KVM Information / Installation Guide (SolusVM)

KVM clients have two ways to install their server OS. Log into the SolusVM control panel and follow the guide below.

Option 1 - Install a Pre-made SolusVM OS Template:

For a list of available OS templates and ISOs, please see this article.

1. Click Reinstall.
2. Select the template you want and click Reinstall.
3. Your new root password will be displayed once you initiate the installation.
4. Monitor the installation progress using VNC.
5. Please see Networking below to configure your connection if needed.
6. If your swap space is not set up correctly, please see Missing Swap below.

Option 2 - Install an ISO:

For a list of available OS templates and ISOs, please see this article.

1. Click CDRom.
2. Mount the desired ISO.
3. Make sure CDROM is before Hard Disk under Settings > Boot Order.
4. Reboot the server from the General tab.
5. Click VNC and configure the OS as desired (see below for help).
6. Unmount the ISO and reset the Boot Order after installation is complete.

Networking:

Your IPs are listed in SolusVM under the Network tab.

IPv4:

Some KVM ISOs work with DHCP. If your ISO does not automatically assign your IPv4 address, configure it manually.

IPv4 Network Configuration:

Netmask: 255.255.255.0
Gateway: xxx.xxx.xxx.1 (fill in the xxx's with the first three parts of your IP)
Network: xxx.xxx.xxx.0 (fill in the xxx's with the first three parts of your IP)

Note: Some of our Netherlands DDoS-filtered IPs have smaller netmasks and different gateways. Please contact support if you need assistance configuring a DDoS-filtered IP in the Netherlands.

Public IPv4 Resolvers (Google):

8.8.8.8
8.8.4.4

IPv6:

Each server comes with a /64 subnet for IPv6 with one IPv6 address on the server by default. Your IPv6 information is listed in the SolusVM CP. Your /64 is part of a larger /48 in each location. You can find your subnet information by clicking Manage next to the server and then clicking the Network tab. Click the IPv6 subnet link and you'll be able to review your information and add more IPv6 addresses to your server. If your IPv6 networking does not work, try the Reconfigure button or see below under "Known Issues".

Public IPv6 Resolvers (Google):

2001:4860:4860::8888
2001:4860:4860::8844

Known Issues / Additional Information

 

Network Cards

Realtek

Please do not use the Realtek network card. It has a 100Mbps limit that cannot be removed. Please use the Intel Pro or Virtio options for 1Gbps connectivity.

Intel Pro/1000

Windows requires this network card. Ubuntu seems to work better with it as well. FreeBSD may show errors without it. You can select it from the SolusVM CP.

Virtio

We recommend that you use the Virtio network card on any OS other than Windows, FreeBSD, and Ubuntu.

OS-Specific Notes

Windows Server 2008/2012

Windows requires the Intel Pro network card and IDE disk driver. However, you can mount the Virtio drivers through the SolusVM control panel and install them at your leisure.

FreeBSD or any OS that cannot use the "Reconfigure" button

For FreeBSD or an OS that doesn't work with the Reconfigure option, set your IPv6 netmask to 48 before setting your default route and gateway to the IPv6 gateway listed in SolusVM for your server.

OpenBSD IPv6

Please see this FAQ article regarding IPv6 problems on OpenBSD: OpenBSD IPv6 Issues

Pagefile / Swap

To avoid I/O abuse, please set your pagefile/swap to a reasonable size. Abusive I/O may result in suspension and or termination without refund.

General Performance

Unless your OS requires IDE, use the Virtio driver. You can select Virtio under Manage > Settings > Disk Driver in SolusVM.

For the best performance, please see the following articles:

SKVM Performance Tweaks

Missing Swap

SolusVM KVM templates have a tendency to not set up swap correctly. Please enter the following in SSH to create your swap:

swapoff /dev/vda2
mkswap /dev/vda2
swapon /dev/vda2

You should do the above commands particularly if you see "cannot allocate memory" errors when updating.

Please keep in mind that RamNode is an unmanaged provider. KVM OS installation is the responsibility of the client. If you are unable to install your OS please request an account credit through a Billing ticket.