Ubuntu
Standard operating systems
Ready in seconds and fully supported by us.
Seeds: cloud servers, ready in seconds
Your cloud server with full root access and the operating system of your choice, in the size you need, on enterprise hardware in our own network. Billed by the hour, with no contract term and support daily from 9 AM to midnight CET.
Seed
What is a Seed?
A Seed is our cloud server. You choose a location, product line and size, and within seconds your Seed is running the operating system of your choice. You decide what runs on it. We take care of hardware, network and data center.
Full root access
You bring your software and your configuration. We provide the server, you decide the rest.
Billed by the hour
Every size has an hourly price and a monthly cap. If your Seed runs all month, you pay the cap, never more.
Our own premium network
Your Seeds run on enterprise hardware, connected to our own network with redundant carriers.
Locations and pricing
Choose a location first, then a product line. Each line comes in several sizes, each with an hourly price and a monthly cap.
© Protomaps© OpenStreetMap contributors
Frankfurt (DE)
Helsinki (FI)
Entry
The entry point for everything that needs little compute, such as development and test systems, small websites, VPN or monitoring. The vCPUs are shared and sized for light services. If your project grows, you can move to a larger line later in a few clicks.
| Model | CPU | RAM | Storage | Traffic | Bandwidth | Price/hour | Price/month | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | 1 vCPU | 2 GB | 20 GB | 10 TB | 1 Gbit/s | 0,005848 € | 3,65 € | |
| M | 2 vCPUs | 4 GB | 40 GB | 10 TB | 1 Gbit/s | 0,011694 € | 7,29 € | |
| L | 4 vCPUs | 8 GB | 80 GB | 10 TB | 1 Gbit/s | 0,023389 € | 14,59 € | |
| XL | 8 vCPUs | 16 GB | 160 GB | 10 TB | 1 Gbit/s | 0,038312 € | 23,91 € |
Interested in other locations?
Let us know your preferred locations. Feel free to include specific ISO standards or requirements for your individual needs.
Use cases
All solutionsA few examples of what you can run on a Seed.
Your Own Cloud
Run your own cloud on the dataforest cloud. Files, calendar, contacts and office on your server. Full control, GDPR compliant.
Learn moreSelf-Hosted VPN Server
Run your own VPN server on the dataforest cloud. Full control, no third parties, GDPR compliant.
Learn moreGame Server Hosting
Host your own game server for Minecraft, Valheim and more. Docker-based, available 24/7, full control.
Learn moreSelf-Host Your Password Manager
Run a password manager on your own server. Encrypted vault, all Bitwarden clients, GDPR compliant. Open-source password manager on the dataforest cloud.
Learn moreSelf-Hosted Monitoring
Run monitoring on your own server. Keep every server and service in view, get alerted before an outage, and keep the data yours.
Learn moreWorkflow Automation
Automate business processes with n8n on the dataforest cloud. No per-execution fees, full data control, GDPR compliant.
Learn moreEverything a Seed can do
From first boot to automation: the features along the lifecycle of your Seed.
Set up
From an empty Seed to a running application, in minutes.
One-click apps
A ready-made application instead of an empty system. It is set up automatically on first boot, and web applications are reachable over HTTPS right away.
ISO catalog
Install Windows, Arch, Fedora and more yourself.
Cloud-init
Give your Seed a cloud-init configuration when you create it: packages, users, keys, services. It runs once on first boot. This way you get the same Seed every time, even the twentieth time.
Operate and grow
Step in when something stalls. Grow when it runs.
Upgrade
More power, your data stays.
Web console
Always a way in, even when SSH stops responding.
Clone
Use a Seed or snapshot as a template, the original stays.
Block Storage
Additional volumes that you can grow while they are in use. The data is kept when you reinstall or delete the Seed.
Protect your data
Stored three times, backed up daily, restorable at any time.
3×
Three copies
Every block is stored three times on NVMe SSDs in our Ceph cluster. If an SSD or an entire storage server fails, your data stays available.
Daily backups
Switch it on once and it just runs. A backup is created every day, and the last seven are available for restore. They are stored in a different data center from the one your Seed runs in.
Snapshots
An image on demand, meant for the moment before a risky change: a dist upgrade, a configuration rework, a migration. If something goes wrong, you reset the Seed to that state. Each Seed can hold one snapshot at a time.
Connect and protect
Only what should get in gets in. We filter out the rest beforehand.
Firewall
Create rules once and apply them to as many Seeds as you like, one by one or through a tag. Everything a rule does not explicitly allow is blocked. The firewall is stateful: whatever may come in may also reply.
DDoS Protection
Active on every IP address of your Seeds, at no extra cost and without booking. You can also set up custom filters for your applications.
