Troubleshooting: Cannot Connect to VPS

Overview

If you cannot connect to your VPS via SSH, work through this troubleshooting guide to identify and resolve the issue. Most connection problems can be resolved without contacting support.

Quick Checklist

1. Is the VPS powered on?
2. Are you using the correct IP address?
3. Are you using the correct port (default: 22)?
4. Is your local internet working?
5. Have you recently changed firewall rules?

Step 1: Check VPS Status in Control Panel

1. Log in to your Client Area
2. Navigate to Services > My Services
3. Click on your VPS and open the Control Panel
4. Check the server status — is it showing as Running?

If the server is stopped: Click the Start or Power On button.

If the server appears frozen: Try Force Stop followed by Start.

Step 2: Verify the IP Address

Confirm you are connecting to the correct IP address. Check the Control Panel dashboard for your server IP.

ssh root@YOUR_CORRECT_IP

Step 3: Test Network Connectivity

From your local machine, test if the server is reachable:

ping YOUR_SERVER_IP

If ping fails:

• The server may be down or unreachable
• There may be a network issue
• ICMP (ping) may be blocked by firewall (proceed to next steps)

If ping works but SSH fails: The issue is likely SSH-specific (port blocked, service not running).

Step 4: Check if SSH Port is Open

Test if port 22 is accessible:

nc -zv YOUR_SERVER_IP 22

Or:

telnet YOUR_SERVER_IP 22

Connection refused: SSH service may not be running, or firewall is blocking.

Connection timed out: Firewall is likely blocking the port.

Step 5: Use VNC Console

If SSH is inaccessible, use the VNC Console for emergency access:

1. Open the Control Panel from your Client Area
2. Click VNC Console or Console
3. Log in as root

See our VNC Console guide for detailed instructions.

Step 6: Common Fixes via VNC

Check if SSH is Running

systemctl status sshd

If not running:

systemctl start sshd
systemctl enable sshd

Fix Firewall Lockout (UFW)

# Check UFW status
ufw status

# Allow SSH
ufw allow 22/tcp

# Or disable UFW temporarily
ufw disable

Fix Firewall Lockout (firewalld)

# Check firewalld status
firewall-cmd --list-all

# Allow SSH
firewall-cmd --add-service=ssh --permanent
firewall-cmd --reload

Check SSH Configuration

# View SSH config
cat /etc/ssh/sshd_config | grep -E "^Port|^PermitRootLogin|^PasswordAuthentication"

Ensure:

• Port matches what you are connecting to (default: 22)
• PermitRootLogin is not set to no if you are logging in as root
• PasswordAuthentication is yes if using password login

After changes:

systemctl restart sshd

Check for IP Bans (Fail2Ban)

If you have Fail2Ban installed, your IP may have been banned after failed login attempts:

# Check banned IPs
fail2ban-client status sshd

# Unban your IP
fail2ban-client set sshd unbanip YOUR_LOCAL_IP

Step 7: Check System Logs

Via VNC, check for errors:

# SSH authentication issues
tail -50 /var/log/auth.log

# System messages
tail -50 /var/log/syslog

Common Error Messages

Still Cannot Connect?

If you have tried all the above steps and still cannot connect:

1. Open a support ticket
2. Include:
   • Your VPS IP address
   • The exact error message you see
   • Steps you have already tried
   • When the issue started

Our team will investigate network and infrastructure issues that may be affecting your server.