CloudVantage provides fast, reliable, and scalable cloud solutions that enable businesses and organisations to deploy servers and infrastructure with just a few clicks. With CloudVantage, you can easily create and manage virtual machines (Dews), networks, storage, and other cloud resources needed to run your applications efficiently.

CloudVantage allows you to scale and customise your servers easily, providing flexibility and efficient resource utilisation. Whether you are running a small web application or a large-scale enterprise system, CloudVantage gives you the tools to deploy and manage infrastructure confidently.

Key concepts

Familiarise yourself with these terms first — they are used throughout the documentation and will help you navigate it more easily.

Quick start path

1. Create an account

   Register at www.cloudvantage.com.ng and verify your email address before signing in.

2. Create a project

   Projects help you organise and manage your cloud resources. You'll be prompted to create one immediately after signing in for the first time. Every project belongs to a single region, and project names must be unique within their region. A description is required.

3. Fund your wallet

   CloudVantage uses a prepaid wallet model. A virtual bank account is automatically created for you at registration. You must fund your wallet before provisioning any resources. Charges are deducted from your wallet immediately when a resource is created; unused time is refunded when you delete a resource.

4. Provision your first Dew

   Create a virtual server (Dew) with your chosen operating system, size (flavor), authentication method, and network configuration.

Platform overview

The CloudVantage platform is organised into the following sections, all accessible from the sidebar navigation:

• Compute — Dews (virtual servers), Server Snapshots, Auto Scaling
• Storage — Volumes, Volume Snapshots, Volume Backups
• Networking — Private Networks, Security Groups, Routers, Floating IPs, Load Balancer
• Security — Certificate Manager
• Account — Billing, Event Logs, Settings, Support

To begin using the CloudVantage platform, you need to create an account at www.cloudvantage.com.ng.

Registration steps

1. Visit the platform

   Go to www.cloudvantage.com.ng.

2. Click My Account

   Select My Account from the top navigation menu.

3. Register or sign in

   Click Create an Account if you're new. Existing users sign in with their email address and password.

4. Complete registration

   Enter all required details on the registration page and click Create Account.

5. Verify your email

   A verification email will be sent to your registered address. Open it and confirm your account before signing in.

Once signed in, you'll be prompted to create a project. Continue to Projects →

A region is the physical location your cloud resources run in. CloudVantage operates two:

Every project belongs to exactly one region, and every resource you create — Dews, volumes, buckets, networks, load balancers — belongs to a project. Your choice of region therefore decides where your data physically lives.

Both regions offer the same services. Anything you can build in Europe you can build in Lagos.

Choosing a region

Three things separate them.

• Data residency. Resources in the Lagos region run on infrastructure located in Nigeria. For Nigerian financial institutions this is usually the deciding factor — see Data residency and the CBN directive.
• Proximity to your users. If the people and systems using your application are in Nigeria, the Lagos region puts your infrastructure closer to them.
• Pricing. Prices differ between regions. Check the Pricing page for the region you are deploying into before provisioning — the same tier does not cost the same in both.

What is shared across regions

Your first projects

New accounts start in the Europe region. When you sign in for the first time you are prompted to create a project there, and a second project is created for you automatically in Lagos, named after your email address.

That Lagos project is ready to use straight away — switch to it whenever you need it. Its name is only a placeholder, so rename it to something meaningful; see Projects.

Seeing all your projects and their regions

1. Click Manage project

   In the top bar, next to your project name.

2. Review the project list

   The Manage Projects page lists every project across every region, with its Project Name, Description, and Region.

3. Filter the list

   Use Region to show one region's projects only, or Project Name to search by name.

4. Click Manage

   Opens that project.

Switching to another region

1. Click Switch Region

   In the top bar, beneath your project name. The Available Regions panel opens.

2. Choose a region

   Select Europe or Lagos. The panel then lists the projects you have in that region.

3. Choose a project

   Select one to switch to it. Use ← Back to regions to return to the region list.

The top bar then shows the new project name with its region beneath it, and the dashboard shows only that project's resources.

Creating a project in a region

1. Click Manage project

   In the top bar.

2. Click + Create New Project

   In the top-right corner of the Manage Projects page.

3. Select the region

   Choose Europe or Lagos. This is where the project and everything in it will run, and it cannot be changed later.

4. Enter a name and description

   Both are required. The name must be unique within the region you selected.

5. Click Create Project

   Switch to it using Switch Region in the top bar.

Data residency and the CBN directive

On 15 June 2026 the Central Bank of Nigeria issued a directive requiring that payment transaction data generated in Nigeria be stored and managed on domestic servers. It takes effect on 1 January 2027 and applies across the payments ecosystem — deposit money banks, microfinance banks, mobile money operators, payment service providers, payment solution service providers, payment terminal service providers, switching and processing companies, and super agents.

The Lagos region runs on infrastructure located in Nigeria, so workloads and data placed there stay in the country.

Projects are the primary organisational unit on CloudVantage. Every resource you create — Dews, volumes, networks, load balancers — belongs to a specific project. You can create multiple projects to separate different workloads or environments (e.g., development, staging, production).

Creating your first project

After signing in for the first time, you'll be automatically prompted to create a project before accessing your dashboard. New accounts start in the Europe region, so this first project is created there.

1. Enter a project name

   Choose a name that is not already in use in this region.

2. Provide a description

   A description is required. Use it to identify this project's purpose or environment (e.g., "Production web infrastructure").

3. Click Create Project

   You'll be redirected to your dashboard where you can start provisioning resources.

Editing your current project

1. Click Manage Project

   Select Manage Project from the sidebar.

2. Update details

   Edit the project name or description as needed.

3. Save changes

   Click Save to apply the changes.

Creating additional projects

You can create as many projects as you need to separate workloads or environments. Every new project is created in a region, so the steps live with the rest of the region documentation — see Creating a project in a region.

To move between projects, use Switch Region in the top bar: pick the region, then the project. See Switching to another region.

When you register, a virtual bank account is automatically created for you. All resource costs are deducted from your wallet balance immediately upon provisioning. If you delete a resource before the billing period ends, the unused portion is refunded directly to your wallet.

How to fund your wallet

1. Click Fund Wallet

   Click the Fund Wallet button in the top-right corner of your dashboard.

2. View your virtual account details

   Your virtual bank account number and other details will be displayed on screen.

3. Copy the account details

   Copy the account number and bank details for your transfer.

4. Make a payment

   Transfer the desired amount using the provided account details. Once payment is confirmed, the funds will reflect in your CloudVantage wallet balance.

Switching billing currency

CloudVantage allows you to switch your billing currency between Naira (₦) and US Dollars ($).

1. Click Fund Wallet

   In the top-right corner of your dashboard.

2. Click Currency Settings

   Click Currency Settings below the account information.

3. Switch currency

   Select Switch to Dollar to change billing from Naira to USD, or the reverse to switch back.

