Installing Arch on a Vultr VPS
Abstract
I have been happy using Vultr as my VPS provider for a few months now. Vultr offer a very flexible system of ISO upload before the first boot, which means essentially unlimited options when choosing the operating system for a new VPS (there is also a large library of ISO images to chose from; only occasionally have I actually uploaded my own).
However, booting a fresh ISO on a VPS can be a challenge; the hardware and devices exposed to the VPS are usually unfamiliar. These are my steps for installing Arch after the VPS has been provisioned by Vultr, and you have a working VNC connection to the console.
This assumes a familiarity with Arch. Don't forget the installation guide is the most comprehensive resource if you get stuck.
General Checks
Check that networking has come up correctly in the live ISO environment:
# ping -c 1 google.com
Update the system clock.
# timedatectl set-ntp true
Update the Arch keyring.
# pacman -Sy archlinux-keyring
Disk Partitioning
Check the available block devices. Your disk will be available as vda or similar, but adapt the following as required. Once you have identified the disk, use fdisk to partition.
# lsblk
# fdisk /dev/vda
Create a new, full-disk partition by pressing N, and using the default values for each question. Your new partition will be available as /dev/vda1/ once complete.
Write the partition table with W.
Finally, we need to create a new filesystem on the disk and mount it. I use ext4, because I'm unfamiliar with btrfs. Your research might indicate that btrfs is more appropriate for your needs.
# mkfs-ext4 /dev/vda1
# mount /dev/vda1 /mnt
Bootstrapping
Now it's time to bootstrap the system with the base metapackage. This may take a while. If you plan on compiling a lot of code, it might be worth also installing base-devel at this point.
# pacstrap /mnt base
# pacstrap /mnt base-devel
Soon, we are going to chroot into the new system. First, we need to create an fstab:
# genfstab /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab
Now, we will switch over to the new system:
# arch-chroot /mnt
Basic Configuration
Now we are chrooted into the system, set the timezone and sync the clock:
# ls /usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/
# ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/London /etc/localtime
# hwclock --systohc
Set the root password:
# passwd
Set the system locale to UTF-8. Visit locale.gen and uncomment en_GB.UTF-8 UTF-8, then set the locale:
# vi /etc/locale.gen
# echo 'LANG=en_GB.UTF-8' > /etc/locale.conf
Networking
Now, find the currently active network adaptor. This is usually called ens3 or similar.
# ip addr
Write the configuration file:
# vi /etc/systemd/network/ens3.network
The content should be as follows:
[Match]
Name=ens3
[Network]
DHCP=ipv4
Enable DHCP, DNS and setup resolv.conf:
# systemctl enable systemd-networkd
# systemctl enable systemd-resolved
# ln -sf /run/systemd/resolve/stub-resolv.conf /etc/resolv.conf
Set the system hostname
# echo 'server.domain.com' > /etc/hostname
Install the bootloader
Install grub, and write a configuration file.
# pacman -S grub
# grub-install --target=i386-pc /dev/vda
# grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
Reboot
Now, exit the chroot, and reboot the system.
# exit
# systemctl poweroff
Now, in the Vultr control panel, unmount the ISO, and boot the system again. Reconnect the VNC console.
Post-Boot Setup
Assuming the system has booted successfully (if it hasn't, then re-insert the ISO, remount /dev/vda1, and reactivate the chroot to investigate), then login as root.
Next, create a new user, and setup sudo:
# useradd --create-home <yourusername>
# passwd <yourusername>
# pacman -S sudo
# visudo
Find the appropriate section of /etc/sudoers, and add something like this:
<yourusername> ALL=(ALL) ALL
Now, logout as root and login again as your newly created user.
# exit
Next, install SSH and edit the configuration file to enable a port. Typically this will be port 22.
$ sudo pacman -S openssh
$ sudo vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Finally, enable SSH:
$ sudo systemctl enable --now sshd
You should now be able to login via SSH (root is denied by default). You can continue your onward configuration from there.