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FOSSVPS updates + free server for Open Source developers from Alexhost, Hosteroid and ST-Hosting
msatt
Member, Host Rep
Our Uptime
Thought some of you would like to see how we compare in uptime (you can always check at (status.fossvps.org).
We all want 100% uptime which we achieved in March on 5 servers and 8 minutes down on one rendering 99.998%
User abuse
A couple of NodeSeek users decided that instead of using the free VMs for Open Source development they would instead just continuously hammer the cpu for over 10 days. During development I would expect bursts but not with 10 days continuous average above 40% over 2 cpus - come on play fair and think about others.
NPM
Nginx Proxy Manager is working well and overcomes many of the NAT issues. Clients point their domain name to NPM and configure http / s to point to their VM ports. NPM will even generate the certificates and request account / password access.
More details at fossvps.org/npm_launch.html
Port forwarding
For protocols not using http/s we also have direct node to vm port mapping e.g. node:46002 > vm:46002
Reminder buc1 terminates on 17th of April.
As always our thanks to
Alexhost, Hosteroid, ST-Hosting and MSATT for our great reliable servers.
If you are an Open Source Developer, come join us. Absolutely FREE, no catches, no credits, no price bumps.
Server locations and end dates are always on our website at https://fossvps.org and currently are :-
DE Frankfurt (de11) courtesy of ST-Hosting till 1st Feb 2028
Moldova Chisinau (mol1) courtesy of Alexhost till 30th January 2027
Romania Bucharest (buc2) courtesy of Hosteroid till 17th October 2026
US Buffalo (us1) Courtesy of MSATT till 22nd November 2026
US Buffalo (us1a) Courtesy of JetNode till 30th January 2027
US Los Angeles (us2) Courtesy of MSATT till 21st December 2026
Rules for a free VPS
Free and open source software developers only.
White hat only
Not for commercial use
No service level agreement but we are good.
Don't be a dick rules
No excessive high cpu, disk or bandwidth
Warnings - be honest !!!
- Multiple registrations will get you banned
- Good reputation on this forum (no history, no server - sorry)
- Email address (purely for admin emails), don't make a request if you wish to be anonymous
- Failing to accept the verification email will lock you out from re-applying
If you would like a VPS, just complete this form asking what you are developing and links to previous developments.
Acceptance will give you 2 VCPU, 4GiB Ram, 64GiB disk with NAT + IPv6 /96 access on Ubuntu, Debian or Alpine in your preferred location.
We are genuinely doing this to help, so please, no abuse as it messes it up for everyone. FOSSVPS has no income and is a small team run by Mike (@msatt). Apart from a free VPS there are no other rewards. This is driven by the community and is for the community.
Comments
looking good guys
zero tolerance policy applied please
They don't even have the courtesy to respond to emails requesting CPU reduction. So at the moment I have given them 10 days to respond or the VMs will be terminated. In addition I have pegged their CPU at 10%, so they are not 'bothering' their other 'polite' neighbours.
WADR, I don't think there's no other lasting solution than name & shame. Even when considering the drawback
@rpqu Point taken.
I find that users apps 'appear' to go out of control and often a reboot sorts it. For those that don't, I send an email with termination warning and (as mentioned) restrict use. No response after 10 days or action means terminate.
Perhaps I am being too lenient ?
I think you're being very generous but if the cpu limit minimizes them affecting other users it probably doesn't matter. Remember to optimize for your benefit as well, don't create policies that make your "job" more tedious if you can help it.
Might be a good idea to document that termination policy just so you can reference a link too, if you haven't already.
I don't know about your policy. But, I assumed you know what kind of project they are working on.
I imagine some back-and-forth activities, CPU spikes, I/O peaking, before a period of unit tests. Then, few minutes of low CPU and moderate I/O (assuming they use agentic AI). These kind of activities are distinct than high CPU all the time. They're not linux kernel contributors, right?
On the other hand, they could have runners to build images every local commit (before getting squashed)... and unoptimized build 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Again, that goes back to your policy. The FOSSVPS mission and TOS is clearly stated. So, when you need to intervene, there should be a balance between maintaining the developer autonomy and letting other developers optimizing the dev environment/build system.
