admin-infra-contabo
Contabo Infrastructure
Status: Production Ready | Dependencies: cntb CLI, SSH key pair
Navigation
- Operations, troubleshooting, config, and cost snapshot:
references/OPERATIONS.md
Step 0: Gather Required Information (MANDATORY)
STOP. Before ANY deployment commands, collect ALL parameters from the user.
Copy this checklist and confirm each item:
Required Parameters:
- [ ] SERVER_NAME - Unique name for this server
- [ ] CONTABO_REGION - Region (EU, US-central, US-east, US-west, SIN, JPN, AUS)
- [ ] CONTABO_PRODUCT_ID - Product/plan ID (see profiles below)
- [ ] SSH_KEY_PATH - Path to SSH private key (default: ~/.ssh/id_rsa)
Deployment Purpose (determines recommended profile):
- [ ] Purpose: coolify / kasm / both / custom
coolify → V39 (Cloud VPS 10 SP, €5/mo)
kasm → V45 (Cloud VPS 20 SP, €8/mo)
both → V46 (Cloud VPS 30, €14/mo)
custom → Ask for specific product ID
Recommended profiles by purpose:
| Purpose | Product ID | Plan | vCPU | RAM | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| coolify | V39 | Cloud VPS 10 SP | 4 | 8GB | €5 |
| kasm | V45 | Cloud VPS 20 SP | 6 | 18GB | €8 |
| both | V46 | Cloud VPS 30 | 8 | 24GB | €14 |
DO NOT proceed to Prerequisites until ALL parameters are confirmed.
Prerequisites
Before using this skill, verify the following:
1. Contabo CLI Installed
cntb --version
If missing, install with:
# Download from GitHub releases
# Linux
curl -sL https://github.com/contabo/cntb/releases/latest/download/cntb_linux_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz
sudo mv cntb /usr/local/bin/
# macOS
curl -sL https://github.com/contabo/cntb/releases/latest/download/cntb_darwin_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz
sudo mv cntb /usr/local/bin/
# Windows (PowerShell)
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://github.com/contabo/cntb/releases/latest/download/cntb_windows_amd64.zip" -OutFile cntb.zip
Expand-Archive cntb.zip -DestinationPath .
2. Contabo Account & API Credentials
If you don't have a Contabo account:
Sign up at: https://contabo.com/?ref=YOUR_REFERRAL_CODE
Disclosure: This is a referral link from the CJ Affiliate program. The skill author may receive $25-$250 commission. Using this link helps support the development of these skills.
Get API Credentials: https://my.contabo.com/api/details
You need:
- Client ID (OAuth2)
- Client Secret (OAuth2)
- API User (your email)
- API Password (your account password or generated one)
3. cntb CLI Configured
cntb get instances
If it shows an error, configure with:
# Set via environment variables
export CNTB_OAUTH2_CLIENT_ID="your_client_id"
export CNTB_OAUTH2_CLIENT_SECRET="your_client_secret"
export CNTB_OAUTH2_USER="your_api_user"
export CNTB_OAUTH2_PASS="your_api_password"
# Or configure interactively
cntb config set-credentials
4. SSH Key Pair
ls ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub
If missing, generate with:
ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -f ~/.ssh/id_rsa -N ""
5. SSH Key Available
Unlike other providers, Contabo requires you to specify the SSH key during instance creation via the --sshKeys parameter with the actual public key content.
cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub
6. Test Authentication
cntb get datacenters
If this fails: Credentials may be incorrect. Verify at https://my.contabo.com/api/details
Server Profiles
Coolify/Kasm Deployments - BEST VALUE
| Profile | Plan | vCPU | RAM | Disk | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
coolify |
Cloud VPS 10 SP | 4 | 8GB | 100GB | €5 |
kasm |
Cloud VPS 20 SP | 6 | 18GB | 150GB | €8 |
both |
Cloud VPS 30 | 8 | 24GB | 200GB | €14 |
Standard Plans (More Storage)
| Profile | Plan | vCPU | RAM | Disk | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
standard-small |
Cloud VPS S | 4 | 8GB | 200GB SSD | €8 |
standard-medium |
Cloud VPS M | 6 | 16GB | 400GB SSD | €14 |
standard-large |
Cloud VPS L | 8 | 30GB | 800GB SSD | €26 |
standard-xl |
Cloud VPS XL | 10 | 60GB | 1600GB SSD | €39 |
| Provider | 6 vCPU, 16-18GB RAM | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Contabo VPS 20 SP | 6 vCPU, 18GB | €8 |
| Hetzner CX42 | 8 vCPU, 16GB | €20 |
| DigitalOcean | 8 vCPU, 16GB | $96 |
| Vultr | 6 vCPU, 16GB | $96 |
| Linode | 6 vCPU, 16GB | $96 |
Contabo offers 5-10x better value than most competitors.
