Rebuilding your cloud server OS

Rebuilding reinstalls the operating system from scratch, wiping all data. Use it to get a clean slate, switching OS versions, recovering from a corrupted install, or starting fresh.

When to rebuild

Rebuild when:

• You want to switch from one OS to another (e.g. Ubuntu to Debian)
• The OS has become unbootable or severely broken
• You want to wipe everything and start completely fresh
• You're decommissioning the server's current use and repurposing it

Snapshot first. If there's any chance you might want to recover your current data, take a snapshot before rebuilding.

How to rebuild

1. Open your server in Cloud Servers
2. Click Rebuild OS in the action buttons at the top
3. The "Rebuild OS" modal opens with the warning: "All data on this server will be lost. Choose the OS to install:"
4. Select your target OS:
   • Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, latest long-term support Ubuntu, recommended
   • Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, previous LTS, widely compatible
   • Debian 12 (Bookworm), stable Debian, minimal footprint
5. Click Rebuild Server

What happens during rebuild

• Your server status changes to "Rebuilding"
• The page shows: "Rebuilding in progress: page will update automatically."
• All files, databases, and installed software are erased
• The selected OS is installed and the server reboots
• Your IPv4 and IPv6 addresses stay the same, only the disk content changes
• Rebuild typically completes in 2–5 minutes

The page refreshes automatically when the rebuild is done. Your server status returns to "Running."

After rebuild

After the rebuild:

• Connect via SSH using the same IP address (Connection card)
• If you set an SSH key at provisioning time, it's re-applied automatically
• If not, a new root password is emailed to you
• Install any software you need from scratch