Your first server in 5 minutes

⏱ 5 min read 🟢 Beginner Last updated: April 2026

This guide walks you through creating, launching, and connecting to your first BareMeta server. By the end you'll have a running Linux server accessible from your browser — no prior cloud experience required.

Before you start

You'll need:

A BareMeta account — create one free
A verified email address (check your inbox after signing up)
A payment method (billing starts when your server is created)

ℹ️ Not sure which server size to pick? Start with Starter (£7.50/mo). You can always create a larger one later.

Launching your server

After signing in, you'll land on the Virtual Machines page. Click the + New Instance button in the top right.

Pick a size

Choose how much CPU, RAM, and storage you need. For most personal projects and small websites, Starter or Small is plenty. You can see the exact specs (vCPUs, RAM, storage) under each option, or click Custom build to dial in exact resources.

💡 Not sure? Pick Small (£10.00/mo) — it handles most workloads comfortably and you can create a new larger server if you outgrow it.

Choose an OS image

Pick an image from the catalogue — Ubuntu, Debian, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux, Fedora, and selected marketplace images such as Docker, PostgreSQL, and k3s. Hardened Ubuntu images (CE / CIS / STIG) carry a small monthly premium.

Give it a name

Enter a name for your server — letters, numbers, and hyphens only. Something like my-website or dev-server-01 works well.

Agree to terms and launch

Tick the Terms of Service checkbox and click 🚀 Launch Server. Provisioning usually completes in a couple of minutes, but image preparation, host load, and network setup can add time.

✅ You'll see your new server appear in the Virtual Machines list with a running status indicator once it's ready.

Connecting to your server

Once the server is running, click the SSH button on your server row. If the guest network and platform SSH terminal are available, a terminal will open directly in your browser.

The login username matches the OS you picked — ubuntu for Ubuntu, rocky for Rocky Linux, debian for Debian, and so on. Full list and how to connect from your local terminal: see Connecting to your server.

ℹ️ Want to connect using a local terminal instead? See Connecting to your server for SSH key instructions.

Next steps

Secure your server — the first thing you should do after connecting
Set up a web server — get Nginx running and host a website
Install a database — MySQL or PostgreSQL setup guide
Understand billing — how charges work and how to manage costs