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For a 1 GB VPS running Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, start by securing SSH access, then apply a default-deny firewall and enable automatic security updates. Add swap only if you have enough disk space and accept that it is slower than RAM. The commands below assume you can connect as a sudo-capable account or use your provider’s console; package names, file paths and service behavior can differ on Debian and other distributions.
Before you begin
This walkthrough is scoped to Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. It does not assume that every Ubuntu image, cloud provider, or other Linux distribution has identical defaults. Check your release and current privileges first:
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whoami
Keep an existing SSH session open while making access changes, and make sure you can use your provider’s web console or recovery console if one is available. A firewall mistake or an SSH configuration error can lock you out of a remote machine. Do not close the working session until you have tested a fresh connection using the new account and key.
Create a non-root administrator and confirm key access
Use a regular account with sudo for administration rather than logging in as root. If you already have a non-root sudo account and can log in to it with an SSH key, you can move to the SSH hardening section.
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Connect using the access method supplied by your VPS provider. Create a user, replacing
adminuserwith the account name you want:sudo adduser adminuser sudo usermod -aG sudo adminuseradduserprompts you to set a password and may ask for optional user details. The account password is not a substitute for an SSH key; it is used for local account administration and may be needed by sudo depending on the image’s configuration.Recommended Free Tools
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Install the public half of your SSH key for that user. Make the SSH directory and set its permissions:
sudo install -d -m 700 -o adminuser -g adminuser /home/adminuser/.sshAppend the complete public-key line, commonly found in a local file ending in
.pub, to/home/adminuser/.ssh/authorized_keys. For example, from your local computer you can usessh-copy-id adminuser@SERVER_IPif that utility is installed and your current login method permits it. Otherwise, transfer the public key through your provider’s console or another trusted route. Do not copy your private key to the VPS. -
Set ownership and restrictive permissions on the authorized-keys file:
sudo chown adminuser:adminuser /home/adminuser/.ssh/authorized_keys sudo chmod 600 /home/adminuser/.ssh/authorized_keysIf you created the file under a different home directory, adjust the path rather than assuming every account uses
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Open a second terminal on your own computer and test the new account before changing SSH policy:
ssh adminuser@SERVER_IPConfirm that the session authenticates with the intended key, then verify sudo works:
sudo -vResolve any key, ownership, permission, or sudo issue while the original session remains available. Only continue when the new session works.
Harden SSH without losing access
Ubuntu’s OpenSSH configuration loads drop-in files from /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/. For most directives, the first value encountered is used. A file named 99-hardening.conf is a convenient place for local settings, but an earlier drop-in may set a value first. Check the effective configuration after making changes rather than assuming the filename guarantees precedence.
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Create or edit the hardening drop-in:
sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/99-hardening.confAdd these settings:
PermitRootLogin no PasswordAuthentication no KbdInteractiveAuthentication no MaxAuthTries 3Disabling password and keyboard-interactive authentication means users need another configured authentication method, normally a valid SSH key. Do not apply these settings until the key login test above succeeds. If your environment relies on an alternate authentication mechanism, verify that it remains available before disabling it.
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Validate the configuration syntax before reloading or restarting the service:
sudo sshd -tNo output indicates that the syntax check passed. If it reports an error, fix the file and rerun the check; do not restart SSH with a configuration that fails validation.
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Inspect effective values for the two core access controls:
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permitrootlogin noandpasswordauthentication no. If it shows a different value, inspect the included configuration files for an earlier setting and correct the precedence issue. -
Restart the SSH service only after the syntax test succeeds, and keep the original session open while testing another fresh connection:
sudo systemctl restart sshOn Ubuntu 24.04, SSH can use socket activation. If you intend to change SSH’s port, do not treat editing
sshd_configalone as sufficient: the socket configuration may also need to be updated. Apply the matching firewall rule before restarting or changing the listener, and verify the new port from a second session before ending the old one. This guide leaves SSH on its existing port.
