Bluehost VPS
Install HF Panel on a Bluehost VPS: the system to choose, the ports to open, reverse DNS, outgoing mail on port 25 and the install.
These steps take you from a new Bluehost account to a running HF Panel. Providers change their menus and rules from time to time — if a step looks different, Bluehost's own documentation or support has the current way. The general advice for any VPS is in Choose a VPS and prepare it.
1. Create the server
Order a VPS plan with root access. Choose a plain operating system image; if every image offered comes with a control panel, ask Bluehost support for a plain one or choose another provider. Then set it up with:
- System: a plain Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (or Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 12 or 13, Rocky Linux or AlmaLinux 9 or 10), x86-64, with no control panel or application preinstalled.
- Size: 2 GB of memory or more (1 GB works with the swap file the installer adds), 20 GB of disk or more.
- Access: your SSH key, or a root password.
Note its public IPv4 address.
2. Point your domain at it
Create the DNS records DNS setup lists — at least srv., cp. and mail. your domain,
pointing at the server's address. They can take a few minutes to work.
3. The firewall
Check the VPS settings in your Bluehost account for a firewall. If there is none, the server's own firewall (set up by the installer) is the only one. If you find one, allow the ports below.
| Port | Protocol | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| 22 (or your SSH port) | TCP | SSH and SFTP |
| 80, 443 | TCP | websites, Mail, Files, DB Studio, Let's Encrypt |
| 8443 | TCP | the panels (srv., cp., rs.) |
| 21, 40000–40100 | TCP | FTP with TLS |
| 25, 465, 587, 993, 995 | TCP | email (not with --no-mail) |
| 53 | TCP and UDP | the DNS server (not with --no-dns) |
4. Reverse DNS
Mail from the server is trusted more when its address points back to its name. Ask Bluehost support to set the reverse DNS (PTR) of the server's IP address to the full host name, unless your account has a setting for it.
5. Outgoing mail (port 25)
Run the pre-install check to see whether outgoing port 25 is open. If it is blocked, ask Bluehost support to open it. Websites and the panels work either way; only sending email needs port 25. Where port 25 cannot be opened, set an outgoing mail relay (Server Admin › Email › Server mailboxes): a mail service you connect to on port 587 or 465.
6. Check, then install
Sign in to the server as root, check it, then install with the command from your licence page:
cd /home && curl -o latest -L https://cdn.hostfog.com/latest && bash latest --check
cd /home && curl -o latest -L https://cdn.hostfog.com/latest/licence/YOUR-KEY && bash latest
The check marks each item ✔, ! or ✘ and changes nothing; fix anything marked ✘ first. Then carry on with After installation.