Building a dev community is ideal for FOSSVPS
Very good point - thanks. As a result I have just automated the email process. After 24 hours (adjustable) of usage over 25% an automated email is sent to the client stating usage and actions needed. I also get an overall nightly report on usage.
@rpqu Also thanks for your clarity. Yes the clients have 'indicated' what they want the VPS for but I accept projects and usage will vary overtime (sometimes the truth also varies). If a developer responds to the high usage email with good reasons, I would happily let them continue and with justification I could even increase their resources.
As you quite rightly say "Building a dev community is ideal for FOSSVPS", that is what we should be. It is just that some nodeseek clients seem to have different ideas......
Further update.
I will create another post in a couple of days (as this is effectively hidden away) to something like the following -
Hello,
I would like to request a VPS for my open source project SMN Cloud.
GitHub: https://github.com/S1M0N-SMN/SMN-CLOUD
Project: Self-learning neural network for mobile. Learns from conversations, Wikipedia, user feedback. Currently 5500+ words.
I need a VPS to move from local app to cloud API, add multi-user support, and enable 24/7 learning.
I'm a student (14), non-commercial, just for learning.
Thank you.
@S1M0N_SMN sorry for the delayed response (I am on holiday). Your profile on LET is very poor (2 years and 3 posts) plus your github has no forks / stars. So following our rules the official answer is no. However (I have a feeling - perhaps because of vacation) .....
Fill out the registration form and providing you do not need 'hand holding' e.g. needing support, reloads and reboots etc or use excessive resources, I would like to help a student get into development.
Be aware that this is free and you should thank and promote our generous donors if you are happy (that is the actual cost of the server).
Mike
Mike, thank you very much for the server! I will do my best to make a good project
I have a FOSSVPS server since a while (some months) and really like that thingy a lot. And I happen to know that @msatt really watches over the servers and takes care very well, so I'm not even surprised to see close to 100% uptime.
Plus, msatt even provides great support.
Side note: as for those nodeseek guys (actually marauders) I think you should go hardcore, msatt! As in "48 hrs rather than 10 days notice", one warning only plus lack of response -> VPS terminated, etc.
Do not allow a few ignorant marauders to maim your great FossVPS operation!
Thank you @jsg great to hear your supportive comments.
I try my best, even while on vacation
As far as abusers - It is about time for another 'news' update so rather than put everything in this thread, I will create a new one in a couple of days time. Suffice to say 24hrs over usage and a strong warning with automatic limiting of cpu.....
Project Name: SMN Cloud.
GitHub: https://github.com/S1M0N-SMN/SMN-CLOUD/
Email: [email protected].
(Comments/Anything else): > "I have been approved by @msatt on LowEndTalk (username: S1M0N_SMN). He kindly made an exception for my student project. I have already included FOSSVPS and donors in my project's README."
@S1M0N_SMN you need to complete the registration form with your details. Its not a good idea to post personal info on the forum.
Hello Mike,
I have completed the registration form on the FOSSVPS website, but I am facing an issue — the 6-digit verification code is not arriving at my email address.
I have already checked my spam folder.
Could you please check the status of my application and help me resolve this?
Thank you for your support
@S1M0N_SMN replied via pm - it is not good discussing this sort of thing in public.
I have submitted an application and hope to receive VPS.
Are you an MJJ? Be careful!
@awinds - responded in PM and email.
I have submitted an application and hope to receive VPS.
Please read the conditions before applying
I just joined the forum and would like to try applying. Regardless of whether I get it or not, I really appreciate the contributors
1. Can't you read the requirements?
2. Are you genuinely unaware that this entire process runs on volunteer time, or do you simply not care about burdening people who aren't obligated to help you at all?
@rpqu - Thanks - You 'nailed it' although to be fair @Lyn did respond very politely to my refusal message (after reading the conditions).
Okay. I imagined you get flooded with more application as NS grant recipients received termination notice.
I still agree with your wording.