait for the OS installation to complete.

Reinstall the OS

1. Open the CLI.

2. Make sure you are in the directory with the configuration file.

3. In the configuration file, add the force_update_additional_params parameter to the selectel_dedicated_server_v1 resource with a value of true:

   resource "selectel_dedicated_server_v1" "server_1" {
       project_id                     = selectel_vpc_project_v2.project_1.id
       configuration_id               = data.selectel_configuration_v1.server_config.configurations[0].id
       location_id                    = data.selectel_location_v1.server_location.locations[0].id
       price_plan_name                = "1 day"
       public_subnet_id               = data.selectel_public_subnet_v1.subnets.subnets[0].id
       os_id                          = data.selectel_os_v1.server_os.os[0].id
       os_host_name                   = "Turing"
       os_password                    = "Passw0rd!"
       force_update_additional_params = true
   }

4. Change the value of any additional parameter for os_id: os_password, user_data, ssh_key, ssh_key_name, partitions_config, os_host_name:

   resource "selectel_dedicated_server_v1" "server_1" {
       project_id                     = selectel_vpc_project_v2.project_1.id
       configuration_id               = data.selectel_configuration_v1.server_config.configurations[0].id
       location_id                    = data.selectel_location_v1.server_location.locations[0].id
       price_plan_name                = "1 day"
       public_subnet_id               = data.selectel_public_subnet_v1.subnets.subnets[0].id
       os_id                          = data.selectel_os_v1.server_os.os[0].id
       force_update_additional_params = true
       os_host_name                   = "new_Turing"            
       os_password                    = "new_Passw0rd!"
   }

   Here os_host_name, os_password are additional OS parameters. See the detailed description of the selectel_dedicated_server_v1 resource.

5. Check that the configuration file has been compiled without errors:

   terraform validate

6. Format the configuration file:

   terraform fmt

7. Check the changes:

   terraform plan

8. Apply the changes:

   terraform apply

9. Confirm the creation - type yes and press Enter. The changes will be displayed in the control panel.

10. Wait for the OS installation to complete.

11. In the configuration file, delete the force_update_additional_params parameter in the selectel_dedicated_server_v1 resource that you added in step 3.

12. Check that the configuration file has been compiled without errors:

    terraform validate

13. Format the configuration file:

    terraform fmt

14. Check the changes:

    terraform plan

15. Apply the changes:

    terraform apply