Dews function like traditional machines but are hosted in the cloud. They can be configured with different amounts of CPU, memory, and storage depending on your workload requirements. CloudVantage allows you to scale and customise your servers easily, providing flexibility and efficient resource utilisation.

Common use cases

• Hosting applications and websites
• Running databases
• Processing and transforming data
• File storage and backup targets
• Network services (DNS, VPN endpoints, proxies)
• Continuous integration / build servers

3.1 Provisioning a Dew

1. Navigate to your Dashboard

   Click Resources, then select Create Dew.

2. Select a plan

   You will see a list of available server plans (flavors) with their specifications and pricing. Example plans include:

   • Vantage Nano — 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 30 GB Disk
   • Additional flavors with increasing CPU/RAM/disk are available
   • Custom flavors can be created to match specific requirements

   Select your desired plan and click Configure to proceed.

3. Configure your server

   Set the following options:

   • Term Length — select your preferred billing period (monthly or yearly)
   • Operating System — choose your OS and version: Ubuntu, CentOS, Debian, Windows, and others. Example: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
   • Instance Name — enter a name to identify this Dew within your project
4. Choose an authentication method

   See Authentication Methods below.

5. Configure the network

   Select one of the following options:

   Option	Accessibility	When to use
   Public Network	Accessible from the internet — server receives a public IP address	Web servers, APIs, or any service that needs to be reached externally
   Private Network	Internal only — not reachable from the internet	Databases, backend services, or instances you want to keep off the public internet. A private network must already exist in your project. You can assign a Floating IP later if external access is needed.

   If you choose Private Network, pick the network from the first dropdown, then choose the subnet to provision the Dew in from the Select Subnet dropdown beneath it. The Dew takes its private IP address from that subnet's range, so pick the subnet that fits its role. See Managing Subnets.

6. Review and provision

   Review the server configuration summary and price. Ensure your wallet has sufficient funds, then click Provision. Your new Dew will be created shortly.

Authentication methods

1. SSH Key Authentication (Recommended)

Select an existing keypair or create a new one. The keypair will be downloaded as a .pem file. Keep this file secure — it is required to access your server and cannot be retrieved from the platform again.

• Select from Existing Keypairs — click "Select from Existing Keypairs" and choose from the dropdown
• Create a New Keypair — click "Create New Keypair", enter a name, click "Create Key". The .pem file downloads automatically.

2. Password Authentication

Enter and confirm a password. The login username will be automatically generated for you.

3.2 Viewing Dew Information

To view details of any provisioned Dew:

1. Locate the Dew on your Dashboard
2. Click the Dew name

   A panel will appear displaying: public or private IP address, flavor specification, operating system, keypair used for authentication, and network configuration.

3.3 Monitoring & Metrics

You can monitor the performance of each provisioned Dew through the metrics dashboard. The platform provides visual graphs for the following metrics:

You can filter metrics by selecting a start and end date to analyse usage within a specific period.

1. Locate the instance on your dashboard
2. Click Show Metrics

   Click Show Metrics next to the instance.

3. View and filter

   The metrics page will display graphs for CPU, memory, disk, and egress. Use the date range selectors to analyse a specific period.

3.4 Alarms

Alarms notify you by email when resource usage exceeds defined thresholds. You can configure CPU, RAM, and disk thresholds independently and control how often notification emails are sent.

Creating an alarm

1. Click Show Metrics

   Locate the instance and click Show Metrics.

2. Select Alarming

   On the Metrics page, click the Alarming tab.

3. Click New Alarm and configure

   • CPU Threshold (%) — trigger level for CPU usage alerts
   • RAM Threshold (%) — trigger level for memory usage alerts
   • Disk Threshold (%) — trigger level for disk usage alerts
   • Notification Frequency — how often alert emails are sent while the threshold is breached
   • Maximum Emails Per Day — cap on daily alert emails to prevent inbox flooding
   • Statistic Type — Average, Maximum, or Minimum measurement used for threshold evaluation
   • Email Recipient — primary alert email address
   • CC Emails — optional additional recipients

Updating an alarm

1. Click Show Metrics next to the instance
2. Select Alarming → Edit Alarm

   Locate the alarm and click Edit Alarm.

3. Update and save

   Update the required fields and click Save.

Deleting an alarm

1. Click Show Metrics next to the instance
2. Select Alarming → Delete Alarm
3. Confirm

   The instance will no longer send alert notifications.

3.5 Resizing a Dew

Resizing a Dew allows you to adjust the resources allocated to it (vertical scaling). You can increase or decrease vCPUs and RAM, but disk size cannot be reduced once allocated — only increased.

1. Open Manage

   Locate the Dew and click Manage next to the instance.

2. Select Resize

   Click Resize Instance to open the resize configuration page.

3. Select option and configure

   Select your preferred resizing option (preconfigured or custom) and set the desired resources.

4. Click Initiate Resize

   The platform will begin the resize operation.

5. Confirm or stop

   A confirmation dialog appears. Click Confirm Resize to apply or Stop Resize to revert.

3.6 Shutting Down & Restarting a Dew

You can shut down a running Dew at any time from the dashboard. A shut-down Dew becomes inactive but is not deleted — it continues to exist in your project and can be restarted whenever needed.

Shutting down a Dew

1. Locate the Dew on your dashboard
2. Click Manage next to the instance
3. Select Shutdown Server

   The server will power off and its status will change to Inactive.

Restarting a Dew

1. Locate the inactive Dew on your dashboard
2. Click Manage next to the instance
3. Select Restart Server

   The server will boot back up and its status will return to Active.

3.7 Deleting a Dew

Deleting a Dew permanently removes it from your project. Any unused time remaining in the billing period will be refunded to your wallet.

1. Locate the Dew on your dashboard
2. Click Manage next to the instance
3. Select Delete Server
4. Confirm the action

   A confirmation prompt will appear. Confirm to permanently delete the server.

Snapshots allow you to restore an instance in the event of data loss, a system failure, or issues arising from an update. The snapshot captures the full state of the Dew at the moment it is taken, including all files, installed packages, configuration, and running state.

Common uses for server snapshots:

• Pre-upgrade checkpoints — take a snapshot before applying major updates or changes
• Disaster recovery — restore an instance to a known-good state after failure
• Cloning — launch multiple identical servers from a single snapshot template
• Migration — move a server configuration to a new instance with different resources

4.1 Creating a Server Snapshot

1. Locate the instance

   Find the Dew you want to snapshot on your dashboard.

2. Open Manage

   Click the Manage icon next to the instance.

3. Select Create Snapshot
4. Enter a name

   Enter a descriptive name for the snapshot (e.g., prod-web-pre-upgrade-2025-01).

5. Choose a payment option

   Select monthly or yearly billing for snapshot storage.

6. Click Create Snapshot

   Snapshot creation may take several minutes depending on disk size.

