Google Cloud (Compute Engine)
Install HF Panel on a Google Cloud Compute Engine VM: the image to choose, the VPC firewall rule, PTR record, outgoing port 25 (blocked) and the install.
These steps take you from a new Google Cloud account to a running HF Panel. Providers change their menus and rules from time to time — if a step looks different, Google Cloud'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
Create a Compute Engine VM instance (Compute Engine › VM instances) 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
Every VPC network has its own firewall. In the Google Cloud console, create an ingress rule (VPC network › Firewall, Create firewall rule): action Allow, source IPv4 range 0.0.0.0/0, TCP and the ports below, and give the VM the rule's network tag (or leave the targets as all instances). The VM creation page also has Allow HTTP traffic and Allow HTTPS traffic boxes for ports 80 and 443.
| 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. Google Cloud sets the PTR record on the VM's network interface. First reserve a static external IP address and give it to the VM. Then edit the VM, open its primary network interface and, under Public DNS PTR record, enter the full host name (for example mail.yourdomain.com), then click Done and Save. The host name must already point at the address.
5. Outgoing mail (port 25)
Google Cloud blocks outgoing port 25 to addresses outside your network, and this cannot be changed for normal projects. Ports 465 and 587 are open. Plan to send mail through an outgoing mail relay (Server Admin › Email › Server mailboxes) on port 587 or 465. Receiving mail on port 25 works once the firewall allows 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.
Private and public addresses
The VM sees a private address; the public one is mapped to it. HF Panel's licence handles this, and the pre-install check says behind NAT — that is expected here.
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.