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InfrastructureCloud VMs

Custom images

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In addition to IBEE-curated OS templates, you can deploy a Cloud VM from a custom image — your own ISO, a snapshot you’ve taken from another VM, or a backup recovery point.

This is the right path for:

  • Migration — bring a server in from another provider with a snapshot or backup it produced.
  • Golden images — standardize a build (web server, ML toolchain, security agent) and clone it across many VMs.
  • Niche operating systems — boot from an ISO not in the template catalog.
  • Disaster recovery — restore an entire VM, including data disks, from a previous recovery point.

Sources

The Operating System picker on the Deploy page exposes three custom-image tabs:

ISOs

Mount an ISO and run an interactive install. ISOs include:

  • Public ISOs in the IBEE catalog.
  • Custom ISOs you’ve uploaded under Tools → ISOs.

After install, the VM keeps the root disk and persists across reboots like any other Cloud VM. See ISOs for upload, attach, and detach steps.

Snapshots

Manual recovery points captured from another VM (Create a snapshot). When you select a snapshot:

  • The root disk is cloned to a new disk on the new VM.
  • Any captured data volumes from the snapshot set are also restored and auto-attached to the new VM.
  • For data volumes, mount instructions are surfaced in the snapshot detail view (Restore a snapshot).

Use snapshots when you need an exact, point-in-time clone — including filesystem state — and you control when the snapshot was taken.

Backups

Scheduled recovery points produced by the automated backups feature. Behaves the same as snapshots at restore time, but the recovery cadence is daily or weekly per the VM’s backup schedule rather than ad-hoc. See Restore from backup.

When to choose each source

SourceBest forNotes
ISOOS not in template catalog; clean install with custom partitioningSlowest path — interactive install required.
SnapshotCloning a known-good build to many VMs; pre-cutover migration testingYou control the timing and scope (root only, all volumes, or selective).
BackupDisaster recovery; rolling back to a recent automated pointSchedule-driven; convenient because it runs without action.

Deployment flow

  1. Open Cloud VMs → Create server.
  2. Pick Region, Location, and Plan as usual.
  3. Under Operating System, switch to ISOs, Snapshots, or Backups.
  4. Pick the source from the list. The chip at the bottom of the page updates to reflect the selected image (for example Snapshot · backup-1).
  5. Continue with SSH Keys, Hostname, and Deploy Now.

Bring-your-own-image checklist

If you’re moving an image in from outside IBEE, verify before booting:

  • virtio drivers for disk and network are present (Linux) or installed (Windows). KVM uses virtio-blk / virtio-net by default.
  • cloud-init (Linux) is installed and enabled — needed for SSH key injection and hostname configuration.
  • DHCP client is enabled on the primary NIC — public IPs are assigned via DHCP.
  • qemu-guest-agent is installed if you want guest filesystem metrics.
  • The bootloader points at the right disk (/dev/vda for the root disk on KVM).

If any of these are missing, the VM may boot but be unreachable, or fail to come up at all. Use the Console to debug.

Related pages

  • OS images
  • ISOs
  • Snapshots
  • Backups