A reinstall wipes the disk and installs a fresh OS in a few minutes. It is often faster than repairing a broken system. Your IP addresses, plan, and hostname stay; everything on the disk is erased.
1. Save your data first
The reinstall erases the whole disk right away, and there is no undo. Before you do anything, copy your important data off the server:
$ mysqldump -u root -p --all-databases > /root/all-dbs.sql $ tar czf /root/vps-backup.tar.gz /root/all-dbs.sql /var/www /etc/nginx /etc/letsencrypt
Then pull the single archive down from your own computer (not the VPS):
$ scp [email protected]:/root/vps-backup.tar.gz .
Change the paths to match what you run: databases, web roots, service configs, cron jobs (crontab -l), and anything in /home.
Off the server means off the server
Files saved to another folder on the same VPS are erased with everything else. Your copy must be on your own computer or another server before you continue. If your plan includes backups, take one from Backups in the client area too, but do not make it your only copy.
2. Pick an operating system
In the client area open Services, select the service, and go to Reinstallation under Service management. Choose a clean install of AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, RedHat (bring your own license), or Windows.
3. Run the reinstall
Click your choice and read the confirmation dialog. It names the image and repeats that all existing data will be erased. Confirm, then watch the progress under Tasks. The VPS is unreachable for a few minutes while the image installs, then it boots on its own.
Log in through Console under Service management, or via SSH once it responds. Your root password is shown under Information on the service page; use Change password under Service actions if you want a new one.
4. Fix the SSH host key warning
Your first SSH attempt after a reinstall fails with a big warning: REMOTE HOST IDENTIFICATION HAS CHANGED. This is expected. The fresh OS created new host keys, and your machine still remembers the old ones. Remove the old entry and connect again:
$ ssh-keygen -R YOUR.VPS.IP $ ssh [email protected]
Accept the new fingerprint when prompted.
5. First steps on the fresh system
$ apt update && apt upgrade -y$ dnf upgrade -yThen set up your firewall before you install anything public (see our firewall guide), create your users and SSH keys again, and restore the data you saved in step 1. Your DNS and reverse DNS need no changes, because the IP addresses did not change.
6. Restore your data
When the fresh system is up and reachable, copy the archive back from your own computer, then unpack it on the server:
$ scp vps-backup.tar.gz [email protected]:/root/
$ tar xzf /root/vps-backup.tar.gz -C /This puts your web roots (/var/www) and configs (/etc/nginx, /etc/letsencrypt) back in their original places, with the SQL dump at /root/all-dbs.sql. Install the services they belong to again (web server, database), then import the databases and reload:
$ mysql -u root -p < /root/all-dbs.sql $ systemctl reload nginx
Install the stack first
A restored config only works after its service is installed, and the SQL import needs a running database server. Install your web server and database first, then run the import and the reload above.
Quick reference
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is erased | Everything on the disk |
| What survives | IP addresses (v4 and v6), plan, hostname |
| Where | Services, your service, Reinstallation |
| How long | A few minutes, progress under Tasks |
| Root password | Shown under Information after install |
| SSH warns about host key | Normal, ssh-keygen -R YOUR.VPS.IP |
Where to go next
After the reinstall, work through our firewall setup guide, then secure SSH with key-only login. If a broken system forced this reinstall, take a snapshot before the next risky change. Then you can roll back instead of reinstalling again.