Set a default-deny firewall with UFW
UFW can block unsolicited incoming connections while allowing outbound traffic. Before enabling it, identify the port on which you currently reach SSH. The commands below use the standard OpenSSH application profile; if your VPS uses a custom SSH port or the profile is unavailable, allow the actual TCP port instead. A firewall enabled without an SSH allow rule can cut off remote access.
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Set incoming traffic to deny by default and outgoing traffic to allow:
sudo ufw default deny incoming sudo ufw default allow outgoing -
Allow SSH. Choose one of the following approaches, not both:
sudo ufw allow OpenSSHOr, to rate-limit new SSH connections using UFW:
sudo ufw limit OpenSSHIf the profile does not match your SSH listener, substitute the actual port, for example
sudo ufw limit 2222/tcpfor a listener on TCP port 2222. Do not leave both a broad allow rule and a rate-limit rule for the same SSH service if your intent is to use the limit rule; the allow rule may defeat the point of the rate limit. -
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sudo ufw allow 80/tcp sudo ufw allow 443/tcpDo not open ports merely because a software package might use them later. Add a rule when a service is actually intended to accept external connections.
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Enable UFW and inspect the resulting policy:
sudo ufw enable sudo ufw status verboseReview the output before closing your working session. It should show the intended SSH access and only the additional ports you deliberately opened. If a required port is missing, add the rule from the active session and check the status again.
UFW limiting and fail2ban are different controls
UFW’s limit rule is connection-rate based. fail2ban is an optional, log-based tool that can ban addresses after matching failed-login activity. They address related but different signals and can be used together; neither should replace SSH keys, a correct firewall policy, or a working recovery path.
| Control | What it reacts to | What to know |
|---|---|---|
UFW limit |
Connection attempts reaching the limited rule | Simple to apply at the firewall; the exact threshold is not stated here because the available threshold claim was not confirmed against primary documentation. |
fail2ban |
Matching events in service logs, such as SSH authentication failures | Optional additional service. Its jail and firewall action must be configured correctly for the server. |
If you choose to install and configure fail2ban, one common configuration pattern uses a UFW ban action and a stricter SSH daemon jail. After configuring it, check the SSH jail with:
sudo fail2ban-client status sshdThe status command is useful only if fail2ban is installed and the sshd jail is enabled. Do not add the package merely to satisfy a checklist; the core setup can use UFW without it.
Enable automatic security updates
Ubuntu’s unattended-upgrades package is installed by default on Ubuntu images in the scope of this guide, and its default configuration applies security updates. Verify its state rather than assuming the image has retained that configuration. The package’s settings are held in /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/, including 50unattended-upgrades and 20auto-upgrades. Ubuntu security guidance recommends putting custom changes in a separate drop-in rather than editing 50unattended-upgrades directly.
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Install the update tools if they are missing:
sudo apt update sudo apt install unattended-upgrades apt-listchanges -
Run the configuration dialog to enable unattended upgrades:
sudo dpkg-reconfigure -plow unattended-upgradesChoose to enable automatic installation when prompted. The default behavior is security-focused; do not assume this automatically installs every available update from every software source.
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Review the configuration files if you need to customize update origins or scheduling. Preserve the package-provided file and place local overrides in an appropriate separate file under
/etc/apt/apt.conf.d/. Configuration changes can alter what is installed, so inspect the resulting behavior rather than adding unverified directives. -
Check the service state and review the update log:
systemctl is-enabled unattended-upgrades sudo less /var/log/unattended-upgrades/unattended-upgrades.logThe expected enabled-state result is
enabled. The log helps confirm what the updater has processed; it does not replace checking whether a particular service needs a restart. -
Run a dry-run diagnostic when you want to see what unattended-upgrades would do without applying updates:
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sudo unattended-upgrades --dry-run --debug
Decide deliberately how reboots should be handled. Automatic security updates and automatic reboots are separate operational concerns: a reboot can interrupt services or a workload in progress. If you enable automatic reboot behavior, account for the service impact and schedule it appropriately rather than assuming an unattended reboot is harmless.
