How to Set Up Your UpCloud Account: A Complete Guide
Learn how to set up your UpCloud account in just a few easy steps. This guide covers registration, payment method setup, security enhancements, and deploying your first cloud server. Plus, we’ll walk you through a quick demo to deploy an Nginx web server, so you can get your first website up and running in minutes. Get started with UpCloud today 🚀
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How to Set Up Your UpCloud Account: A Complete Guide
UpCloud is a high-performance cloud hosting provider known for its reliability and speed. Whether you’re a developer, business owner, or cloud enthusiast, getting started with UpCloud is easy. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the entire setup process, from account registration to launching your first cloud server.
🚀 Exclusive UpCloud Offer — Get Started with a Discount!
Looking for high-performance cloud hosting with faster speeds, better reliability, and competitive pricing? UpCloud is the perfect choice!
🎉 Sign up today and claim your special discount on your first deposit! 50€ free credits and 30 days extended trial Click here to register now!
👉 Start with a free trial and experience the difference!
During your 72-hour free trial, you can explore UpCloud’s features with no commitment. After that, you can upgrade your account by adding balance to continue using your server.
This guide will walk you through setting up your account, navigating the control panel, and deploying your first cloud server.
Let’s get started!
1. Sign Up for an UpCloud Account
- Visit UpCloud’s official website.
- Click on Sign Up in the top right corner.
- Enter your email address, password, and other required details.
- Confirm your registration via email.
💡 Tip: Your account is in trial mode at first. To gain full access, upgrade by adding balance.
2. Complete Your Profile
- Log in to your UpCloud account using your username and password
- Navigate to Account Settings and update your personal details.
- Ensure your contact information is accurate for billing and support purposes.
3. Add a Payment Method
- Go to the Billing section in your dashboard.
- Choose a payment method:
Credit Card
PayPal
Bank Transfer
- Add the required details and verify your payment method.
💡 Note: UpCloud requires a minimum deposit to activate your account.
4. Secure Your Account
- Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for extra security.
- Set up SSH keys for secure server access.
- Regularly update your password and review security settings.
5. Exploring the UpCloud Control Panel
After logging in at hub.upcloud.com, you’ll see the main dashboard. Let’s go through the key sections:
Servers
- The Servers page is where you deploy, manage, and monitor your cloud servers.
- To start, check out our guide on how to deploy a server.
- Read about managing servers to understand the available options.
🚀 Free Trial Limits:
- 1 server instance at a time
- 1 CPU / 1GB RAM / 25GB MaxIOPS storage
- Servers are automatically removed after 72 hours unless you upgrade
Networks
UpCloud provides three types of networks:
- Public Internet (IPv4 & IPv6)
- SDN Private Networks (custom private networking)
- Utility Private Network (preconfigured private network)
📌 Free Trial Limitations:
- Your cloud server gets 1 IPv4 and 1 IPv6 address.
- Network speed is limited to 100 Mbit/s.
To learn more, see our network settings guide.
Storage
The Storage section lets you:
- Manage storage devices
- Create storage templates
- Set up backups
📌 Free Trial Limit: You can use up to 25GB of storage.
Check out our storage management guide for more details.
People
The People section allows you to:
- Create and manage subaccounts for your team.
- Assign permissions for servers, storage, API access, and control panel.
For step-by-step instructions, read how to manage users and subaccounts.
Usage
The Usage page shows your daily and monthly resource usage. You can:
- Track resource consumption
- Monitor billing history
6. Deploy Your First Cloud Server using UpCloud
Step 1: Click Deploy on your dashboard
Step 2: Choose a server location closest to your users
Step 3: Select an operating system (Ubuntu, CentOS, Windows, etc.)