Deployment Steps
Step 1: Set Environment Variables
export CONTABO_REGION="EU" # EU, US-central, US-east, US-west, SIN, JPN, AUS
export CONTABO_PRODUCT_ID="V48" # See product IDs below (V48 verified working)
export SERVER_NAME="my-server"
| Code | Location | Region |
|---|---|---|
EU |
Germany (Nuremberg) | Europe |
US-central |
St. Louis, MO | US Central |
US-east |
New York | US East |
US-west |
Seattle | US West |
SIN |
Singapore | Asia |
JPN |
Tokyo | Japan |
AUS |
Sydney | Australia |
Run cntb get datacenters for full list.
| Product ID | Plan | vCPU | RAM | Disk | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V12 | VPS S NVMe | 4 | 8GB | 100GB | €5 | ✅ Verified |
| V48 | VPS M (Cloud VPS 2 SSD) | 6 | 16GB | 400GB | €14 | ✅ Verified |
| V35 | Cloud VPS 1 | 4 | 6GB | 100GB | €4.50 | Untested |
| V39 | Cloud VPS 10 SP | 4 | 8GB | 100GB NVMe | €5 | Untested |
| V45 | Cloud VPS 20 SP | 6 | 18GB | 150GB NVMe | €8 | ⚠️ May not work |
| V46 | Cloud VPS 30 | 8 | 24GB | 200GB | €14 | Untested |
| V47 | Cloud VPS S | 4 | 8GB | 200GB SSD | €8 | Untested |
| V49 | Cloud VPS L | 8 | 30GB | 800GB SSD | €26 | Untested |
| V50 | Cloud VPS XL | 10 | 60GB | 1600GB SSD | €39 | Untested |
Important: Some product IDs from Contabo documentation may be outdated. V48 and V12 are verified working. Run cntb get products --productType vps for current list.
Step 2: Create Instance
# Get the SSH public key content
SSH_KEY_CONTENT=$(cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub)
# Create instance
cntb create instance \
--productId "$CONTABO_PRODUCT_ID" \
--region "$CONTABO_REGION" \
--displayName "$SERVER_NAME" \
--imageId "ubuntu-22.04" \
--sshKeys "$SSH_KEY_CONTENT"
Step 3: Get Instance Details
# List instances to get the ID
INSTANCE_ID=$(cntb get instances --output json | jq -r '.[] | select(.displayName=="'"$SERVER_NAME"'") | .instanceId')
echo "Instance ID: $INSTANCE_ID"
# Get instance details
cntb get instance "$INSTANCE_ID"
# Get IP address
SERVER_IP=$(cntb get instance "$INSTANCE_ID" --output json | jq -r '.ipConfig.v4.ip')
echo "SERVER_IP=$SERVER_IP"
Step 4: Wait for Server Ready
# Wait for instance to be running
echo "Waiting for instance to be running..."
while [ "$(cntb get instance "$INSTANCE_ID" --output json | jq -r '.status')" != "running" ]; do
sleep 10
done
echo "Instance is running!"
# Wait for SSH to be available (typically 2-5 minutes for Contabo)
echo "Waiting for SSH to be available..."
until ssh -o ConnectTimeout=5 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no root@$SERVER_IP "echo connected" 2>/dev/null; do
sleep 10
done
echo "Server is ready!"
Step 5: Verify Connection
ssh root@$SERVER_IP "uname -a && free -h && df -h /"
Step 6: Output for Downstream Skills
# Contabo only offers x86 architecture
SERVER_ARCH="amd64"
# Save to .env.local for downstream skills
echo "SERVER_IP=$SERVER_IP" >> .env.local
echo "SSH_USER=root" >> .env.local
echo "SSH_KEY_PATH=~/.ssh/id_rsa" >> .env.local
echo "SERVER_ARCH=$SERVER_ARCH" >> .env.local
echo "COOLIFY_SERVER_IP=$SERVER_IP" >> .env.local
echo "KASM_SERVER_IP=$SERVER_IP" >> .env.local
echo ""
echo "Instance deployed successfully!"
echo " IP: $SERVER_IP"
echo " Arch: $SERVER_ARCH"
echo " SSH: ssh root@$SERVER_IP"
Verify Deployment
ssh root@$SERVER_IP "echo 'Contabo instance connected successfully'"
Object Storage Auto-Scaling
Contabo supports auto-scaling limits for object storage to control costs.
Create Object Storage with Auto-Scaling
# Create object storage bucket
cntb create objectStorage \
--region "$CONTABO_REGION" \
--displayName "my-storage" \
--totalPurchasedSpaceTB 0.5 \
--autoScaling.state enabled \
--autoScaling.sizeLimitTB 2
This allows storage to automatically grow up to 2TB as needed.
Cleanup
Warning: This is destructive and cannot be undone.
# Cancel instance (Contabo uses "cancel" not "delete")
cntb cancel instance "$INSTANCE_ID"
# Note: Cancellation may take effect at end of billing period
# For immediate deletion, contact Contabo support
Operations
Troubleshooting, best practices, configuration variables, and cost snapshots are in references/OPERATIONS.md.
Logging Integration
When performing infrastructure operations, log to the centralized system:
# After provisioning
log_admin "SUCCESS" "operation" "Provisioned Contabo VPS" "id=$INSTANCE_ID provider=Contabo"
# After destroying
log_admin "SUCCESS" "operation" "Cancelled Contabo VPS" "id=$INSTANCE_ID"
# On error
log_admin "ERROR" "operation" "Contabo deployment failed" "error=$ERROR_MSG"
See admin skill's references/logging.md for full logging documentation.