4.2 Viewing Snapshots

Navigate to Server Snapshots on the sidebar. This page displays a list of all snapshots created for your Dews, showing: snapshot name, OS Distro, creation date, size, and status.

4.3 Managing Snapshots

Click Manage Snapshot next to any snapshot. Available actions include:

• Create a Volume from Snapshot — extract the snapshot's data as a new volume
• Edit Snapshot — update the name or description
• Launch a New Dew from Snapshot — spin up a new server using this snapshot as its disk image
• Delete Snapshot — permanently remove the snapshot (irreversible)

Launching a Dew from a Snapshot

1. Go to Server Snapshots from the sidebar
2. Click Manage Snapshot → Launch

   Select Launch next to the snapshot you want to use.

3. Proceed through the Dew creation process

   Configure the new Dew as needed (flavor, authentication, network) and provision it.

Creating a Volume from a Snapshot

1. Click Server Snapshots on the sidebar
2. Click Manage Snapshot → Create Volume from Server Snapshot
3. Provide details

   Enter Volume Name, Volume Size (cannot be smaller than the snapshot size), Payment Option, and an optional Description.

4. Click Create Volume

   The new volume will appear on the Volumes page, ready to attach to any instance.

Deleting a Snapshot

1. Navigate to Server Snapshots
2. Click Manage Snapshot → Delete Snapshot
3. Confirm

   Once deleted, the snapshot is permanently removed and cannot be recovered. Ensure you no longer need it before proceeding.

Auto Scaling automatically adjusts the number of virtual machines running your application based on demand. Instead of manually provisioning or removing servers, the platform continuously monitors resource usage and automatically increases or decreases instances as needed.

• High availability — maintain service during periods of increased traffic without manual intervention
• Cost efficiency — automatically scale down during low-demand periods to avoid paying for idle capacity
• Reduced operational overhead — eliminate the need to manually monitor and adjust server counts

5.1 Infrastructure & Networking

These settings form the template for every server the Auto Scaling Group launches. All instances in the group are created from the same configuration.

5.2 Scaling & Capacity Management

These settings control when and how the Auto Scaling Group adds or removes instances in response to demand.

Scaling policies

CPU-based scaling rules

Memory (RAM) based scaling rules

5.3 Traffic Management & Health Monitoring

The Auto Scaling Group integrates with a Load Balancer to distribute traffic across instances and verify their health.

5.4 Editing an Auto Scaling Stack

The following settings are locked after creation. If you need to change these, you must delete and recreate the Auto Scaling Group:

• Image (snapshot template)
• Flavor (VM size)
• Key Pair (SSH access)
• Network and Subnet
• Security Groups

All other parameters — scaling thresholds, capacity limits, cooldown periods, health check settings, and traffic configuration — can be modified after creation as your workload requirements change.

5.5 Pricing & Billing

Resources created within an Auto Scaling Group are billed the same way as standalone resources. Each instance carries two charges: the instance itself, and its membership in the load balancer's pool. A group with a maximum size of 5 can therefore reach 5 instances and 5 pool memberships at full scale — 10 billed items, not 5.

A Volume is a persistent block storage device that can be attached to a Dew. Unlike the Dew's built-in disk, a Volume exists independently — data persists even if the server is restarted or terminated. Volumes can be detached from one Dew and reattached to another.

6.1 Creating a Volume

1. Click Volumes on the sidebar

   Select Volumes from the dropdown menu.

2. Click Create Volume

   In the top-right corner of the Volumes page.

3. Enter details

   Enter the Name, Size (in GB), and Payment Option (Monthly or Yearly). Review the estimated cost before confirming.

4. Click Create Volume

   Ensure your wallet has sufficient funds before proceeding.

6.2 Attaching and Detaching Volumes

Attaching a volume to an instance

1. Navigate to Volumes from the sidebar
2. Locate the volume and click Manage Volume
3. Select Attach to Instance

   Choose the target instance from the dropdown and click Attach. The volume will appear as a new block device on the server (e.g., /dev/vdb).

Detaching a volume from an instance

1. Navigate to Volumes from the sidebar
2. Click Manage Volume for the volume
3. Select Detach from Instance

   Confirm the detachment. The volume will move to "Available" status and can be attached to a different instance or deleted.

6.3 Deleting a Volume

1. Navigate to Volumes from the sidebar
2. Locate the volume, click Manage Volume, then select Delete Volume
3. Confirm the action

6.4 Volume Snapshots

A Volume Snapshot is a point-in-time copy of a storage volume. It preserves the exact state of the volume's data at the moment it is taken, and can be used to create a new volume from that saved state.

Creating a volume snapshot

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volumes from the sidebar
2. Locate the volume, click Manage Volume → Create Volume Snapshot
3. Enter details

   Enter a Snapshot Name, Description, and Payment Option. The size is auto-populated from the source volume.

4. Click Create Volume Snapshot

   The snapshot will appear on the Volume Snapshots page.

Editing a volume snapshot

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volume Snapshots from the sidebar
2. Click Manage Volume Snapshot → Edit Volume Snapshot
3. Update Name or Description and click Update Snapshot

Creating a new volume from a snapshot

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volume Snapshots
2. Click Manage Volume Snapshot → Create Volume
3. Fill in details

   Enter Volume Name, Size (must be ≥ snapshot size), Billing Plan, and optional Description.

4. Click Create Volume

   The new volume will be listed on the Volumes page, ready to attach.

Deleting a volume snapshot

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volume Snapshots
2. Click Manage Volume Snapshot → Delete Volume Snapshot and confirm

6.5 Volume Backups

A Volume Backup is a secure, independent copy of your volume stored separately from your running system. Unlike snapshots (which are tied to the volume's lifecycle), backups exist independently — making them suitable for longer-term data protection and disaster recovery.

Creating a volume backup

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volumes from the sidebar
2. Locate the volume, click Manage Volume → Create Volume Backup
3. Enter details

   Enter a Backup Name, Description, and Payment Option. The size is auto-populated.

4. Click Create Volume Backup

   The backup will appear on the Volume Backups page.

Restoring a volume from a backup

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volume Backups
2. Click Manage Backup → Restore Backup
3. Choose destination

   • New Volume — enter a name for the new volume to be created from the backup
   • Existing Volume — select a volume from the dropdown to overwrite it with the backup data

   Click Restore to confirm.

Deleting a volume backup

1. Navigate to Volumes → Volume Backups
2. Click Manage Volume Backup → Delete Volume Backup and confirm

Object Storage lets you keep files in buckets rather than on a disk attached to a server. Where a Volume behaves like a hard drive bolted to a single Dew, a bucket is reached over the network and belongs to your project rather than to any one machine. That makes it the right choice for documents, images, backups, static website assets, and anything several servers or people need to reach.

Buckets are managed from the dashboard — upload, browse, preview, and download files without touching a command line. To read and write objects from your own application, see Developer API.

