Purchase Self-Managed VPS with GatorClaw Installation

How to Purchase a Self-Managed VPS with GatorClaw Installation

Pre-configured Setup

New to VPS or not sure where to start? No worries! At the top of the Self-Managed VPS purchase page, you’ll see the Pre-configured Setup section. This handy feature is perfect if you’re feeling a bit unsure—just pick the type of project you want, like WordPress Site, AI Agent/Claude Code, Dev/Staging, or eCommerce Store. We’ll take care of the rest by automatically filling in the best plan, operating system, and template for you.

• Super simple for beginners or anyone who just wants a quick setup
• Instantly get the recommended settings for your project
• Skip the guesswork and save time
• You can still customize things later if you want

Give the Pre-configured Setup a try and get your Bluehost Self-Managed VPS up and running in no time!

GatorClaw can be installed on a Bluehost Self-Managed VPS. You can add GatorClaw during the initial purchase of your VPS or by manually installing it after purchase.

1. In your browser, go to https://www.bluehost.com/vps-hosting.
2. Click the Choose Plan button for the Self-Managed VPS hosting plan you prefer.

   

   Pricing is subject to change. Please visit https://www.bluehost.com/vps-hosting for the current introductory/sign-up offer for Bluehost Self-Managed VPS Hosting. For the most up-to-date renewal pricing, visit your Bluehost Portal's Renewal Center.
3. On the next page, you can configure your VPS server to fit your needs. They are divided into the following sections:
   • Location: You can select your data center in this section.

     
      

   • Hardware: This section shows your pre-selected plan. You can also switch to another Self-Managed VPS plan in this section.

     
      

   • Software:
     1. Click the Application tab.
     2. Choose GatorClaw.

        
         

     3. In the pop-up, select Confirm.

        

4. Add-Ons: You can add Premium Support here, which gives you priority access to expert assistance and faster response times.

   
    

5. In the Advanced options:
   • Extra IP's: You can add extra IP addresses for an additional fee.
     Pricing changes based on how many IPs you add.
   • Hostname: Assign a custom hostname to easily identify your server. This is optional.

   
    

6. Select your preferred billing term and view your Order Summary. Click the Continue to Checkout button to proceed.

   

7. Do the following on the Checkout page:

   If you're new with Bluehost:

   1. Create your Bluehost account by using your email address or by connecting with your Google, Apple, or GitHub account — whichever you prefer!

      
       

   2. Select your preferred payment method: credit card, Google Pay, or PayPal. Enter your billing information.

      
       

   If you have an account with us, you will see your Bluehost login details when you are logged into your Bluehost Portal. If you are not logged in, please click the Log In link.
   

8. In the Shopping Cart section, adjust the billing term as needed. Click Submit Payment to complete the purchase.

   

After you complete your purchase, your Self-Managed VPS hosting will begin provisioning. You can locate your new VPS hosting in the Hosting tab of your Bluehost Portal.

Setting Up and Managing Your GatorClaw Assistant

Welcome to GatorClaw! Follow this step-by-step guide to complete your initial setup and learn how to manage your new AI digital assistant.

Access the Setup Dashboard

To complete the installation, open your preferred web browser and navigate to the initial setup page using your server's IP address:

• Log In via Your Browser:

   
  http://your-server-ip:47716/setup
  
  

  Important!

  Make sure you use https:// and include the trailing slash after your panel path.



• Bypass the Browser Security Warning
  GatorClaw uses a temporary self-signed SSL certificate, your browser will flag it. Click Advanced and then Proceed/Continue to bypass it safely.

  
   

• Once the Bypass is done:

  You will be routed to GatorClaw Set up page:

  
   

Configure Your Agent

Follow the on-screen prompts in the dashboard setup wizard to:

• Connect your preferred artificial intelligence models.
• Configure your automation workflows.
• Grant permission for the agent to execute tasks directly within your server environment.

Once configured, GatorClaw remains continuously active in the background, ready to assist you.

Verify the Health of the Application

If you want to ensure everything is running perfectly via the command line, SSH into your server (on Port 22) and check the status of GatorClaw.

