Ordering a Custom Server

Ordering a Server

To order a custom server:

  1. Go to the Servers and colocation section in the Control Panel and click Order.
  2. Go to the Server Configurator tab. Build your server, select the number of servers, pool, and billing option. Note: servers are located in Selectel data centers in the regions of St. Petersburg, Moscow, Novosibirsk, and Tashkent.
  3. Select a billing option. Note: there is an installation fee in addition to the configuration cost. This fee covers building and mounting the server in the rack. This fee does not apply if paying for 6 months or more.
  4. Click Pay and confirm the payment in the window. Funds will be withdrawn from your Main balance. If you have sufficient Bonuses, we advise selecting a balance (main or bonus) for withdrawal.

Building a custom server can take up to 5 business days. As soon as the server is ready, we send the access data to your e-mail address, activate the service, and the paid period will begin. After the paid period, the custom server will automatically renew using funds from your Main balance.

Features of the Configurator

The Selectel Control Panel contains a Configurator for assembling servers with 100% compatible components. It is designed to automatically suggest compatible components. Before placing an order, we recommend that you contact us in any convenient way:

Our experts will answer any of your questions and help you to choose the configuration.

CPU

All processors are listed according to the following template:

[CPU model] ([core number] x [base clock rate])

Additional legends:

  • HT — support for HyperThreading technology;
  • v3 / v6 / vX — version of the CPU model.

For example, Intel E5-1650v3 (6x3,5 GHz HT).

RAM

The drop-down list allows you to choose RAM size in two ways:

  1. By selecting the size of the modules and their number. The Configurator will automatically show the total ordered RAM size.
  2. By selecting the total size of the memory.

Additional legends:

  • Reg — registered memory;
  • ECC — error-correcting code memory;
  • LRDIMM — load-reduced dual inline memory modules allowing you to use more memory in the server in comparison with conventional modules.

For example, 64 GB DDR4 ECC Reg LRDIMM.

When choosing RAM, it is recommended to pay attention to the CPU number of channels. Maximum performance is achieved when using all CPU memory channels.

About Intel CPU

About AMD CPU

Disks

The following types of server disks are available for ordering. They differ in both characteristics and purpose:

  • HDD — hard drives;
  • SSD — solid state drives, connected via SATA interface;
  • NVME — NVMe solid state drives;
  • OPTANE — Intel® solid state drives designed with 3D XPoint technology.

Additional legends:

PCIE Card

Network Interface Cards

Each custom server is equipped with two RJ45 network interfaces with a default transfer rate of 1 Gbps each. Please note that the first interface is used for connecting the Internet channel, and the second is used for connecting the local network. You can order the following services if you need more interfaces or need to reserve a connection using MC-LAG:

  • 2 x 1 GE + local port 1 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two interfaces (1 Gbit/s each) and a 1 Gbit/s Local port service are installed;
  • 2 x 1 GE + MC-LAG to private network 1 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two interfaces (1 Gbit/s each) and the MC-LAG Reserved connection service for reserving a local network connection are installed;
  • 2 x 1 GE + MC-LAG to Internet network 1 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two interfaces (1 Gbit/s each) and the MC-LAG Reserved connection service for reserving the Internet channel are installed;
  • 2 x 10 GE + local port 10 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two optical interfaces (10 Gbit/s each) and a 10 Gbit/s Local port service are installed;
  • 2 x 10 GE + MC-LAG to private network 10 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two optical interfaces (10 Gbit/s each) and the MC-LAG Reserved connection service for reserving a local network connection are installed;
  • 2 x 10 GE + MC-LAG to Internet 10 Gbit/s — an additional network interface card with two interfaces (10 Gbit/s each) and the MC-LAG Reserved connection service for reserving the Internet channel are installed.

