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Create your first virtual machine

This guide walks you through creating an Ubuntu VM from the Hikube console, up to the first SSH connection.

Goal​

By the end of this guide, you will have:

  • an Ubuntu VM with status Running;
  • a public IP with port 22 open;
  • key-based SSH access;
  • a replicated system disk.

Prerequisites​

  • A Hikube account and a project (see Hikube quick start).
  • Available quotas in that project: at least 4 vCPU, 16 GB of memory and 20 GB of storage for the example below.
  • An SSH key pair. If you don't have one:
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f ~/.ssh/hikube-vm
cat ~/.ssh/hikube-vm.pub

Keep the displayed public key (line starting with ssh-ed25519): you will paste it into the wizard.

Step 1: Open the creation wizard​

  1. Sign in to https://console.hikube.cloud and select your project.
  2. In the side menu, open Infrastructure > VM Instances.
  3. Click Create an Instance.

The Create a new instance wizard opens. It has five steps: General, Configuration, Storage, Network and Summary.

Step 2: Configure and confirm​

General​

Enter the Instance name, for example vm-demo. The name must be 3 to 16 characters long, start with a letter, end with a letter or a digit, and contain only lowercase letters, digits and hyphens. Click Next.

Configuration​

  1. Under Resources (CPU / RAM), choose the Universal (U) series, then the XLARGE size (4 vCPU, 16 GB).
  2. Leave the Hardware Acceleration (GPU) section empty (see GPU for a VM with a GPU).
  3. Leave Automatic Restart disabled, or enable it if you need it.
  4. Click Next.

VM creation wizard, Configuration step: instance type and GPU

The banner at the top of the step shows the estimated cost and the project's quota usage.

Storage​

The System Disk (Boot) is prefilled: it is named after the VM and is 20 GB.

  1. Under Operating System, select the ubuntu card and version 24.04.
  2. Keep Size (GB) at 20.
  3. Keep Asynchronous Replication (Recommended).
  4. Enable Disk Encryption if you want to encrypt data at rest.
  5. Click Next.

Network​

  1. Check that Public IPv4 Address is enabled.
  2. Check that Enable Firewall is checked and that SSH (22) is selected in Allowed Ports.
  3. Under Authorized SSH keys, paste your public key into the Add a public SSH key field, then confirm with Enter or the add button. The expected format is <algorithm> <base64-key> [comment].
  4. Click Next.

Summary​

The Summary shows the instance, the storage and the Network & Security section (public IP, firewall, open ports, SSH keys). Click Create instance.

The console shows Instance created and returns to the list of instances.

Step 3: Check the status​

In the VM Instances list, the VM goes from Creating to Running. The update is automatic, without reloading the page.

Click the VM name to open its detail page. There you will find:

  • Resources & Characteristics: instance type, system image, default user, vCPU and RAM;
  • Storage & Disks: attached disks, size, replication, encryption;
  • Network & Security: the VM's addresses, in the Internal zone (the mgmt IP, reachable from the project) and in the External zone (the public IP, reachable from the Internet), then SSH Connection and Firewall & Ports.

Expected result: status Running, an address in the External zone, port 22 listed under Firewall & Ports.

Step 4: Get the connection details​

In the Network & Security section of the detail page, the SSH Connection block shows the ready-to-use command, for example:

ssh ubuntu@203.0.113.10

Click the copy icon to copy it to the clipboard. The default user depends on the image; it is the one shown in the SSH command.

VM detail page: Network &amp; Security card with the SSH command

Step 5: Connect and test​

Connect with your private key:

ssh -i ~/.ssh/hikube-vm ubuntu@203.0.113.10

Once connected, check the resources and the disk:

nproc
free -h
lsblk

Expected result: 4 processors, about 16 GB of memory and a vda disk of about 20 GB.

Step 6: Quick troubleshooting​

SymptomCheck
Next stays greyed out at the Configuration or Storage stepA project quota is exceeded: reduce the instance type or the disk size, or have the project quotas increased.
Connection timed out over SSHOn the detail page, check that the External zone shows an address and that port 22 appears in Firewall & Ports.
Permission denied (publickey)Check the user (SSH Connection block) and that the private key you use matches the public key listed in Advanced Configuration > SSH Keys.
Status Error or FailedSee Troubleshooting.

Step 7: Cleanup​

  1. Open the VM detail page, or the Actions menu of its row in the list.
  2. Click Delete.
  3. Type the exact name of the VM to confirm, then click Permanently delete.

The system disk is detached but not deleted: it remains in the Disks menu and keeps consuming storage quota. Delete it from Disks if you no longer need it (see Disks).

Irreversible deletion

Deleting a VM, and then its disks, is permanent. Back up important data first.

Next steps​