Getting Started with Ubuntu 20.04 LTS on Your VPS

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Focal Fossa) is a mature, proven long-term support release with support until April 2025. Widely used for production servers, highly stable, and well-documented. Perfect for both beginners and experienced admins.

About Ubuntu 20.04 LTS

• Release date: April 2020
• LTS support until: April 2025
• Extended support: Until April 2030
• Status: Mature, proven for production

Connect via SSH

ssh root@your-vps-ip

# With SSH key
ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa root@your-vps-ip

Update System

# Update package lists
apt update

# Upgrade all packages
apt upgrade -y

# Install automatic security updates
apt install unattended-upgrades
dpkg-reconfigure -plow unattended-upgrades

Configure Firewall

# Install UFW
apt install ufw -y

# Enable firewall
ufw enable

# Allow SSH (do this first!)
ufw allow 22/tcp

# Allow HTTP/HTTPS
ufw allow 80/tcp
ufw allow 443/tcp

# Check status
ufw status numbered

User Management

# Create new user
useradd -m -s /bin/bash admin

# Set password
passwd admin

# Grant sudo privileges
usermod -aG sudo admin

Install Essential Tools

# Utilities and development tools
apt install -y curl wget git vim htop tmux
apt install -y build-essential python3-dev

# For web servers
apt install -y nginx apache2 php-fpm mysql-server

Monitor Resources

# Check disk space
df -h

# Check RAM usage
free -h

# Check CPU usage
top        # Press 'q' to quit

# Check system uptime
uptime

Security Checklist

• ✓ Enable firewall (UFW)
• ✓ Update system packages
• ✓ Set up SSH key authentication
• ✓ Disable root password login (later)
• ✓ Configure fail2ban to prevent brute-force
• ✓ Set up monitoring and alerts

Related: Ubuntu 22.04 | OS comparison | VPS setup | Linux basics