Step 4: Configure CPU, RAM, and storage based on your needs
Step 5: Add an SSH key for secure login
You can generate an SSH key in OpenSSH format on Ubuntu using the following commands. Run these as root to generate the key in the /root/ directory. Run the following command to generate an OpenSSH key in the root directory:
ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -m PEM -f /root/id_rsa -N ""
Step 6: Click Deploy Now to launch your server
After you click Deploy, the resources will take a few seconds to provision, and you can now check the status of your newly created server in the Servers section of the control panel. 🚀
After your server has been successfully provisioned, the next step is to securely connect to it using SSH. Since you’ve already added your public key (new_key.pub) to the server, you can now access it by running ssh -i new_key root@95.111.193.175. If you encounter any permission errors, ensure your private key (new_key) has the correct permissions by running chmod 600 new_key. Once connected, it's recommended to update your server packages, configure a firewall, and set up any necessary security measures. You can also verify system resources and network settings through the UpCloud control panel. If you experience any connection issues, use ssh -vvv -i new_key root@95.111.193.175 to debug the authentication process.
After successfully connecting to your server, you can quickly set up a basic Nginx web server to serve a simple webpage. To do this, create a new script, make it executable, and run it to install and start Nginx.
1️⃣ Create and Deploy a Simple Nginx Server in UpCloud
Run the following commands to set up Nginx and deploy a basic webpage:
vim setup-nginx.sh
# Paste the following script into the file:
```
#!/bin/bash
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y nginx
sudo systemctl start nginx
sudo systemctl enable nginx
echo '<!doctype html>
<html lang="en"><h1>UpCloud Ubuntu server running website</h1></br>
<h3>Your first Instance</h3>
</html>' | sudo tee /var/www/html/index.html
```
Save the file (CTRL + X, then Y, then Enter).
2️⃣ Make the Script Executable and Run It
chmod +x setup-nginx.sh
./setup-nginx.sh3️⃣ Verify Nginx is Running
systemctl status nginx
4️⃣ Check Your Website
Once deployed, open your server’s public IP (95.111.193.175) in a browser:
http://95.111.193.175You should see:
“UpCloud Ubuntu server running website” 🎉
7. Manage and Monitor Your Server
Once the resources have been successfully provisioned, the control panel will display essential details about your server, including its IP address, storage allocation, operating system version, CPU, and memory usage, allowing you to monitor and manage your deployment efficiently. 🚀
- Use the UpCloud Control Panel to manage resources and networking.
- Enable automated backups to protect your data.
- Utilize UpCloud’s API and CLI tool for automation.
Why Choose UpCloud? 🚀
UpCloud stands out as a high-performance cloud hosting provider designed for developers, businesses, and tech enthusiasts who need speed, reliability, and flexibility.
Here’s why UpCloud is a great choice:
✅ Blazing-Fast Performance — Powered by MaxIOPS storage, UpCloud offers 2x faster speeds than traditional SSDs, ensuring ultra-low latency.
✅ Reliable and Highly Available — 100% uptime SLA with automated failover keeps your applications running smoothly.
✅ Scalable and Flexible — Deploy and manage cloud servers easily, with customizable CPU, RAM, and storage.
✅ Global Data Centers — Choose from multiple locations worldwide to reduce latency and improve performance.
✅ Developer-Friendly — Full API & CLI support, automation tools, and integrations with Terraform and Ansible.
✅ Affordable Pricing — Transparent and cost-effective plans, making it a great alternative to AWS, GCP, and DigitalOcean.
✅ Security Built-In — DDoS protection, private networking, and custom firewall rules ensure your infrastructure stays secure.
Ready to experience UpCloud? Sign up today and take advantage of the free trial to test it out! 🚀
Conclusion
Setting up your UpCloud account is quick and easy, allowing you to deploy high-performance cloud servers in just minutes. By following these steps, you’ll be ready to make the most of UpCloud’s powerful and scalable infrastructure:
✅ Explore the UpCloud control panel
✅ Test cloud servers with a free trial
✅ Upgrade your account for full access
✅ Deploy and manage fast and reliable cloud servers
🎉 Sign up today and claim your special discount on your first deposit! 50€ free credits and 30 days extended trial Click here to register now!
Thank You for Reading! 🙌
I truly appreciate you taking the time to go through this guide. If you found it helpful, please Follow, CLAP 👏, SUBSCRIBE, and share it with others who might benefit. Your support means a lot and keeps me motivated to create more useful content!
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About Me
I’m Joel Wembo, a Cloud Solutions Architect and DevOps Engineer at ProdxCloud, specializing in cloud infrastructure, DevOps, and high availability solutions.
