Bluehost Self-Managed VPS: Reimage Your Server for Easypanel Installation

Easypanel is a simple and easy to use server management platform which lets you deploy and manage applications on your VPS without the headache of complex server configurations. It provides an intuitive dashboard to manage websites, databases, domains, SSL certificates and Docker applications in one place. EasyPanel is a great choice for developers, business and owners of websites that want to have an easier way to manage their hosting environment.

Reimage Your Server for Easypanel Installation

1. Log in to your Bluehost Portal.
2. In the left-hand menu, click Hosting.

   
    

3. Click the Manage button on the Self-Managed VPS package.

   
    

4. Click the Reimage button.

   
    

5. Select the Applications tab.

   
    

6. From the list, locate Easypanel and click Select.

   
    

7. To confirm, type "reimage" and then click Proceed to start the process.

   
    

8. Wait a few minutes while the installation completes.

   
    

9. Once completed, you will see Easypanel listed in the Server Image section.

   
    

Additional Information and Example Documentation Output

You can run cat /root/README.md to see more information and useful commands:

Example Output:

root@server-123456:~# cat /root/README.md
# Easypanel

## Description

EasyPanel is a modern server management panel that lets you deploy and manage applications, databases, and services from a visual interface.

It supports Docker-based deployments, one-click app installs, custom domain management, and SSL automation, providing a streamlined way to run and monitor your server workloads without complex command-line setup.


## Services

| Service      | Description                                                        | Managed By |
| ------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------- |
| easypanel    | Web interface for managing applications (port 3000)                | docker     |
| traefik      | Reverse proxy and SSL termination for all traffic (ports 80, 443)  | docker     |
| docker       | Container runtime                                                  | systemd    |
| docker-swarm | Container orchestration                                            | docker     |
| ufw          | Firewall (allows 22, 80, 443, 3000)                                | systemd    |

## Stack

| Component         | Details                                    |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------------ |
| Container runtime | Docker Engine                              |
| Orchestration     | Docker Swarm                               |
| Reverse proxy     | Traefik (ports 80, 443)                    |
| Firewall          | UFW (SSH 22, HTTP 80, HTTPS 443, direct 3000) |
| Panel             | EasyPanel (port 3000)                      |

## First Boot

On first boot the image automatically:

1. Ensures Docker service is running
2. Confirms Docker Swarm is initialized
3. Verifies Easypanel service is active
4. Waits until Easypanel becomes available on port 3000
5. Detects the public IP and writes a Traefik dynamic config to `/etc/easypanel/traefik/config/custom.yaml`, routing `dashboard..sslip.io` -> `localhost:3000`
6. Traefik picks up the route immediately and obtains a Let's Encrypt certificate automatically via HTTP-01 on port 80

No default admin credentials are created during this process.

## Accessing EasyPanel

After first boot, access the dashboard at:

```
https://dashboard..sslip.io
```

For example, if your server IP is `1.2.3.4`:

```
https://dashboard.1.2.3.4.sslip.io
```

The Let's Encrypt certificate is obtained automatically by Traefik - no manual SSL setup required.

For direct fallback access (no SSL):

```
http://:3000
```

On first access:

- Enter your email address
- Set a password
- Complete the setup

This creates your admin account.

## Manage

From the panel you can:

- Deploy applications and databases
- Configure custom domains
- Monitor running services
- Manage SSL certificates (auto-provisioned via Traefik)

## Notes

- Traefik owns ports 80 and 443 for both the EasyPanel dashboard and all user-deployed applications
- The dashboard is served at `https://dashboard..sslip.io` - [sslip.io](https://sslip.io) is a wildcard DNS service that resolves `anything..sslip.io` to ``, enabling Let's Encrypt certificates without a registered domain
- Port 3000 provides direct HTTP access to EasyPanel (no SSL) - useful for private networks or debugging
- On private/local IPs, the sslip.io route is skipped and only direct port 3000 access is available

## Useful Commands

```
docker service ls
docker service logs easypanel --tail 50
systemctl status docker
ss -tulnp | grep -E '80|443|3000'
journalctl -t easypanel-firstboot -n 100 --no-pager
cat /etc/easypanel/dashboard-url
cat /etc/easypanel/traefik/config/custom.yaml
```

## Ports

| Port | Service                              |
| ---- | ------------------------------------ |
| 22   | SSH                                  |
| 80   | HTTP (Traefik - ACME challenge + redirect) |
| 443  | HTTPS (Traefik - dashboard + user apps)    |
| 3000 | EasyPanel UI (direct, no SSL)        |

## Links

- Documentation: [https://easypanel.io/docs](https://easypanel.io/docs)
- Docker documentation: [https://docs.docker.com](https://docs.docker.com)
- Traefik documentation: [https://doc.traefik.io/traefik/](https://doc.traefik.io/traefik/)
- sslip.io: [https://sslip.io](https://sslip.io)

Summary

Easypanel simplifies VPS management by giving you an easy-to-use control panel for deploying and managing applications. Instead of spending time configuring servers manually, you can focus on building and running your projects through a streamlined interface. Whether you're launching a website, hosting business applications, or managing multiple services, Easypanel provides a convenient and efficient way to manage your VPS environment.