---
title: "Quickstart"
description: "From signed up to a running Ubuntu VM with SSH access in the Metalhost dashboard."
url: "https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/quickstart"
---

# Quickstart

Never used Metalhost before? This guide takes you from signup to a running Ubuntu VM with SSH access, entirely in the dashboard. About five minutes. Read [How it works](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/overview.md) if you want the big picture first.

> **what you'll need**
>
> - A web browser and email address (or GitHub / Google account for SSO)
> - A payment method for the wallet — card or USDC crypto
> - An SSH keypair on your laptop. Generate one if you don't have it:
>
> ```
> ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "you@example.com"
> ```

## 1. Sign in

Open [app.metalhost.net](https://app.metalhost.net) and sign in with email + password, or via GitHub or Google SSO. New accounts go through a welcome wizard that creates your first project, collects a payment method, registers an SSH key, and saves a default datacenter. After it finishes you land on the project dashboard.

> **what gets created at signup**
>
> Signup creates an **organization** and grants you the admin role on it. Your first **project** is created during the welcome wizard. Default org quotas (1 network, 25 VMs, 50 disks, 10 public IPv4) are seeded at the same time.

## 2. Register your SSH key

The welcome wizard prompts for this, but you can add more later: *Developers → SSH keys → Add key*. Give it a DNS-safe id (e.g. `laptop`) and paste the contents of `~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub`. Registered keys appear in the VM create picker — tick the ones you want baked into each VM at first boot.

## 3. Fund the wallet

*Billing → Wallet → Top up*. Pick an amount, pick card or USDC, confirm. About $21 is a comfortable starting balance — enough for a small VM running 24/7 for a month. Set up auto-recharge in the same place if you want a hands-off setup.

## 4. Create the VM

1. Open *Compute → Create VM* and give it a **name**, then pick your **region**.
2. In **Compute**, keep **CPU** selected, pick a class (**Intel Cascade Lake**), and size it with the sliders — 2 vCPU · 8 GB · 80 GB is a solid default. (Switch to **GPU** for an RTX 4090 — more models coming.)
3. Under **operating system**, pick **Ubuntu 24.04 LTS**.
4. Under **access**, your registered SSH key is attached to the default `ubuntu` user — add a password if you also want console login. Toggle **public IPv4** on.
5. Click **Create VM**. A confirmation appears and you land on your VM list as it provisions.

The VM reaches **RUNNING** in ~90 seconds. The detail page shows the public IPv4 once provisioning finishes.

## 5. SSH in

Once the VM is **RUNNING**, the VM detail page shows the public IPv4 and the default user. Click **Copy SSH command** for a ready-to-paste line, then paste it into a terminal:

```
ssh ubuntu@203.0.113.42
```

Prefer an in-browser session? Click **Console** on the same page — no public IPv4 required, no client tooling.

> **default-allow SSH**
>
> When a public IPv4 is first allocated, the platform seeds default-allow inbound access for **SSH (TCP/22)**. HTTP, HTTPS, and every other inbound port remain denied until you add [firewall rules](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/guides/firewall.md).

> **cost so far**
>
> Running this VM 24/7 for a month costs about **$19 (compute) + $2 (public IPv4) = $21/mo**. Billing is per-second, so a half-hour test costs a couple of cents. Stop the VM to pause compute billing — the boot disk continues to bill at the storage rate. Delete it to release everything.

## Something went wrong?

| Symptom | Fix |
| --- | --- |
| VM stuck provisioning | Wait ~2 minutes. Check *Compute → Operations* for error details. Wallet empty is the most common cause — top up and retry. |
| Can't SSH | VM must show **RUNNING** and have a public IPv4 (or use **Console** in-browser). Confirm your SSH key was selected at create time. |
| Create button disabled | Wallet balance too low for the quoted price. Top up under *Billing → Wallet*. |
| Region unavailable | That datacenter may be at capacity. Try again later or pick another region when available. |

## What's next

- [How it works](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/overview.md) — orgs, projects, billing, and VMs.
- [VM lifecycle](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/guides/vms-lifecycle.md) — start, stop, restart, resize, console, snapshot, clone.
- [Firewall rules](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/guides/firewall.md) — open ports beyond the default SSH rule.
- [Public IPv4](https://metalhost.net/docs/dashboard/guides/public-ipv4.md) — pricing, default-deny posture.