> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.advinservers.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Ordering a Server
> How to create an account, finish account setup and order a virtual server in the Ascienth console.
## Overview
You order virtual servers in the Ascienth console at [https://console.advinservers.com](https://console.advinservers.com). New servers are paid from your [account credit](/guides/account-credit), and we start building them as soon as the payment goes through.
This page covers three things:
1. Creating an account and finishing account setup.
2. Filling in the "Order a Server" page.
3. What happens after you place the order, and what to do if something goes wrong.
If you were already a customer in the client area at [https://clients.advinservers.com](https://clients.advinservers.com), you do not need a new account. Sign in to the console with the same email address and password. See [Launching Ascienth](/guides/controlpanel).
## Creating an Account
Go to [https://console.advinservers.com](https://console.advinservers.com) and click `Create one` under the sign-in form, or open [https://console.advinservers.com/register](https://console.advinservers.com/register) directly. If the link is missing or you are sent back to the sign-in page, we are not accepting new accounts at the moment.
Enter your `First name`, `Last name`, `Email` and phone number. The phone number must start with your country code. `Company (optional)` can be left empty.
Choose a `Password` and repeat it in `Confirm password`. The password must be at least 8 characters and include an upper case letter, a lower case letter, a number and one of `! @ # $ % ^ & *`.
Click `Continue`. If the email address already has an account, you are asked to sign in instead.
Enter the address your invoices are addressed to: `Address`, `City`, `Postcode` and `Country` are required, and `Address line 2 (optional)` and `State / region (optional)` can be left empty. You can change these details later.
If your email address already has a login in the client area, the form also asks for your `Existing billing password`. Enter the password you use in the client area.
Complete the verification check, then click `Create account`. You are signed in straight away.
## Finishing Account Setup
Before you can use the rest of the console, you need to finish "Account Setup". The console takes you there after you sign up, and keeps sending you back to it until both steps are done. While a step is open, "Finish Setup" also appears at the top of the sidebar with the number of steps left.
We send a six-digit code to the email address on your account. Enter it and click `Verify Email`.
A code is valid for 15 minutes and allows five wrong attempts. If it does not arrive, check your spam folder, or click `Resend Code`. If you typed your address wrong when you signed up, click `Change email` to correct it.
The "Terms and Policies" step links to our [Terms of Service](/policies/termsofservice), [Service Level Agreement](/policies/sla), [Abuse Policy](/policies/abuse), [Fair Use Policy](/policies/fair-use), [Refund Policy](/policies/refund) and [Privacy Policy](/policies/privacypolicy). Each opens in a new tab.
Tick `I have read and accept the agreements above.` and click `Accept and Finish`.
Only one account per person or business may be verified. If you already have a verified account, sign in to that one instead. Duplicate accounts may be suspended.
If we revise the agreements later, you are asked to accept them again.
## Before You Order
* **Add account credit.** Orders are paid from your account credit balance. If your balance does not cover the order, the order page tells you and links to "Add Funds". See [Account Credit](/guides/account-credit).
* **Save an SSH key (optional).** Keys saved on the "SSH Keys" page can be added to the server when it is built. See [SSH Keys](/guides/ssh-keys).
* **Save a setup script (optional).** A script can run while the server is being built. See [Setup Scripts](/guides/scripts).
You can also create a key or a script from the order page itself.
## Ordering a Server
Click "Virtual Servers" in the sidebar, then click `Deploy Server`. This opens the "Order a Server" page.
Under "Choose product group", pick the product family. Then pick a city under "Choose location". A green dot means the location has stock, and a red dot means it is out of stock.
Under "Choose plan", pick a plan from the table. Each row shows its vCPU, memory, disk, transfer and monthly price. A plan that is out of stock is greyed out and cannot be picked. To hear when it is back, see [Stock Notifications](/guides/stock-notifications).
Under "Choose OS", pick an operating system, then pick its version from `OS Version`.
If you choose Windows, it is installed as a 180-day evaluation edition. You must buy a licence from Microsoft and activate the server before the 180 days are up, or it starts shutting itself down. See [Windows](/guides/windows).
Under "SSH Keys", tick the keys to add to the server. Keys you marked as default are ticked for you. Click `Create SSH Key` to add a new one without leaving the page.
Under "Setup Script", you can pick one of your scripts to run while the server is being built, or click `Create Script` to add one.
These two sections are hidden when you choose Windows, because setup scripts are not supported on Windows.
Under "Billing Cycle", choose how often the server is invoiced. Each option shows its price for that term. Longer terms are billed up front.
Enter a password in `System OS Password`. It is always required, even if you add SSH keys, because the browser console signs in with a password.
