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How to Manage Your Firewall VPS/Dedicated Servers

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The firewall is your first line of defense for protecting your virtual server. It gives you full control over incoming connections through custom rules that define what traffic is allowed and what is blocked, based on IP addresses, ports, or protocols.

Accessing Firewall Management

You can access Firewall Management through two paths depending on which IP you want to manage:

Path 1: For the Primary IP (Direct Access)
  1. Log in to the Client Area.
  2. Go to Services and select the relevant service.
  3. In the server dashboard, expand the Network & Security section.
  4. Click Firewall Management.
Path 2: For Any IP (Primary or Additional)
  1. Log in to the Client Area.
  2. Go to Services and select the relevant service.
  3. In the server dashboard, expand the Network & Security section.
  4. Click IP Management.
  5. In the IP address table, click the three-dot menu next to the target IP.
  6. Select Firewall Management from the dropdown.

Creating the Firewall

On first access, if no firewall has been created yet, you will see a message: Firewall not created yet.

  1. Click the Create Firewall button.
  2. Confirm the action in the confirmation dialog.
  3. Wait for the process to complete and the status to change to Active.
Note: Once created, the firewall becomes active immediately. You can disable and re-enable it at any time from the same page.

Understanding Rule Structure

Each rule in the Firewall Rules table consists of the following fields:

  • Sequence: A number from 0 to 19 that sets rule priority. Lower numbers are processed first.
  • Action: Permit = allows the connection, Deny = blocks it.
  • Protocol: TCP (most common), UDP, ICMP (Ping), or IPv4 for all protocols.
  • Source: The source IP address or CIDR range. Leave empty to match any source (0.0.0.0/0).
  • Source Port: Optional. Leave empty in most cases.
  • Dest Port: The port on your server, e.g. 22 for SSH, 80 for HTTP.
Note: Single IP addresses are automatically converted to /32 notation, meaning 1.2.3.4 matches that exact host only. To match an entire subnet, use CIDR notation such as 192.168.1.0/24.

Adding a New Rule

  1. From the Firewall Management page, click the Add Rule button.
  2. Select a Sequence number (only available slots are listed).
  3. Set the Action: Permit or Deny.
  4. Choose the appropriate Protocol.
  5. Enter a Source IP or CIDR to restrict the rule to a specific address, or leave it empty to apply to all.
  6. Enter the Dest Port if the rule targets a specific port.
  7. Click Add Rule to save.
Note: After adding a rule, it will briefly appear as pending. The page refreshes automatically once the rule is fully applied.

Practical Example: Securing SSH (Port 22)

SSH is the protocol used to connect to your server via the command line. Leaving it open to everyone exposes your server to brute-force attacks. In this example, we will allow two specific IP addresses and block everyone else.

Warning: Always add your Permit rule for your own IP before adding the global Deny rule. If you add a rule by mistake, you can delete it directly from the Firewall Management page — since this firewall operates at the network level and not inside the server, your access will be restored immediately.
Step 1 — Allow the First Administrator
  1. Click Add Rule.
  2. Sequence: 0
  3. Action: Permit
  4. Protocol: TCP
  5. Source: 88.99.100.10
  6. Dest Port: 22
  7. Click Add Rule.
Step 2 — Allow the Second Administrator
  1. Click Add Rule.
  2. Sequence: 1
  3. Action: Permit
  4. Protocol: TCP
  5. Source: 41.128.55.20
  6. Dest Port: 22
  7. Click Add Rule.
Step 3 — Block Everyone Else on Port 22
  1. Click Add Rule.
  2. Sequence: 19
  3. Action: Deny
  4. Protocol: TCP
  5. Source: 0.0.0.0/0
  6. Dest Port: 22
  7. Click Add Rule.

Your final firewall ruleset will look like this:

  • #0 — Permit / TCP / Source: 88.99.100.10 / Dest Port: 22
  • #1 — Permit / TCP / Source: 41.128.55.20 / Dest Port: 22
  • #19 — Deny / TCP / Source: 0.0.0.0/0 / Dest Port: 22
How it works: When a new connection arrives on port 22, rules are checked in order starting from the lowest sequence number. Permitted IPs match at rule #0 or #1 and are allowed through. Any other source reaches rule #19 and is blocked.

Enabling and Disabling the Firewall

You can control the firewall status directly from the management page:

  • If the status is Active, click Disable to temporarily suspend protection.
  • If the status is Disabled, click Enable to reapply all configured rules.
Warning: Disabling the firewall leaves your server unprotected until you re-enable it. Avoid disabling it on production servers unless absolutely necessary.

Deleting a Rule

  1. In the Firewall Rules table, click the delete icon next to the rule you want to remove.
  2. Confirm the deletion in the confirmation dialog.
  3. The rule will be removed and the list will update automatically.
Note: Rule deletion cannot be undone. If you need the rule again in the future, you will have to recreate it.

Important Tips

  • Always add Permit rules with lower sequence numbers than your Deny rules.
  • Use Sequence 19 for broad Deny rules to ensure they are processed last.
  • To allow an entire subnet, use CIDR notation such as 192.168.1.0/24 instead of adding each IP individually.
  • Test your connection after each rule change before closing your current session.
  • If you add a rule by mistake, you can delete it directly from the same page — the firewall operates at the network level, so changes take effect immediately without any server-side restrictions.
Need help? If you encounter any issues or have questions, feel free to contact our support team.
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