IPv6 and IPv4
Every Seed gets a /64 IPv6 subnet. You add IPv4 addresses by the hour, several per Seed if you need them.
Automate and plan
Control it through the API, pay by the hour.
Public API
Everything the console can do, from your pipeline as well.
Hourly billing
Every size has an hourly price and a monthly cap. If the Seed runs all month, you pay the cap and never more. Delete it after four days and you pay for four days. No setup fee, no minimum term, no notice period.
Why dataforest cloud
Behind dataforest cloud are 16 years of hosting expertise. We run hardware, network and support ourselves and know every detail of our infrastructure.
100% Made in Germany
GDPR-compliant cloud in highly certified German data centers. Your data stays in Germany.
First-class infrastructure
Enterprise servers from renowned manufacturers with redundant connections to power and network. Our operations team takes care of any anomalies around the clock.
Our own premium network
Direct connection to our internet backbone, redundant carriers and open peering. Low latency, high bandwidth and no dependence on third-party providers.
24/7 emergency support
We handle support requests seven days a week from 9 AM to midnight CET. In an emergency, you can reach us around the clock via our emergency hotline.
Configure seed
Configure your Seed without signing up and see the price immediately. Once you register, your selection is carried over and you can start right away.
Location
Select the location where you want your seed to be deployed. Availability and prices may vary depending on the location.
Source
Choose between an operating system and an app as the basis for your seed. An operating system gives you a freshly installed system that you set up yourself. An app comes with a matching operating system and recommended seed requirements, and is set up automatically on first boot via a cloud-init configuration. Details, installed packages, and the installation guide are available on the detail page of the app.
Seed Properties
Select the seed configuration that suits your requirements.
Seed extensions
Add optional features to your seed. Extensions are billed by the hour and can be enabled or disabled at any time.
Manage Seeds through the Public API
With our Public API, your scripts or CI pipeline can create Seeds, resize them and take snapshots.
API="https://api.dataforest.net/api/v1/public"
curl -X POST "$API/seeds" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"name": "web-01",
"plan": "lines/standard/models/standard-c2-m4-s80",
"location": "fra01",
"source": {
"type": "image",
"ref": "images/debian/versions/debian-v13"
},
"project_id": "3f2b8c1e-6d4a-4e9b-a1c7-5e8d2f0b9a64",
"ssh_keys": [
"9a1d4e7c-2b6f-4c3a-8e5d-1f7b0c2a6e93"
]
}'Questions about Seeds
What is a Seed?
A Seed is a virtual server in the dataforest cloud, also known as a cloud server, VPS or VM. It works like a standalone server without you having to manage any physical hardware. You get full root access and decide on the operating system, applications and configuration. We take care of hardware, network and data center.
What do shared and dedicated vCPUs mean?
The product lines differ mainly in how compute power is allocated. With shared vCPUs, it is not reserved exclusively, which lets us offer lower prices. A shared vCPU runs at the full speed of a CPU thread while the host server has spare capacity. That speed is not guaranteed, so shared vCPUs are meant for variable load with short spikes rather than sustained high load. With dedicated vCPUs, one CPU thread is reserved exclusively for your Seed for each vCPU. You get the full compute power you booked at all times, even under sustained load.
How is a Seed billed?
Every size has an hourly price and a monthly cap. We bill by the hour. If your Seed runs all month, you pay the cap, never more. There is no setup fee, no minimum term and no notice period. Billing stops as soon as you delete the Seed. Shutting it down is not enough.
How much traffic is included?
Every size comes with included traffic, the amount is shown in the pricing table. We look at traffic for your whole team rather than per Seed: the included traffic of all Seeds is added up, prorated from the time of ordering to the end of the month. Only outbound traffic counts. Anything beyond that is billed per TB.
Which operating systems can I install?
Debian, Ubuntu, AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux are available as ready-made images, so your Seed is up in seconds. You install other systems such as Windows Server, Arch or Fedora yourself from an ISO in our catalog. Our guides show how for Linux from an ISO and Windows Server.
How is my Seed protected against DDoS attacks?
All Seeds are protected by automatic filters. They filter common attack patterns at no additional cost, regardless of the duration and intensity of the attack. Volumetric attacks are already heavily limited or pre-filtered at our network borders. Custom filters for your applications are configured under DDoS Protection. You can disable protection per IP address under DDoS Protection or in the network settings of the Seed.
€15 starting credit for new customers with the code
New customers only, redeemable in the Billing section until 31 December 2026. The €15 are credited as Token, offset against your first invoices and valid for 90 days from redemption. Activating your account may require an advance payment, which we credit in full.
Any questions?
Our experts are happy to help. You'll be surprised how fast we are.