• Check GatorClaw application status:

  gatorclaw health

• Check the process manager status:

  GatorClaw uses PM2 to keep its processes continuously active. You can check its running status by executing:

  
  pm2 status
  

  Example Output:

  
  root@server-123456:~# pm2 status
  ┌────┬────────────────────┬──────────┬──────┬───────────┬──────────┬──────────┐
  │ id │ name               │ mode     │ ↺    │ status    │ cpu      │ memory   │
  ├────┼────────────────────┼──────────┼──────┼───────────┼──────────┼──────────┤
  │ 0  │ devclaw            │ fork     │ 0    │ online    │ 0%       │ 35.1mb   │
  └────┴────────────────────┴──────────┴──────┴───────────┴──────────┴──────────┘
  root@server-123456:~#
  

Additional Useful Operational Commands

Should you ever need to inspect or manage application data directly, you can find all core files stored securely on your server at:

/opt/gatorclaw
 

If you ever need to check on your system, view logs, or restart services, connect to your server via SSH (Port 22) and use the following operational commands:

• Monitor Live Logs:

  View real-time logs and troubleshoot issues:

  
  pm2 logs devclaw
  

  Example Output:

  
  root@server-123456:~# pm2 logs devclaw
  [TAILING] Tailing last 15 lines for [devclaw] process (change the value with --lines option)
  /opt/devclaw/logs/error.log last 15 lines:
  /opt/devclaw/logs/out.log last 15 lines:
  0|devclaw  | 2026-05-04T19:39:54:   │  Open:  http://10.0.2.15:47716/setup          │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-05-04T19:39:54:   ╰──────────────────────────────────────────────╯
  0|devclaw  | 2026-05-04T19:39:54:
  0|devclaw  | 2026-05-04T19:39:54: time=2026-05-04T19:39:54.715Z level=INFO msg="web UI starting" component=webui address=:47716
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   ╭──────────────────────────────────────────────╮
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │  🐊 GatorClaw — First Run Setup                │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │                                              │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │  No config.yaml found.                       │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │  Starting web setup wizard...                │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │                                              │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   │  Open:  http://12.3.456.789:47716/setup          │
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:   ╰──────────────────────────────────────────────╯
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19:
  0|devclaw  | 2026-06-25T21:21:19: time=2026-06-25T21:21:19.272Z level=INFO msg="web UI starting" component=webui address=:47716
  
  

• Restart the Agent:

  Reboot the background application if you make configuration updates:

  
  pm2 restart devclaw
  
  

  Example Output:

  
  root@server-123456:~# pm2 restart devclaw
  Use --update-env to update environment variables
  [PM2] Applying action restartProcessId on app [devclaw](ids: [ 0 ])
  [PM2] [devclaw](0) ✓
  ┌────┬────────────────────┬──────────┬──────┬───────────┬──────────┬──────────┐
  │ id │ name               │ mode     │ ↺    │ status    │ cpu      │ memory   │
  ├────┼────────────────────┼──────────┼──────┼───────────┼──────────┼──────────┤
  │ 0  │ devclaw            │ fork     │ 1    │ online    │ 0%       │ 28.1mb   │
  └────┴────────────────────┴──────────┴──────┴───────────┴──────────┴──────────┘
  root@server-123456:~#
  

Additional Information and Example Documentation Output

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

cat /root/README.md 

Example Output:

Last login: Thu Jun 25 22:57:54 2026 from 123.45.567.890
root@server-123456:~# cat /root/README.md
# GatorClaw

## Description

GatorClaw is an artificial intelligence agent that acts as a digital
assistant.  With it, it is possible to connect artificial intelligence
models, configure automations, and allow the agent to perform tasks
directly in the server environment.  When installed on a VPS,
GatorClaw remains continuously active and can be accessed through a
dashboard, where you can configure the agent, connect services, and
manage automations.

The image prepares `/opt/gatorclaw`, downloads the current release
bundle and installer, runs the non-interactive installation, validates
that the WebUI setup endpoint is reachable, and exposes the default
GatorClaw port.


## Services

Service         | Ports | Purpose
----------------|-------|---------
GatorClaw WebUI | 47716 | Provides a browser based interface to setup and maintain GatorClaw
OpenSSH         | 22    | SSH

Ports are protected using ufw.


## How-to-use

After the instance boots, access the initial setup page at:

`http://server-ip:47716/setup`

Useful operational commands:

* `gatorclaw health`
* `pm2 status`
* `pm2 logs devclaw`
* `pm2 restart devclaw`

Application files are stored under `/opt/gatorclaw`.


## Links

Repository: [`LATAMD/repos/ansible-app-installer/ubuntu/roles/gatorclaw`](https://stash.newfold.com/projects/LATAMD/repos/ansible-app-installer/browse/ubuntu/roles/gatorclaw)

Manage: [http://{server_ip}:47716](http://{server_ip}:47716)root@server-650882:~#