Fresh / occupied gate and prerequisites
If the host already holds production data, workflows, or TLS material, stop. Follow the billing export → verify restore → delete gate before rebuild. Do not “fix” a live automation host from memory.
Private procurement record
- Family hypothesis: Starter / Premium / Cloud Native.
- Size hypothesis (RAM/CPU/disk)—conditional, not a tested minimum.
- Datacenter preference (latency / residency).
- Native only: storage tier (MaxIOPS / Standard / Archive) and size.
- Simple Backup tier intent (or explicit none).
- OS choice; SSH key ready in your password manager.
- Prepaid balance / trial status; planned delete calendar if this is an experiment.
You perform signup and payment in your own browser. AiXVPS does not purchase or log into your Control Panel.
Build the server in the live Control Panel (not from memory)
Follow live labels. Captured flows change.
| Field | Verify | Fail if |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Matches users/data residency; plan available there | DC missing for chosen family |
| Family | Starter vs Premium vs Native matches shut-down intent | Using discontinued Developer/GP/Flexible names |
| Plan size | Conditional envelope from review | Buying Max RAM “just in case” with no observe plan |
| Storage (Native) | Tier + GB attached intentionally | Compute-only Native with forgotten disk |
| OS | Supported Linux you can operate | Windows on docs trial quotas |
| Simple Backup | Day/Week/Month/Year chosen knowingly | Assuming free Day backup on current Starter/Premium |
| SSH keys | Your key uploaded before first login | Password-only root left forever |
Starter 1×1 concurrency limit
Pricing capture notes the cheapest 1 GB × 1 CPU Starter shape is limited to about five concurrent deployments per customer. If you need many tiny labs, confirm the live limit before spamming creates.
Read the bill before first login (balance, backups, transfer)
- Confirm prepaid balance or trial credit state. If still on trial, write the live offer (homepage marketing vs docs 7-day/€10 conflict) into your notes.
- Confirm Simple Backup percentage or per-GB line if enabled.
- Note Fair Transfer TB row for the plan code—do not invent overage math.
- Native: confirm storage and IPv4 lines separate from compute.
- Save a private summary (screenshot/PDF). Never publish secrets.
First login: discover, then harden
Discovery first
Use the credentials/SSH path actually delivered. Marketplace-style defaults are UNKNOWN without deploy—do not invent passwords from blogs.
# illustrative discovery only — adjust to your OS
uname -a
cat /etc/os-release
ss -tulpn
df -h
ip -br aSSH and firewall baseline
- Create a sudo admin user with your SSH key.
- Open a second working session before narrowing password/root login.
- Keep Control Panel console recovery available.
- Host firewall: intentional 22/80/443 only unless the app needs more—document exceptions.
- If still on trial, remember documented port locks; do not fight SMTP 25 with evasion tricks.
If any app image appears later
Research1 did not capture an official UpCloud n8n one-click. If you install from any image or tutorial later: record version paths, admin URL, and listening ports; never leave admin UIs world-open. Prefer the DIY Compose path for production ownership.
Day-zero acceptance receipt (then hand off)
- Family, size, DC, storage, Simple Backup lines recorded.
- Prepaid balance alert / auto top-up decision written.
- SSH key-only path working; second session tested.
- Firewall map documented; unexpected listeners closed.
- Optional on-demand backup before first risky change—and a plan to delete leftovers.
- Application export destination chosen (even if empty today).
Stop conditions: unexpected public listeners; unpaid backups you did not intend; Native disks left after a “temporary” stop; trial quota surprises; treating Fair Transfer as unlimited forever.
Hand off: AI apps · n8n · billing / delete discipline.