Create a node

A running node needs an operating system, a plan, and a way in. Pick those here, then launch. You need only a MyAccount login: open Compute > Nodes and click Add New Node.

Choose what to create from

Add New Node opens with three tabs: GPU, CPU, and Marketplace, with CPU selected by default.

• CPU starts you from a plain operating system image. Pick this for a node you configure yourself.
• GPU starts you from a GPU card, and only appears for accounts in Delhi. Pick this for training, inference, or another GPU job.
• Marketplace starts you from a ready-made product image instead of a plain OS or a GPU card. Plan, pricing, network, security, and Launch work the same as the other tabs.

Choose an operating system, GPU card, or product

A search box filters the list on CPU or Marketplace. Ubuntu defaults to version 24.04 or the newest version available; change it from the Version dropdown on the plan screen. On GPU, choose a card the same way; Marketplace shows only products enabled for your account and region, with a fixed OS and version.

Pick the operating system and version you mean to keep: changing them later means reinstalling the node, which deletes everything on it; see Reinstall a node.

Your choice takes you to Select Plan. Some operating systems add a Category step there; GPU replaces it with a GPU Card Memory filter, narrowing plans by card memory.

Choose a family and plan

The Select Plan screen lists node families under Instance Type, then plans under each family. See Node families for how to pick one:

• E1, and its Windows edition E1WC: cost-effective, for development and testing.
• C3: compute-optimized, for CPU-intensive workloads.
• M3: memory-optimized, for in-memory databases and real-time analytics.
• SDC3: dedicated compute with guaranteed performance.
• GDC, from the GPU tab: dedicated GPU compute with guaranteed resources, for graphics-intensive and parallel-processing work.
• GDC3: next-generation GPU compute for deep learning, LLM inference, and high-performance computing.

A temporarily unavailable plan shows Launch as Request instead, so you can ask for it.

Choose on-demand or committed pricing

The Summary panel shows Estimated Cost, starting with an On-Demand rate; a committed option, where available, carries a Save X% badge above 3% savings. On-Demand bills until you delete the node, or stop it on E1; committed pricing fixes the price for a term, and longer terms save more. Pick On-Demand if unsure how long you will keep the node, or commit once you know the term; see Committed nodes for how the terms work. A committed node stays paid for the full term either way, even if you delete it early, and a minimum monthly charge bills right away, then again each month. Family, plan, and this pricing choice are all you pick on this screen; there is no separate region selector.

Set up storage, network, and access

The rest of the form follows, as it applies to your family and tab:

• Root Storage (E1 and E1WC only): 75 GB to 2,400 GB, defaulting to 150 GB. Increase it later; see Increase root storage.
• (Optional) Backup, off by default, adds a monthly fee plus a charge per GB stored. See Enable backups on a node for the schedule and retention.
• (Optional) VPC puts the node on a virtual private cloud, a private network for your nodes. Pick a Default VPC, one with an E2E provided range of 512 addresses, or a Custom VPC for your own range and subnets; see Attach a node to a VPC. On families other than E1, this section also offers to assign the node a static public IPv4, as an alternative to Reserve IPv4; you use one or the other.
• (Optional) Reserve IPv4 attaches an existing reserved IP, or creates one; E1 and E1WC nodes get no public IP by default. See Attach a reserved IP.
• Security Group attaches existing groups, or creates one; the default group allows all traffic, so tighten it to what your node needs.
• (Optional) SSH Keys selects saved keys or adds a new one; turning off password-based SSH needs at least one key selected. Hidden for Windows nodes and FortiGate images.
• (Optional) Volume attaches extra storage from a dropdown of volumes ready to attach, only when creating a single node.

Advanced settings

You can skip Advanced settings entirely.

• Add Start Script runs a script you provide each time the node starts or reboots. See Run a script when a node starts.
• Enable Encryption adds a passphrase, offered for the C3, M3, E1, E1WC, and SDC3 families. A passphrase is optional, and if you set one it must be 8 to 12 characters with an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, and a special character. See Node encryption.
• BitNinja, for Linux nodes. On a VPC, it needs the node to have a public IPv4. See Activate BitNinja on a node.
• IPv6, offered only in Delhi, as your node’s default public IP. See Attach an IPv6 address.

Name your node and launch

The name field starts filled in with the plan name plus a random 3-digit number. Change it to letters, digits, underscores, and hyphens, 50 characters or fewer. You can create 1 to 5 nodes at once, each counting toward your limit of 10 running resources (30 for an organization).

Before you click Launch, check the Summary panel against what you actually meant to set up:

• OS, version, family, and plan match the workload
• disk size and IOPS suit what the application needs
• security group allows only the traffic the node actually needs
• backup is on, or you meant to leave it off for now
• VPC, public IP, volume, and encryption choices are the ones you picked, not the defaults
• Estimated Cost matches what you expect to pay

Click Launch. A low-balance message appears if your account lacks credit. Otherwise you are taken to your list of nodes, where the new one shows as Creating until it starts running. To do this through the API, use Create Node.

The node is ready when it reads Running in the list. Its public IP, if it has one, shows on the same row. The username and password arrive by email. Connect to it next: see Connect to a Linux node or Connect to a Windows node. If the node does not reach Running, or something else goes wrong, start at Troubleshooting node. If a choice on the form was greyed out, or a message stopped the launch, see what each one means in Troubleshooting node actions and lifecycle.