To get started, open Manage Object Storages from the Create panel on your dashboard.

7.1 Storage tiers and pricing

Every bucket sits on a tier, and the tier sets its capacity. Cost depends on the tier and on the region the bucket is created in — check the Pricing page for current figures before creating a bucket, rather than relying on a number written down elsewhere.

You pay for the tier, not for what you actually store — a Basic bucket holding 2 GB costs the same as one holding 140 GB. The bucket details page shows both figures: Size of the Bucket is the capacity your tier provides, and The local size used is what you are currently consuming.

7.2 Creating a bucket

1. Open Manage Object Storages

   From the Create panel on your dashboard, select Manage Object Storages.

2. Click New Bucket

   In the top-right corner of the Bucket Storages page.

3. Enter a bucket name

   Between 1 and 256 characters. Names are case-sensitive and cannot contain a forward slash (/).

4. Select a tier

   Choose Basic, Standard, or Advanced. The tier can be changed later.

5. Set the visibility

   Buckets are Public by default. Tick Private if the contents should not be reachable without authentication.

6. Click Create

   The bucket appears as a card on the Bucket Storages page, with its visibility shown as a badge.

7.3 Finding a bucket

The Bucket Storages page lists every bucket in the current region as a card showing its name and visibility badge. Use Search buckets… at the top of the page to filter by name as the list grows.

Each card carries a ⋮ menu with three actions:

• Edit — change the tier
• Details — open the bucket and work with its contents
• Delete — remove the bucket

7.4 Changing a bucket's tier

Move a bucket up or down a tier as its storage needs change.

1. Open the ⋮ menu on the bucket card and select Edit
2. Select the new tier

   Choose Basic, Standard, or Advanced.

3. Click Save

7.5 Bucket details

Select Details from the ⋮ menu to open a bucket. The panel at the top summarises it:

Below the summary is the object list, showing Name, Size, Type, and Last Modified for every file, with Download and Delete on each row. Search files… filters the list by name.

7.6 Uploading files

1. Open the bucket

   From the ⋮ menu, select Details.

2. Click Add File

   In the top-right corner of the bucket page.

3. Select a folder

   Choose a destination folder from the dropdown, or leave it unset to upload to the top level of the bucket.

4. Choose the files

   Click Change files and select one or more files from your computer. The panel lists everything you have selected.

5. Click Upload

   The files appear in the object list and the Objects count increases.

Upload limits

Requests are limited to 70 per minute per account, which applies to the dashboard and the API together.

7.7 Working with folders

Folders group objects inside a bucket, the way directories organise files on your computer.

Creating a folder

1. Open the bucket

   From the ⋮ menu, select Details.

2. Click Add Folder
3. Enter a folder name and click Create Folder

Uploading into a folder

Click Add File, then pick the folder from the Select a folder dropdown before choosing your files. Leaving the dropdown unset uploads to the top level of the bucket instead.

7.8 Previewing and downloading

Click a file name in the object list to open a preview panel — useful for checking a PDF or an image without pulling it down first. The preview panel has its own Download button, and every row in the object list has one as well. Either saves the file to your computer unchanged.

7.9 Deleting files and folders

To delete a file, click Delete on its row in the object list and confirm.

To delete a folder, first delete every file inside it, then delete the folder itself.

7.10 Deleting a bucket

1. Empty the bucket

   Delete every file, then every folder. See Deleting files and folders.

2. Open the ⋮ menu on the bucket card and select Delete
3. Confirm the action

   Billing for the bucket stops as soon as it is deleted.

7.11 Billing and the grace period

A bucket is billed monthly at its tier price for the region it was created in, charged to your wallet. If your wallet cannot cover the renewal, the bucket moves through four stages, all counted from the original due date:

7.12 Developer API

Everything above describes the dashboard. To read and write objects from your own code — an application storing user uploads, a scheduled backup job, a deployment pipeline — use the Object Storage API instead.

The full API reference covers authentication, endpoints, and request formats:

buckets.cloudvantage.com.ng/bucketaas/docs

Buckets created in the dashboard are reachable through the API, and buckets created through the API appear in the dashboard. The same limit of 70 requests per minute per account applies; unauthenticated routes are additionally limited per source IP.

A Private Network allows your servers to communicate securely with each other within your cloud environment. Traffic between servers on the same private network stays internal — it is never exposed to the public internet. You can attach the subnets within a private network to a router's interface and assign the instances within the subnet floating IPs when external access is needed.

Creating a Private Network

1. Click Networks on the sidebar → Private Networks
2. Click Create Network

   In the top-right corner.

3. Enter a Network Name

   Choose a name that identifies this network's purpose (e.g., prod-network, backend-db-net).

4. Enter the network CIDR

   Required. The overall IP address range for the network, in CIDR notation (e.g., 192.168.0.0/16). Every subnet you create in this network must fall inside this range, and the CIDR cannot be changed after the network is created. Use RFC 1918 private ranges: 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12, or 192.168.0.0/16.

5. Add a Description (optional)
6. Click Create Network

The new network appears in the Private Networks list with its CIDR. It has no subnets yet. A subnet is what gives your servers their addresses, so create one next — see Managing Subnets.

The Private Networks list

The Private Networks page lists every network in the project:

Viewing Network Details

1. Click Networks → Private Networks
2. Click Manage Network → View Network Details

   Displays the network's configuration, attached subnets, and connected resources.

Editing a Private Network

Only the network name and description can be changed after creation. The CIDR is fixed.

1. Go to Networks → Private Networks
2. Click Manage Network → Edit Network
3. Update the network name and/or description and click Update Network

Managing Subnets

A subnet defines the IP address range that servers within a private network can use. A network can have several subnets, as long as each one falls inside the network's CIDR. The subnet uses CIDR notation to define its IP range.

Creating a Subnet

1. Go to Networks → Private Networks

   Locate the network and click Manage Network → Create Subnet.

2. Fill in the Subnet tab

   • Subnet Name (required) — a descriptive label
   • Network Address (required) — the subnet's range in CIDR notation (e.g., 192.168.10.0/24). It must fall inside the network's CIDR, which is shown beside the field label.
   • IP Version — IPv4 by default
3. Click Next

   Opens the Subnet Details tab, where the advanced settings live.

4. Review the Subnet Details tab

   • DHCP — enable automatic IP assignment for connected instances. Enabled by default. Recommended for most use cases.
   • Allocation Pools — optionally restrict which IPs within the range are auto-assigned via DHCP
   • DNS Name Servers — optionally specify DNS servers (e.g., 8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4)
5. Click Create Subnet

Editing a Subnet

Only the subnet name can be modified after creation. To change the CIDR, IP version, or other core settings, delete and recreate the subnet.

1. Go to Networks → Private Networks → Manage Network → View Network Details → Subnets tab
2. Click Manage Subnet → Edit Subnet

   Update the name and save.