Disk Controllers

It is necessary to order additional disk controllers if the number of disks exceeds the number of SATA ports on the motherboard, or if you need additional data protection using hardware RAID:

  • HBA (no RAID) 16 ports allows you to additionally connect up to 16 SATA/SAS drives, but does not provide the ability to build a hardware RAID array;
  • RAID 8 ports controller + Cache Protection allows you to additionally connect up to 8 SATA/SAS drives, create a hardware disk array and protect cache data in case of a sudden power outage;
  • RAID 16 ports controller + Cache Protection allows you to additionally connect up to 16 SATA/SAS drives, create a hardware disk array and protect cache data in case of a sudden power outage;
  • RAID 24 ports controller + Cache Protection allows you to additionally connect up to 24 SATA/SAS drives, create a hardware disk array and protect cache data in case of a sudden power outage;
  • RAID 16 ports controller + SSD Cache allows you to additionally connect up to 16 SATA/SAS drives and use an array of fast SSD disks to buffer read/write requests to HDD arrays and to store the cache in case of a sudden power outage.

Graphic Card

For servers with a GPU, graphic cards are available in PCI-e devices. A maximum of 8 graphic cards can be installed on a single server.

After Ordering

A list of ordered servers with brief descriptions of each of them is displayed in the Servers and colocation section.

Clicking on a server’s card will open its page. Clicking on the tabs in the server’s page allows you to:

  • view detailed configuration and network information and consumption statistics;
  • change server configuration;
  • configure the consumption model (see more in the Traffic Plans section);
  • manage server power, reboot the server (also in Rescue mode);
  • work with the KVM Console;
  • install an OS (see more in the OS Installation section);
  • order additional services and manage existing ones.

The Services tab of the Servers page lists information about charges, dates and the period of your next payment.

Changing Server Configuration

Custom servers can be modified at any time to suit the needs of the client by adding or removing components.

Changing Server Configuration in the Control Panel

To change server configuration:

  1. Open the server’s card in the Control Panel.
  2. Open the Configuration tab.
  3. Press Change configuration.
  4. Make the necessary configuration changes.
  5. When new components are selected, a block with the cost of a new configuration will appear at the bottom of the screen.
  6. Press Change configuration.
  7. Confirm the payment in the window by clicking Pay button.
  8. A ticket with a request to update the server configuration will be created automatically. All configuration changes are specified in the ticket. After confirming the replacement process in the ticket, the appropriate work will be performed.

Component Replacement

Component replacement (such as installing additional disks if there are free enclosures) is performed without stopping or reassembling the server.

The installation of additional RAM or PCI (if the required number fits in the current platform) requires stopping the server, but does not require reassembly.

Reassembling the server is necessary when replacing the case or increasing the number of disks to beyond the case’s current capacity. An installation fee applies.

CPUs cannot be replaced. If you need a different CPU or a different number of CPU processors, you must order a new server.

If it is not possible to order U.2 disks, check that the server has an HBA for U.2 disks and a case with suitable enclosures. Some motherboards are able to connect NVMe directly without HBA.

Features of Payment When Changing the Configuration

For Servers Ordered before November 30, 2019

When changing the configuration of a server ordered before November 30, 2019, the server number csXXXX changes – meaning the server starts billing again.

For example, if the server was started on the 1st day of the month, its paid period ends on the 1st day of the following month. When changing the configuration on the 5th day of the month, payment is charged again and a new payment period begins. The new payment period ends on the 5th day of the following month.

We recommend that you make configuration changes towards the end of the paid period.

If the server was paid for 3 months in advance and a configuration change is required in the middle of the first month of the paid period, payment will only be refunded for unused months (in this example, 2 remaining months).

When selecting a configuration that requires rebuilding the server and choosing a period of 6 months or more, there is no installation fee for rebuilding the server.

For Servers Ordered after November 30, 2019

When changing the configuration of a server ordered after November 30, 2019, the following payment model is used:

  • when configuration changes are ordered, the system calculates the difference in the cost of the current and new configuration for the paid period under the pricing plan;
  • if the cost of the new configuration is greater than the cost of the current one, the system will ‘freeze’ funds in the client’s balance covering the amount of the difference and the installation fee;
  • after the server becomes available for operation, the system calculates the factual amount of spent resources and withdraws the corresponding amount from the ‘frozen’ funds. The remaining funds are ‘unfrozen’ and return to the balance.

Additional IP Addresses and Network Management

When submitting, the server receives one IPv4 public address from the shared subnet. If necessary, you can order a dedicated block of IPv4 addresses. To do this, go to the Network subset and click Order subnet. We allocate a free /64 block of IPv6 addresses upon request. Please contact technical support.