Connecting to your server

There are two ways to access your BareMeta server — the browser terminal (quickest, no setup required) or SSH from your local machine (more powerful, recommended for regular use).

Option 1 — Browser terminal

The fastest way to get into your server. No software to install, works from any browser.

1. Go to Virtual Machines in the dashboard
2. Find your server and click the SSH button
3. A terminal opens in your browser — you're in

You'll be logged in as ubuntu on Ubuntu servers. The browser terminal is fully functional — you can install software, edit files, and run any commands you'd normally run over SSH.

Option 2 — SSH from your local machine

SSH (Secure Shell) is the standard way to access remote Linux servers. It gives you a faster, more reliable connection and lets you do things like transfer files.

What you need

• macOS / Linux — SSH is built in. Open Terminal and you're ready.
• Windows — Use Windows Terminal, PowerShell, or PuTTY. Windows 10/11 has SSH built in.

Find your server's IP address

Click the 📡 IP button on your server row in the dashboard. If the server has a public IP assigned, use that address for SSH from your local terminal. If only a private IP is shown, connect from the browser console or through VPN/private-network access instead.

Connect

Open a terminal and run:

ssh USERNAME@YOUR_SERVER_IP

Replace YOUR_SERVER_IP with your server's actual IP address. The first time you connect, you'll see a message about the server's fingerprint — type yes to continue.

The username depends on the OS you picked:

• Ubuntu → ubuntu
• Debian → debian
• Rocky Linux → rocky
• AlmaLinux → almalinux
• Fedora → fedora
• Ubuntu marketplace images such as Docker, PostgreSQL, and k3s → ubuntu

Once you're in, you have full sudo rights — no password prompt.

Generating an SSH key pair

SSH keys are more secure than passwords and much more convenient — you'll never need to type a password to log in. Here's how to create one.

On macOS or Linux

Open Terminal and run:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your@email.com"

When prompted for a file location, press Enter to use the default. You can optionally set a passphrase for extra security.

This creates two files:

• ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 — your private key (keep this safe, never share it)
• ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub — your public key (this is what you add to BareMeta)

On Windows (PowerShell)

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your@email.com"

The keys are saved to C:\Users\YourName\.ssh\

View your public key

# macOS / Linux
cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

# Windows PowerShell
type $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\id_ed25519.pub

Copy the entire output — it starts with ssh-ed25519 and ends with your email address.

Adding your SSH key to BareMeta

1. In the dashboard, click SSH Keys in the left sidebar
2. Click + Add SSH Key
3. Give it a name (e.g. "My MacBook") and paste your public key
4. Click Add Key

When creating a new server, select this key during setup. It will be automatically installed on the server. Local terminal SSH also requires a reachable public IP, VPN, or other private-network path to that server.

Troubleshooting connection issues

Permission denied (publickey)

Your SSH key isn't authorised on the server. Check that:

• You selected the correct SSH key when creating the server
• You're using the private key that matches the public key you added
• You're connecting as the correct user (ubuntu for Ubuntu servers)

Connection refused or timed out

• Check the server is running in the dashboard
• Verify the IP address is correct
• Check your firewall rules — port 22 must be open

Host key verification failed

This can happen if you recreate a server with the same IP. Remove the old key:

ssh-keygen -R YOUR_SERVER_IP