Deleting a Subnet

1. Navigate to Networks → Private Networks → Manage Network → View Network Details → Subnets tab
2. Click Manage Subnet → Delete Subnet and confirm

Deleting a Private Network

1. Go to Networks → Private Networks

   Click Manage Network → Delete Network and confirm.

A Security Group acts as a virtual firewall for your servers, controlling which network traffic is allowed to reach them (ingress) and which traffic they are allowed to send out (egress). Rules within a security group specify the protocol, port range, and source or destination of allowed traffic.

When a Dew is provisioned, two security groups are automatically created:

• The default security group — allows all outbound (egress) traffic
• A server-specific group with port 22 (SSH) open for remote access

Creating a Security Group

1. Click the Networks tab → Security Groups
2. Click Create Security Group
3. Enter a name and description, then click Create Security Group

   Use descriptive names that identify the group's purpose (e.g., web-servers, database-access, allow-https-only).

Creating a Security Group Rule

1. Click Manage Rule next to the security group → Add New Rule
2. Configure the rule

   • Rule Type — predefined rules (SSH, HTTP, HTTPS, etc.) auto-fill the port and protocol. Select Custom TCP or Custom UDP to specify your own values.
   • Direction — Ingress controls inbound traffic; Egress controls outbound traffic.
   • EtherType — select IPv4 for most use cases.
   • Port Range — auto-fills based on rule type, or specify manually. Enter a single port (e.g., 8080) or a range (e.g., 8000-8999).
   • Remote — source (ingress) or destination (egress). This can be specified as:
   • CIDR block — e.g., 0.0.0.0/0 for anywhere, 203.0.113.0/24 for a range, 192.168.1.50/32 for a single IP
   • Security Group — restrict to traffic from instances in another security group
   • Description — optional label to document the rule's purpose
3. Click Submit

Attaching or Detaching Security Groups

1. Click Manage Rules next to the security group
2. Choose Attach to Instance or Detach from Instance

   Select the target instance from the dropdown and attach or detach.

Deleting Security Groups and Rules

To delete a rule, click the delete icon next to it and confirm. To delete an entire security group, first ensure it is not attached to any Dew.

Common rules reference

A router enables communication between different networks. Routers connect private networks and allow traffic to flow between subnets or to external networks such as the internet. When a router is created on CloudVantage, it is automatically connected to the external network, giving it a publicly routable external IP address.

To allow a server on a private network to communicate outside that network (e.g., to reach the internet or another subnet), the private subnet must be connected to a router via a router interface.

Creating a Router

1. Click Networks → Routers

   Click Create Router in the top-right corner.

2. Enter a Name and Description

   Choose a name that identifies this router's purpose or the networks it will connect.

3. Choose a Payment Method

   Pay Monthly or Yearly. Monthly is selected by default. The estimated cost is shown beneath the field before you confirm.

4. Click Create Router

   The router is automatically connected to the external network upon creation.

Managing a Router

Go to Networks → Routers, locate the router, and click Manage Router. Available actions:

• View Router Details — configuration, external IP, and attached interfaces
• Edit Router — update name or description
• Delete Router — permanently remove (must be disconnected from all subnets first)

Creating a Router Interface

Interfaces allow a router to connect to one or more subnets, enabling communication between those subnets and other networks (including the internet via the router's external gateway). Without an interface, servers on a private network within a subnet cannot reach resources outside that subnet.

A single interface can connect several subnets of a private network, so a network with more than one subnet does not need an interface per subnet.

1. Go to Networks → Routers → Manage Router → View Router Details → Interfaces tab
2. Select Create Interface

   Select the subnets to connect (required) and add an optional description.

3. Click Create Interface

   The router will now route traffic between the connected subnets and the external network.

Deleting a Router Interface

1. Navigate to Networks → Routers → Manage Router → View Router Details → Interfaces tab
2. Click Delete Interface next to the interface and confirm

   Removing an interface disconnects the subnets it connects from the router. Servers on those subnets will lose external connectivity.

Deleting a Router

1. Go to Networks → Routers

   Click Manage Router → Delete Router and confirm.

A Floating IP is a publicly routable IP address that can be attached to a private instance or a load balancer, allowing it to be accessible from the internet. Floating IPs are separate from instances — you allocate the IP to your project first, then associate it with a specific resource. You can reassociate a Floating IP between resources at any time without releasing it. You just have to disassociate it from the current resource and associate it with another resource.

Allocating a Floating IP

Allocating a Floating IP reserves it for your project. Once allocated, you can associate it with any instance or load balancer port within your project.

1. Go to Networks → Floating IPs

   Click Allocate IP to Project.

2. Configure

   Select the Pool (External — the public IP pool), choose a Payment Option, and add an optional Description.

3. Click Allocate IP

   The IP address is reserved for your project and appears in your Floating IPs list.

Associating a Floating IP with an Instance

1. Go to Networks → Floating IPs

   Click Associate Floating IP next to the IP address.

2. Select the port

   Choose the target port from the dropdown — a Dew port or a load balancer port. Click confirm.

Releasing a Floating IP

Releasing a Floating IP removes it from your project entirely. The IP is returned to the public pool and is no longer available to you.

1. Go to Networks → Floating IPs

   Click Release Floating IP next to the address and confirm.

A Load Balancer acts as a traffic distributor that sits between your users and backend servers. It receives incoming requests and intelligently routes them to healthy backend servers based on the configured algorithm and health monitoring rules.

Common use cases

• High Availability — eliminate single points of failure by distributing traffic across multiple servers
• Scalability — handle increased traffic by adding backend servers to the pool
• SSL/TLS Termination — offload SSL/TLS encryption from backend servers to the load balancer
• Traffic Management — route requests using different protocols and ports
• Health Monitoring — automatically detect and remove unhealthy servers from rotation

Key components

Prerequisites

• At least one running backend instance to receive traffic
• Network configuration: access to an external or private network
• SSL certificates uploaded to Certificate Manager (required only for TERMINATED HTTPS listeners)

Creating a Load Balancer

Navigate to Networks → Load Balancers and click Create Load Balancer. The creation wizard has five steps.

Step 1 — Load Balancer Details

Name (Required) — enter a descriptive name (e.g., production-web-lb, api-load-balancer).

IP Address (Optional) — leave blank to have an IP assigned automatically. Specifying an IP is not recommended for most deployments.

Network (Required)

• External Network — the load balancer receives a public IP directly. Use for public-facing websites and APIs.
• Private Network — accessible only within your private infrastructure. Use for internal services and backends. Attach a Floating IP to make it publicly accessible.

Step 2 — Listener Details

Protocol (Required)

Timeout settings

Step 3 — Pool Details

Load Balancing Algorithm (Required)

Session Persistence (Required)

Step 4 — Pool Members

Pool members are the backend servers that receive traffic. For each backend server:

Weight example: Server A (weight 2) + B (weight 1) + C (weight 1) → A receives 50%, B and C each receive 25%.