The password must be at least 5 characters and use only characters from a US keyboard. A Windows password has extra rules:
* At least three of: an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, a number and a symbol.
* It must not contain `Administrator`.
* At most 127 characters.
Under "Name", you can set a `Hostname` and a `Server label`.
* The hostname is set on the server itself. It must be a valid hostname, such as `web1.example.com`. If you leave it empty, the server is named after its IP address.
* The label is the name shown in the console. It can be up to 40 characters. If you leave it empty, we generate one.
In the bar at the bottom of the page, use `Qty` to order up to 10 servers of the same plan at once. You cannot order more than the plan has in stock. Each extra server gets its own pair of fields, such as `Hostname for server 2` and `Server label for server 2`. Hostnames you fill in must all be different.
Check the total in the bottom bar, then click `Create Server`. The button stays disabled until everything required is filled in, and its tooltip says what is missing.
If the price changed since the page loaded, a "Confirm Purchase" dialog shows the latest price. Click `Pay from Credit` to go ahead.
The "Coupon" section does not apply any discount to console orders. Codes from the old client area are not accepted.
## After You Place the Order
You are taken back to "Virtual Servers", where the order appears as a row in the server list. Its status changes as the order moves along. Hover over the status to see more detail.
| Status | What it means |
| - | - |
| `Provisioning` | The order is being paid from your account credit, or the server is being created. |
| `Needs funds` | Your account credit did not cover the order. Click `Add funds` under the status and top up your balance. We try again until the payment deadline. |
| `Awaiting payment` | The order is waiting for its invoice to be paid. |
| `Installing` | The server exists, and we are installing your operating system, password, SSH keys and script on it. |
When the build finishes, the order row is replaced by your new server. Click it to open the server. See [Server Overview](/guides/server-overview).
An unpaid order does not wait forever. If it is still unpaid when the payment deadline passes, it expires and you need to order again.
### Cancelling an Unpaid Order
You can withdraw an order that has not been paid for yet.
On "Virtual Servers", click the menu at the end of the order's row and choose `Cancel order`.
Type the confirmation text the dialog asks for (the order's hostname), then click `Cancel order`. Nothing is charged and no server is created.
An order that has already been paid cannot be cancelled this way. Once the server exists, see [Invoices and Billing](/guides/invoices-and-billing) for how to cancel the service.
### If the Build Fails
If we cannot set up a paid order, its price is returned to your account credit.
If the server was created but the operating system install did not finish, the server's page shows **The last install did not finish**. Click `Try the install again` to reinstall it. See [Server Reinstallation](/guides/reinstall). If it fails a second time, open a ticket in the [client area](https://clients.advinservers.com/contact.php).
You can close the notice with the cross in its corner once you have read it. This only hides the notice. It does not change the server.
## Team Permissions
A server ordered from the console is created in the account's default team, together with the SSH keys and script you picked there. If you are working in a different team, the order page tells you which team servers are ordered in and offers to switch to it.
Team members need these permissions in their role:
| Permission | Allows |
| - | - |
| `View servers` | Open the order page and see plans and prices. |
| `Make purchases` | Place an order and cancel an unpaid one. Orders are paid from the team owner's account credit. |
Account setup and adding funds always apply to your own account, not to the team you are working in. See [Teams and Accounts](/guides/teams-and-accounts).
## Frequently Asked Questions
Not directly. Add funds to your account credit with any [payment method](/guides/payment-methods), then order the server. The order is paid from your credit.
Hover over the button to see why. Common reasons are that no plan or operating system is chosen, the root password is missing, or your account credit does not cover the total.
Setup scripts are not supported on Windows, so the order page hides both sections when you choose Windows. You sign in to Windows with the Administrator password you set.
Yes. See [Server Settings](/guides/server-settings).
## Using the API
You can order servers with an API key. Ordering is a two-step process: get a signed quote for a plan, then place the order with that quote.
| Endpoint | Permission |
| - | - |
| `GET /servers/catalog`, `GET /servers/templates`, `POST /servers/quote`, `GET /servers/orders` | `View servers` |
| `POST /servers`, `POST /servers/orders/{server_order}/cancel` | `Make purchases` |
```bash theme={null}
curl https://console.advinservers.com/api/v1/client/servers/quote \
-H "Authorization: Bearer " \
-H "Accept: application/json" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"plan_key": ""}'
```
Then send the returned `quote_token` to `POST /servers` with the operating system, password and any hostnames, SSH keys or script. The order is paid from account credit in the background. Poll `GET /servers/orders` to follow it.
See the [API introduction](/api-reference/introduction) for how to create a key and for the full list of endpoints.
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