A reboot restarts the Linux VPS and leaves your files in place. A reinstall wipes the disk and builds a fresh operating system. Both are done from the HSJ Host client portal, on the service page for that VPS. You do not need to open a ticket for a normal restart.
These plans are unmanaged. Restarting or reinstalling the machine does not install Nginx, Docker, or a panel for you. After a reinstall you connect again over SSH and set the server up yourself. The login steps are in How to Connect to SSH on Your Linux VPS.
Reboot the VPS
- Log in to the client portal.
- Open the Linux VPS product.
- Under Service Actions, click Reboot.
- Confirm the reboot. The portal asks if you are sure before it restarts the instance.
Give it a minute, then try SSH again. A reboot is the right first step when the server is up in the portal but SSH is hanging, or after a kernel update that asks for a restart. It does not change the IP address, and it does not remove your sites.
Start and Stop sit next to Reboot. Stop powers the instance off. Start brings it back. Use those when you want the machine off, not when you only want a restart.
Use the console if SSH will not connect
Under Service Management, open Console. That is a browser session on the machine, useful when SSH is refused or you have locked yourself out with a firewall rule. Log in as root with the password from the instance details, or from the email sent when the VPS was first provisioned.
Reinstall the operating system
Reinstalling deletes the data on the VPS. Take a copy of anything you need before you confirm it. There is no undo after the new system is written.
- On the same service page, under Service Actions, click Reinstall.
- Read the confirmation. It asks if you want to reinstall this instance.
- Confirm only if you have a backup of the sites and databases on that disk.
To pick a different distribution, open Reinstallation under Service Management. The images available at order are Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, Debian 11, Debian 12, AlmaLinux 8, AlmaLinux 9, Rocky Linux 8 and Rocky Linux 9. The full plan list is on Linux VPS hosting.
When the reinstall finishes, open the instance details in the portal and use the new password. The old root password will not work. The IP address normally stays the same, so DNS that already points at this VPS does not need a change. SSH in and build the stack again.
Which one to use
- The site is slow or SSH timed out once: reboot.
- You cannot SSH in after a firewall change: console, then fix the rule.
- The disk is broken, or you want a clean operating system: reinstall, after a backup.