Step 5 — Health Monitor

Health monitor types:

Health monitor settings:

After creation

• Note the IP address — needed for DNS records or direct traffic routing
• Monitor health checks — ensure all pool members show as healthy in the dashboard
• Test connectivity — send test requests to verify traffic is being distributed
• Configure DNS — point your domain name to the load balancer IP address

Best practices

High availability

• Use at least 2 pool members — a single member defeats the purpose of a load balancer
• Always configure health checks to detect failures automatically

Security

• Use TERMINATED HTTPS for public services — centralises certificate management
• Monitor certificate expiration dates in Certificate Manager
• Keep backend servers accessible only through the load balancer where possible
• Use private networks for backends to reduce attack surface

Performance

• Choose the right algorithm — ROUND_ROBIN for similar-capacity servers; LEAST_CONNECTIONS for variable request durations or long-lived connections
• Tune timeout values — balance fast failure detection with tolerance for slow responses
• Avoid unnecessary session persistence — prefer stateless architectures with shared session storage (Redis, Memcached)
• Adjust member weights based on server capacity

Cost optimisation

• Start with the minimum required pool members and scale as traffic grows
• Monitor actual utilisation and remove unnecessary pool members
• Right-size your backend servers based on actual load

Troubleshooting

A site-to-site VPN links the private network behind one of your routers to a network somewhere else, so machines on both sides reach each other by private address as though they shared a network. Traffic crossing the internet between the two is encrypted.

The other side does not have to be CloudVantage. A tunnel can join:

• Two projects on CloudVantage — connecting dev to production, for instance
• Two regions — a Lagos project to a Europe project
• CloudVantage and another cloud provider, such as AWS
• CloudVantage and your own on-premises network, behind a compatible IPsec device

Pricing

A VPN is billed per IPsec site connection, per month. IKE policies, IPsec policies, VPN services, and endpoint groups cost nothing on their own — only a site connection is chargeable. For current pricing, check the Pricing page — the source of truth for prices, which can change.

The price is the same in both regions — a tunnel in Lagos costs what a tunnel in Europe costs.

If you delete a connection partway through a month, you are refunded for the unused portion, the same way Dews are handled.

Before you start

Gather these first. Most failed tunnels come from one of them being wrong rather than from a mistake in the dashboard.

• A router with an external gateway in the project, and its public IP address.
• Non-overlapping subnets. The private CIDRs on each side must not overlap — 192.168.10.0/24 talking to 172.16.20.0/24 is fine, 192.168.10.0/24 on both sides cannot work. Use RFC 1918 ranges.
• The peer's public IP address — the external address of the router, gateway, or firewall at the far end.
• The peer's private CIDR — the range on the other side you need to reach.
• An agreed pre-shared key, exchanged with whoever runs the other end through a secure channel.
• Agreed encryption settings — see Matching both sides.

The five pieces

Open VPN from the dashboard. The page has five tabs, and they are built in this order because each one depends on those before it.

1. Create an IKE policy

1. Open the IKE Policies tab and click + Add IKE Policy
2. Name the policy

   A description is optional. The name does not need to match the other side.

3. Choose the algorithms

   These must be identical to the far end. Recommended: authorization sha256, encryption aes-256, IKE version v2, PFS group14, lifetime 3600 seconds.

4. Click Create

2. Create an IPsec policy

1. Open the IPSec Policies tab and click + Add IPSec Policy
2. Name the policy
3. Choose the algorithms

   Again, identical to the far end.

4. Click Create

3. Create a VPN service

A VPN service attaches VPN capability to one router. You need one per router, and the router must already have an external gateway.

1. Open the VPN Services tab and click + Add VPN Service
2. Enter a name

   A description is optional.

3. Select the router

   Choose the router whose network you want to reach through the tunnel.

4. Leave Admin State Up ticked, then click Create

The VPN Services list shows the service's Local Side Public IPs — the address the far end must use as its peer address. Note it down; whoever configures the other end needs it.

4. Create the endpoint groups

Endpoint groups say which address ranges are allowed through the tunnel. You need two: one for your side, one for the far side.

Local endpoint group

1. Open the Endpoint Groups tab and click + Add Endpoint Group
2. Name it

   Something that makes the side obvious, such as local-endpoint-group.

3. Set Endpoint Type to "Subnet (for local systems)"
4. Tick the subnets to expose

   Select from your project's own subnets. Only ticked subnets are reachable over the tunnel.

5. Click Create

Remote endpoint group

1. Click + Add Endpoint Group again
2. Name it

   For example remote-endpoint-group.

3. Set Endpoint Type to "CIDR (for external systems)"
4. Enter the far side's CIDRs

   Comma-separated, for example 192.168.100.0/24. Several ranges are allowed.

5. Click Create

5. Create the IPsec site connection

This is the tunnel itself, and the only chargeable piece.

1. Open the IPSec Site Connections tab and click + Add IPSec Site Connection
2. Enter a name

   A description is optional.

3. Select the VPN service, IKE policy, and IPsec policy

   The ones you created above.

4. Select the local and remote endpoint groups

   Local is your Subnet group; remote is your CIDR group.

5. Enter the peer gateway address

   The far end's public IPv4 or IPv6 address, or an FQDN.

6. Enter the peer router identity

   Usually the same value as the peer gateway address.

7. Enter the pre-shared key

   Character for character what the other side uses. It is case-sensitive.

8. Review the optional parameters

   On the Optional Parameters tab: MTU (default 1500), dead peer detection action, interval, and timeout, and initiator state. The defaults suit most setups. Dead peer detection settings apply to your side only and do not have to match the far end, but the timeout must be larger than the interval.

9. Click Create

   The connection shows PENDING_CREATE, then becomes active once both ends agree.

Matching both sides

A tunnel comes up only when both ends agree. Some values must be identical, some must be mirror images, and some can differ freely.

Must be identical

• Pre-shared key — exactly, including case. The most common reason a tunnel stays down.
• IKE policy settings — authorization algorithm, encryption algorithm, IKE version, PFS, lifetime.
• IPsec policy settings — authorization algorithm, encryption algorithm, encapsulation mode, transform protocol, PFS, lifetime.

Must be swapped

Can differ

Names and descriptions, which router each side uses, MTU, initiator state, and dead peer detection settings. One side may be bi-directional while the other is response-only.

Allow the traffic through your security groups

A tunnel that is up does not by itself let anything through. Your security groups still apply, and by default they do not permit traffic from the peer network.

On each side, add ingress rules allowing the protocols you need from the peer's CIDR — ICMP if you want to test with ping, TCP 22 for SSH, and whatever ports your applications use.

Editing and deleting

To change or remove any VPN resource, click Manage on its row, then Edit or Delete.

What you can change depends on whether the resource is in use by a live tunnel.

