How to install basic server monitoring

Quick answer: For a single VPS, install htop (live processes), vnstat (traffic history) and — for a full web dashboard — Netdata. Together they show CPU, RAM, disk, network and per-service metrics with almost zero configuration.

Overview

Monitoring answers two questions: what is happening right now (live tools) and what happened while I wasn't looking (history). The trio below is free, light and fits any Cloud2Y VPS from SSD VPS to Power VPS.

Before you start

• Root/sudo SSH access.
• A browser for the Netdata dashboard (optional).

Step-by-step guide

1. htop — live processes:

   apt install -y htop      # Ubuntu / Debian
   dnf install -y htop      # AlmaLinux / Rocky
   htop

2. vnstat — bandwidth history:

   apt install -y vnstat
   systemctl enable --now vnstat
   vnstat -d        # daily traffic
   vnstat -m        # monthly traffic

3. Netdata — web dashboard (official kickstart script):

   wget -O /tmp/netdata-kickstart.sh https://get.netdata.cloud/kickstart.sh
   sh /tmp/netdata-kickstart.sh

   Then open http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:19999. Important: restrict access — allow the port only from your IP (ufw allow from 198.51.100.5 to any port 19999 proto tcp) or keep it firewalled and use an SSH tunnel:

   ssh -L 19999:localhost:19999 [email protected]

4. Optional — uptime alerting: use any external uptime service pinging your site/IP so you learn about downtime even when the whole VPS is down.

Common issues

• Netdata port open to the world? Don't leave :19999 public — it exposes detailed server internals. Firewall it as above.
• vnstat shows no data? It starts collecting from installation; give it an hour, and check the service is running.
• Monitoring itself eats resources? Netdata is light, but on tiny plans plain htop + vnstat may be the better fit.

When to contact support

If monitoring shows sustained saturation of CPU, RAM or disk, it's usually time to upgrade resources; if graphs look wrong at the platform level (e.g. steal time, packet loss), open a support ticket with screenshots.

Frequently asked questions

Is Netdata free?

Yes — the Netdata agent is open source and free to run on your own VPS. It installs with the official one-line kickstart script and serves its local dashboard on port 19999 out of the box.

Should the Netdata port be public?

No — it exposes detailed server internals. Firewall port 19999 to your IP only, or access it through an SSH tunnel.

How do I see traffic used per month?

Install vnstat and enable its service; it then records transfer continuously, and vnstat -m prints monthly totals per network interface while vnstat -d shows the daily breakdown.

Related articles

• How to check VPS CPU, RAM and disk usage
• How to troubleshoot high CPU load
• How to troubleshoot high RAM usage
• How to upgrade VPS resources

Need a hand? Contact Cloud2Y support →