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Decide whether to add swap
Many cloud images do not include swap. On a machine with 1 GB of RAM, a swap file can provide additional space for memory pages when RAM is under pressure, but it is disk-backed and should not be treated as a replacement for physical memory. The frequently suggested size of 1–2 GB for a 1 GB VPS, including a 2 GB example, and a vm.swappiness value of 10 come from common guides rather than confirmed primary-source sizing guidance. Treat them as starting conventions, not Ubuntu requirements or performance guarantees.
Check existing swap and available disk space
Before creating a file, see whether swap is already active and whether the VPS has room for another file:
free -h
swapon --show
df -h /
If swapon --show already lists active swap, do not blindly create another file. If disk space is tight, do not allocate a large swap file at the expense of the operating system or application data.
Create a 2 GB swap file if that fits your disk and needs
The following is a common setup example, not an official sizing recommendation. Use a different size only after considering available disk space and your workload.
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Create the file, restrict access, and format it:
sudo fallocate -l 2G /swapfile sudo chmod 600 /swapfile sudo mkswap /swapfileIf
fallocatefails, stop and investigate the filesystem and available space rather than proceeding as if a valid file was created. -
Enable the swap file for the current boot:
sudo swapon /swapfile -
Make the file available after reboot by adding this line to
/etc/fstab:/swapfile none swap sw 0 0Append the line once only. If it is already present, do not duplicate it.
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Optionally set the commonly used swappiness value in a sysctl drop-in. This value is a tuning convention rather than verified official guidance for every 1 GB VPS:
echo 'vm.swappiness=10' | sudo tee /etc/sysctl.d/99-swappiness.conf sudo sysctl --system -
Verify the active result:
free -h swapon --showThe swap file should appear in
swapon --show. If it does not, review the commands and system output before assuming the file is active.
Swap may reduce the chance that a short-lived memory spike immediately exhausts available memory, but it cannot make a memory-heavy workload behave like one running on a larger-RAM server. If the machine is persistently relying on swap, consider reducing the workload or moving to a VPS with more memory.
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Verify the finished configuration
Run these checks from your administrator account after making the changes:
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Confirm the effective SSH settings:
sudo sshd -T | grep -E 'permitrootlogin|passwordauthentication'Look for
permitrootlogin noandpasswordauthentication no. -
Review the firewall’s active rules:
sudo ufw status verboseConfirm that SSH uses the expected port or profile and that only intentional service ports are listed.
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Check unattended-upgrades enablement:
systemctl is-enabled unattended-upgradesIt should return
enabledfor the setup described here. -
Check memory and swap, if you configured swap:
free -h swapon --show -
Open a new SSH session and authenticate as the non-root administrator using the intended key. Keep the existing session until that test succeeds.
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Common problems and recovery
The new account cannot log in with its key
Do not disable password authentication or close the original working session. Confirm that the public key was copied as a complete line to the account’s authorized_keys file, then check its ownership and permissions. The key must correspond to the private key offered by the client. Correct the account path if the user’s home directory is not /home/adminuser.
SSH reports a configuration error
Run sudo sshd -t and fix the reported syntax problem before restarting the service. If syntax passes but sshd -T shows an unexpected effective value, check earlier files in /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/; an earlier value may take precedence over the new drop-in.
You cannot connect after enabling UFW
If the old session is still active, use it to inspect sudo ufw status verbose and add an allow or limit rule for the actual SSH port. If remote access is already lost, use the VPS provider’s console or recovery mechanism to correct the firewall. Do not assume that an OpenSSH profile automatically covers a custom port.
A port change does not take effect
Ubuntu 24.04 may use socket activation for SSH. A port change can therefore require updating the socket configuration as well as the SSH daemon configuration. Also ensure the firewall permits the new port before restarting or reloading the listener. Because these settings vary by image, keep an existing session and test the new port separately before closing it.
Swap is absent or the disk is nearly full
Use swapon --show to check whether swap is actually active, and df -h / to inspect space on the root filesystem. Do not keep retrying a failed allocation without checking its error and the available storage. If swap is active but the machine continuously depends on it, reduce memory demand or choose a larger-memory server rather than treating swap as extra RAM.
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