Deleting a connection

Deleting an IPsec site connection stops the tunnel immediately and releases the IKE and IPsec policies for editing again. Billing stops on deletion, and you are refunded for the unused part of the month.

Troubleshooting

The connection never leaves DOWN

• Check the pre-shared key on both sides, character for character. This is the single commonest cause.
• Confirm each side's peer gateway address is the other side's public IP, not its own.
• Compare the IKE and IPsec settings on both ends — one mismatched algorithm is enough.
• Confirm both routers have an external gateway and can reach each other over the internet.

The connection is active but nothing gets through

• Check security groups on both sides allow traffic from the peer CIDR.
• Check the endpoint groups: local should list your subnets, remote should list theirs, and the two must not overlap.
• Check firewalls running inside the servers themselves.

SSH works but other services fail

• Check the security group covers those ports, not just 22.
• Try lowering the MTU on the connection to 1400. Large packets can be dropped on paths that cannot carry a full 1500-byte frame.

Connecting to AWS or another provider

The CloudVantage side is identical regardless of what sits at the far end. On the other provider you will be configuring their equivalent pieces — on AWS, a customer gateway holding your public IP, a virtual private gateway, and a site-to-site VPN connection carrying the matching algorithms and PSK.

The rules on this page still decide whether it works: identical algorithms and PSK, mirrored addresses and endpoint ranges, non-overlapping CIDRs, and security groups open on both sides.

Certificate Manager allows you to upload SSL/TLS certificates once and reuse them across services such as Load Balancers and Auto Scaling Groups, without needing to store certificates directly on individual servers. All certificates are securely encrypted at rest — only you have access to your stored certificates and keys.

Common use cases

• Load Balancer SSL/TLS Termination — secure HTTPS traffic without managing certs on each backend
• Auto Scaling Groups — manage certificates for dynamically created instances
• Centralised Certificate Storage — keep all certificates in one secure, organised location
• Certificate Lifecycle Management — track expiration dates and manage renewals

Accessing Certificate Manager

1. Navigate to Certificate Manager from the sidebar
2. You'll see two tabs: Overview and Secrets

   • Overview — total number of stored secrets
   • Secrets — list of all certificates with create/delete actions

Creating a Certificate

Before uploading, ensure you have:

• Created secure backups of certificate files and private keys in an encrypted location
• Documented which certificates are used for which services
• Verified you have all required files: Private Key, Server Certificate, and CA Chain

1. Click the Secrets tab → Create Secret
2. Fill in certificate details

   • Name — a descriptive identifier (e.g., production-web-cert, staging-api-cert)
   • Secret Type — select Certificate from the dropdown
   • Expiration Date — enter in DD/MM/YYYY format
3. Upload the three certificate files (all must be in PEM format)

   • Private Key (.pem) — your certificate's private key
   • Server Certificate (.pem) — the certificate file from your CA
   • CA Chain Certificate (.pem) — the certificate authority chain file
4. Click Create Secret

   Your certificate appears in the Secrets list showing name, type, and expiration date.

Accepted file formats

Certificate Manager accepts certificates in PEM format. To check if a file is PEM format, open it in a text editor — it should begin with -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----.

• .crt or .cer files in PEM format — upload directly or rename to .pem
• DER binary or PKCS#7 (.p7b) files — convert to PEM first:

# Convert .crt (DER format) to PEM
openssl x509 -inform der -in certificate.crt -out certificate.pem

# Extract certificates from PKCS#7 (.p7b)
openssl pkcs7 -print_certs -in certificate.p7b -out certificate.pem

Safe certificate rotation

To replace a certificate without service disruption, always follow this order:

1. Upload the new certificate

   Give it a different name from the existing certificate.

2. Update your Load Balancer

   Attach the new certificate to your Load Balancer and any other affected services.

3. Verify HTTPS is working with the new certificate

   Test thoroughly before proceeding to the next step.

4. Delete the old certificate

   Only after confirming the new certificate is fully active and working.

Recovery from accidental deletion

1. Re-upload the certificate immediately using your local backup (this is why maintaining backups is critical)
2. Re-attach the certificate to affected Load Balancers or services
3. Monitor your services to confirm they're functioning correctly

Note: there may be downtime between deletion and re-upload.

Best practices

• Maintain secure backups — certificates cannot be downloaded after upload; always keep encrypted backups locally
• Use descriptive names — clearly identify purpose (e.g., production-web-cert-2026)
• Monitor expiration dates — check regularly and plan renewals well in advance
• Rotate before expiry — upload and attach new certificates before old ones expire
• Never delete certificates in use — verify no services reference a certificate before deleting
• Secure your private keys — delete key files from insecure locations after uploading

Troubleshooting

When you provision any resource, the cost for the selected billing term is deducted immediately from your wallet balance. CloudVantage's billing model is designed to be transparent and flexible:

• Charges are deducted immediately when a resource is provisioned
• Deleting a resource before the billing period ends triggers a refund for the unused portion
• Refunds are returned directly to your CloudVantage wallet — not to your bank account
• This allows you to scale resources up or down without financial waste

Viewing your invoices

The CloudVantage Billing page allows you to view and download your monthly invoices. Visit cloudvantage.com.ng/billing or click Billing in the sidebar.

Billing by resource type

Event logs provide an audit trail of system and user events within your project. Each log entry includes the timestamp and a description of the action performed.

Event logs are useful for:

• Auditing — track what changed, when, and by whom
• Change tracking — review configuration changes across your project over time
• Troubleshooting — identify the sequence of events leading to unexpected behaviour or failures
• Compliance — maintain a record of infrastructure operations for governance purposes

Accessing Event Logs

1. Click Event Logs on the sidebar
2. Browse the list of recorded events

   Events are displayed in reverse chronological order. Review recent activity within your project.

Your CloudVantage account is the key to every project and every resource you own, in both regions, along with your wallet. This page covers signing in, getting back in if you forget your password, and adding a second layer of protection.

Signing in

Enter your email address and password, then click Sign in. The eye icon in the password field reveals what you have typed, which is useful for checking a long password before submitting it.

If two-factor authentication is enabled on your account, you will be asked for a verification code after your password is accepted.

Password requirements

Every password you set — at sign-up, when changing it, or when resetting a forgotten one — must contain:

• At least 12 characters
• At least 1 uppercase letter
• At least 1 lowercase letter
• At least 1 number
• At least 1 special character

Resetting a forgotten password

If you cannot remember your password, reset it from the sign-in page. CloudVantage emails a one-time verification code to your registered address.

1. Click "Forgot password?"

   Beneath the password field on the sign-in page.

2. Enter your email address

   Use the address your account is registered with, then click Send verification code.

3. Check your email for the code

   CloudVantage sends a numeric verification code to that address.

4. Enter your email and the code

   On the Verify reset code page, then click Verify code.

5. Create a new password

   Enter the new password twice — in New password and Confirm password — meeting the requirements above, then click Reset password. You can then sign in with it.

