Instant Apps

Instant Apps are platform-curated applications you can launch instead of a plain operating system. NodeRings compiles a managed cloud-init template onto the app’s bound distro (for example WordPress on Ubuntu 26.04 LTS). You still choose SSH keys or a root password; NodeRings does not sell the app itself—only the compute.

Create a VM with an Instant App

1. Open Create Virtual Machine and select a plan and provider.
2. Under Choose an Image, open the Instant Apps tab.
3. Pick an app (search or filter by category). When an app has multiple releases (for example WordPress 6.7 / 6.8), choose the version from the dropdown on the chip—each version is a separate catalog entry with its own install script. Each Instant App is bound to a fixed OS (WordPress always runs on Ubuntu 26.04 LTS)—you do not choose the distro separately.
4. Choose SSH key or password authentication (cloud-init profiles and inline user data are not available with Instant Apps).
5. Optionally check Add firewall rules (off by default). Then either preview/create a new ruleset for the app ports (plus SSH)—one ruleset per VM if you create more than one—or attach an existing ruleset to the batch.
6. Confirm the credentials modal, then create.

Application credentials

App passwords (database, admin, etc.) are generated on first boot and stored on the instance at:

/root/.noderings_password

After the VM is running, SSH in and run:

cat /root/.noderings_password

NodeRings does not email these passwords. Credentials are written once per instance; a normal reboot does not regenerate them.

Firewall suggestion

When an Instant App is selected, create shows an Add firewall rules checkbox (off by default). After you enable it:

• Create new — preview inbound TCP accepts from the app catalog (always including SSH 22), plus a final inbound deny all (the platform firewall is implicit-allow). After the VM is created, NodeRings creates a ruleset named after the app slug (for example wordpress-6.8, or wordpress-6.8-1 if taken) and attaches it. Each VM in a multi-create batch gets its own ruleset.
• Existing ruleset — after each VM is created, attach one ruleset from your organization to that VM.

Create shows a progress dialog: create VM (returns success immediately) → 45 second wait → resolve the new VM → firewall create/attach (when enabled). Guest UFW inside the Instant App template may also open the same ports.

Reinstall

Reinstall on the VM detail page uses the same Operating Systems / Instant Apps tabs and auth rules as create.

• Reinstalling with an Instant App regenerates application secrets on the new first boot.
• Old backups or snapshots may not match the new passwords.
• You will see the same credentials acknowledgement before confirming.

Next

• Virtual Machines — fleet, power, console
• Firewall — rulesets and VM binding
• Marketplace — find a plan