🛠️ Guide to Common Issues with Aruba Servers and How to Fix Them

🛠️ Guide to Common Issues with Aruba Servers and How to Fix Them

I'm writing this guide based on my direct experience and what has been documented, to help anyone facing network or access issues on an Aruba VPS. This guide is meant to be clear and useful, especially while waiting for support.
🌐 The Most Common Issue: Unconfigured Network

The most common problem, and the one I personally encountered, is that after the first boot of the VPS, basic network commands like ping, ip a, or ip route either fail or produce no output.
Why This Happens

Aruba Cloud has a particular network setup. On some VPS, especially the more budget-friendly ones, the IPv4 and IPv6 interfaces can be separate (e.g., enx5 for IPv4 and enx4 for IPv6). This can cause confusion when running setup scripts that assume a single network interface. As a result, the default routing may not be set correctly, and the system cannot reach the internet.

If you find yourself in this situation, don't worry – there are several things to check.
📝 Step‑by‑Step Diagnostic and Fix Guide

1. Verify Your Credentials

First, double‑check that you used the correct credentials to log in. For a Linux server, the user is root, and the password is the one you set during purchase. These credentials are different from your Aruba account credentials. If the password doesn't work, Aruba does not allow password recovery, but you can reset the administrator account from their console.

1. Check Connection and Firewall

Verify that the server is actually reachable. If ping fails, there might be a firewall blocking connections. Some default configurations, like shorewall6, can cause routing issues for IPv6 if they don't point to the correct interface.

1. The Fix: Manually Configure the Network

If you're in a "no network" situation, the solution is often to manually configure the network interface, typically via the Netplan configuration file (on recent Ubuntu/Debian systems).

Find your network interface name with:
bash

ls /sys/class/net/

It's usually called eth0, ens3, or enpXsY.

Edit the Netplan configuration file. It's usually located in /etc/netplan/. You can create a file like 01-netcfg.yaml with content similar to this (adapt it to your case):
yaml

network:
  version: 2
  ethernets:
    enp2s0:    # Replace with your interface name
      dhcp4: true
      dhcp6: true

You can find examples and details in the official Aruba documentation.

Apply the configuration:
bash

sudo netplan apply

Verify that the network works:
bash

ping -c 4 8.8.8.8   # Test IPv4
ping -c 4 google.com # Test DNS resolution

📞 When to Contact Support

If after these steps the network still doesn't work, or if you're facing a different situation, it's time to contact Aruba support. Here's what to know:

Support Channels: Aruba offers 24/7 technical support. You can open a ticket directly from your customer area.

What to Say: Explain the problem clearly and technically. For example: "I just activated a Linux VPS. The IP is assigned, but the server has no outbound connectivity. The ip a and ping commands produce no output. The network interfaces appear down or unconfigured."

Response Times: It's good to know that support, while active, can sometimes take a few hours to respond. Reviews of Aruba are mixed: some customers are satisfied with stability, while others complain about slow response times or, in rare cases, VM loss due to non‑payment.

⚠️ A Final Tip

Aruba offers VPS services at a competitive price, but it's important to be aware that the initial setup can require some manual intervention. Patience and a good technical background are your best allies. If you're not familiar with Linux network configuration, this might be a good time to practice or ask someone more experienced for help.