Changing your password

If you know your current password and simply want to replace it, do that from Settings rather than the reset flow. You will be asked to confirm your current password before setting a new one.

Two-factor authentication

Two-factor authentication (2FA) asks for a second piece of evidence when you sign in, on top of your password. Someone who obtains your password still cannot reach your account without it.

Every account starts with 2FA set to None. Two methods are available:

Enabling Email OTP

1. Open Settings

   Go to the Two-Factor Authentication section.

2. Select Email OTP

   It takes effect immediately — there is nothing further to confirm.

From then on, each sign-in sends a one-time code to your registered email address, which you enter after your password.

Enabling an Authenticator App

You will need an authenticator app on your phone — Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, Authy, or any other compatible app.

1. Open Settings

   Go to the Two-Factor Authentication section.

2. Select Authenticator App

   The Set up Authenticator App panel appears, showing a QR code.

3. Scan the QR code

   Open your authenticator app and scan it. If you cannot scan — on a desktop app, for instance — type the setup key shown beneath the code into your app manually instead.

4. Enter the six-digit code

   Your app now shows a code that changes every 30 seconds. Type the current one into Authenticator verification code and confirm.

Changing or turning off 2FA

Switch methods at any time from the Two-Factor Authentication section of Settings. What each switch asks of you depends on the method you are moving away from:

Moving to Authenticator App always runs the full setup again — see Enabling an Authenticator App above. Scanning the new QR code replaces any earlier CloudVantage entry in your app, so delete the old one once the new code is accepted.

Moving away from Authenticator App — to Email OTP or to None — brings up a Confirm security change panel. Enter your current password and click Confirm Change; the change does not apply until you do.

Accessing Settings

1. Click the Wallet Balance in the top-right corner of your dashboard
2. Select Currency Settings

   This navigates to the Settings page. You can also visit cloudvantage.com.ng/settings directly.

Available settings

If you need assistance or have any questions, click the Support tab on the sidebar. From there, you can send a message to our support team via email, and we will respond to help resolve your issue.

Self-service resources

A managed database is a MySQL server that CloudVantage provisions and runs for you. You choose how much RAM, CPU, and storage it gets, and how you want to reach it; CloudVantage builds the machine, installs and configures MySQL, opens only the ports your chosen access method needs, and gives you the credentials.

There are two ways to get one:

Both end at the same place: a running MySQL instance listed on the Managed Databases page, with backups, version upgrades, and credential retrieval available from Manage DB.

Flavors, versions, and pricing

A flavor sets the RAM, CPU, and storage of the server your database runs on. Named flavors run from small development sizes up to large production ones, and Custom Flavor lets you specify RAM, CPU, and storage yourself.

Prices differ between the Europe and Lagos regions. Whichever flavor you pick, including a custom one, the price is shown before you confirm, and the estimated monthly cost appears beside the create button.

MySQL 8.0 and MySQL 8.4 are available.

Creating a new database

1. Open Managed Databases and click Create Managed Database
2. Select a flavor

   Pick a named flavor, or Custom Flavor to set RAM, CPU, and storage yourself. The price is shown alongside each option.

3. Name the database

   Letters, numbers, and underscores only — hyphens and spaces are rejected. CloudVantage appends a unique suffix, so a database named employees appears in the list as something like employees-1e0367c243.

4. Choose the MySQL version

   MySQL 8.0 or MySQL 8.4. Customers are advised to use the more recent version of MySQL.

5. Click Run Vulnerability Check

   This scans the selected MySQL version for known critical vulnerabilities. It must pass before the database can be created.

6. Set the database username and password

   Enter the password twice. This is the account your application will use, unless you decide to create another database user or account.

7. Choose a management interface

   None, PhpMyAdmin, or Adminer. This decides how you reach the database and which ports are opened — see Choosing how to connect.

8. Click Version Safe Create Database

   The button at the bottom, with the estimated cost beside it. It becomes available once the vulnerability check has passed.

The database appears in the list as In progress while the server is built, briefly showing Waiting for server IP, and becomes Completed when it is ready.

Choosing how to connect

Your choice of management interface determines which ports CloudVantage opens in the database's security group. Only what your chosen method needs is opened.

Migrating an existing database

The Database Migration Service moves an existing MySQL database from any external environment into CloudVantage with minimal downtime.

Before you start

• Your source database is reachable over the network
• The source database's IP address and port — MySQL's default is 3306
• A source username and password with sufficient privileges
• The exact database name, which must match on both sides
• At least 4 GB of RAM on the target flavor is recommended

Step 1 — Select a database flavor

1. Open Managed Databases and click Migrate Database
2. Choose the target flavor

   Match it to your workload. A minimum of 4 GB RAM is recommended for a faster migration; for large databases, choose more.

3. Click Next

Step 2 — Database setup

Click Next: Source DB Info.

Step 3 — Source database information

Click Check Database Connection. This verifies that the database is reachable, the credentials are valid, and the required permissions are present. If it fails, re-check the IP address, source database name, username, password, and port. Once it succeeds, click Next: Migration Settings.

Step 4 — Migration settings

Select the migration type and click Start Migration. You can watch both provisioning and migration progress from the dashboard: provisioning completes first, then migration runs, and Migration Status reaches complete.

After the migration

• Verify all tables and data are present in the new database
• Test your application against the new credentials
• Update your application's connection settings
• Delete the temporary migration user from the source database

The database list

Every database in the project is listed with its name, IP address, engine, version, server type, status, and migration status. Filter DB Servers and Search Databases… narrow the list.

Migration Status reads complete for a migrated database and N/A for one created from scratch.

Retrieving your credentials

Click the eye icon beside a database's status to reveal its credentials. You get the database name, username, password, and — if you chose PhpMyAdmin or Adminer — the web interface URL and a reset URL for changing the database password later. Copy All takes the lot in one go.

Managing a database

Click Manage DB on any row to view its details, upgrade its MySQL version, and work with backups.

Upgrading the MySQL version

1. Click Manage DB, then Upgrade Database Version

   The dialog shows the current version.

2. Select the target version
3. Click Run Version Check

   This validates that the upgrade can proceed.

4. Click Upgrade Database

   Available once the check passes.

Backups

Click Manage DB, then Backups. The dialog has three tabs.

Available Backups lists every backup you hold, each with an ID, a timestamp, and a Restore action. Create Backup takes one immediately.

Schedule Backup controls automatic backups. Tick Enable Scheduled Backups, choose a frequency, and click Save Schedule:

The Current Schedule panel at the top shows whether the schedule is Active or Inactive, and what it is set to.

Restore History records past restores — the database, the backup ID used, how many tables were restored out of the total, and whether it succeeded.

Deleting a database

Click Manage DB on the database's row, then Delete, and confirm. Billing stops on deletion, and you are refunded for the unused portion of the month — the same pro-rata refund applied when a Dew or a VPN connection is deleted.