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Using Strapi on a VPS: First Login, PM2 Commands, and Data-Safe Setup

A practical guide to the CloudPanel-and-PM2 Strapi VPS template, including first login, core PM2 commands, frontend API use, and the reinstall data-loss warning.
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For the Ubuntu 24.04 Strapi VPS template described in the setup guide, open http://[your-vps-hostname]/admin, create the first admin user, and manage the app with PM2 from its project directory. These instructions cover the CloudPanel-and-PM2 deployment, not a separate Docker-based Strapi offering.

Which Strapi VPS setup do these steps cover?

Hostinger’s Strapi template guide describes an Ubuntu 24.04 64-bit VPS with Strapi pre-installed on CloudPanel and managed by PM2, a Node.js process manager. Use the steps below for that setup.

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A separate Strapi application listing describes a Docker-based VPS setup paired with PostgreSQL 16. Its deployment details are different; do not assume the PM2 commands below apply to it. The sources do not establish that either description supersedes the other.

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Open Strapi and create your admin account

  1. In a browser, visit http://[your-vps-hostname]/admin, replacing the bracketed placeholder with your VPS hostname.
  2. Follow the on-screen setup to create the initial Strapi admin user.

The support guide documents this address over HTTP. It does not explain HTTPS setup or provide troubleshooting steps for a page that does not load.

Start and manage Strapi with PM2

Run these commands from the Strapi project directory. They are the commands documented for the CloudPanel-and-PM2 template.

Start the app

pm2 start npm --name "strapi" -- start

Use this if Strapi is stopped and needs to be started under PM2.

Start in development mode

NODE_ENV=development pm2 start npm --name "strapi" -- start

The guide supplies this command for development mode. Treat it as a development setting rather than assuming it is the appropriate mode for a public production deployment.

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View logs or restart

pm2 logs strapi

This displays logs for the PM2 process named strapi.

pm2 restart strapi

This restarts that process. The guide does not specify further PM2 configuration or diagnose particular errors.

Connect a frontend to the Strapi API

A frontend uses Strapi through its API. The support guide says to specify the Strapi API URL in the frontend code, but does not provide framework-specific examples or detailed API permissions instructions. Use the API URL that matches your deployment and configure access in the frontend and Strapi as required by your application.

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Understand the domain and reinstall warning

The Strapi support guide says that running Strapi on a domain involves pointing the domain to the VPS IP, changing the server hostname, and reinstalling the server. This is not described as a routine, data-preserving domain change. Hostinger’s VPS template documentation warns that changing or reinstalling a template permanently deletes all VPS data.

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  • Back up any data you need before reinstalling or changing the template.
  • Do not proceed on the assumption that reinstalling only changes the domain or hostname.

The cited sources do not verify whether reinstalling is the only current way to configure a domain for this template.

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