Server Management Guide
Server Management Overview
Learn how to add, configure, monitor, and maintain VPN servers in your Axe VPN network. This guide covers everything from basic server addition to advanced monitoring and troubleshooting.
Adding New Servers
There are two methods to add servers to your VPN network:
Method 1: Manual Server Addition
Use this method when you have an existing OpenVPN server with a configuration file:
- Navigate to Servers → Add Server
- Fill in the server information form
- Upload the OpenVPN configuration file (.ovpn)
- Configure server settings
- Save and test the server
Basic Information
- Server Name: Descriptive name (e.g., "US East Coast")
- Country Code: ISO country code (US, UK, DE, etc.)
- City: Server location city
- IP Address: Public server IP address
Technical Settings
- Port: OpenVPN port (default: 1194)
- Protocol: UDP (recommended) or TCP
- OVPN File: OpenVPN configuration file
- Capacity: Maximum concurrent connections
Method 2: Automated Server Installation
Use this method to automatically install and configure OpenVPN on a fresh server:
Prerequisites
- Fresh Ubuntu 18.04+ or CentOS 7+ server
- Root SSH access
- Server has public IP address
- Firewall allows SSH (port 22) access
- Go to Servers → Install Server
- Enter server SSH details:
Server IP: 192.168.1.100
SSH Port: 22
Username: root
Password: [your-ssh-password]
VPN Port: 1194
Protocol: UDP
Country: US
- Click Start Installation
- Monitor installation progress in real-time
- Download generated OVPN file when complete
Server Configuration
Server Settings
- Status: Enable/disable server
- Order: Display order in mobile app
- Capacity: Max concurrent connections
- Free/Premium: Server access level
- Auto-disable: Disable when unavailable
- VPN Username: OpenVPN auth username
- VPN Password: OpenVPN auth password
- Min Version: Minimum app version required
- Connection Limit: Per-user connection limit
- Time Limit: Free user time limit
OVPN Configuration File
The OpenVPN configuration file contains connection details. Here's an example structure:
client
dev tun
proto udp
remote your-server-ip 1194
resolv-retry infinite
nobind
persist-key
persist-tun
cipher AES-256-CBC
auth SHA256
key-direction 1
script-security 2
up /etc/openvpn/update-resolv-conf
down /etc/openvpn/update-resolv-conf
# Certificate and key data
<ca>
-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
[CA certificate content]
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
</ca>
<cert>
-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
[Client certificate content]
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
</cert>
<key>
-----BEGIN PRIVATE KEY-----
[Client private key content]
-----END PRIVATE KEY-----
</key>
<tls-auth>
-----BEGIN OpenVPN Static key V1-----
[TLS auth key content]
-----END OpenVPN Static key V1-----
</tls-auth>
Server Monitoring
Real-time Server Status
The admin panel provides comprehensive server monitoring:
- ✓ Online and accepting connections
- ✓ Health checks passing
- ✓ Normal response times
- ✓ Available capacity
- ⚠ High connection load
- ⚠ Slow response times
- ⚠ Approaching capacity
- ⚠ Intermittent connectivity
- ✗ Cannot establish connection
- ✗ Health checks failing
- ✗ Server maintenance
- ✗ Network issues
Server Metrics
Monitor these key metrics for each server:
Connected Users
Current active connections
Data Transfer
Upload/download bandwidth
Response Time
Connection latency
Uptime
Server availability %
Server Maintenance
Regular Maintenance Tasks
Maintenance Schedule
Perform these maintenance tasks regularly to ensure optimal server performance:
Daily Tasks
- Monitor server status and alerts
- Check connection logs for errors
- Verify backup systems
- Review performance metrics
Weekly Tasks
- Update server security patches
- Rotate log files
- Check disk space usage
- Test backup restoration
Server Updates
Keep your servers updated with the latest security patches:
# Ubuntu/Debian servers
apt update && apt upgrade -y
# CentOS/RHEL servers
yum update -y
# Restart OpenVPN service after updates
systemctl restart openvpn@server
Configuration Backup
Always backup server configurations before making changes:
- Go to Servers → Server List
- Click Export Configuration for each server
- Store backup files securely
- Test backup restoration periodically
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Server Connection Issues
Possible Causes:
- Server is actually down or unreachable
- Firewall blocking connections
- OpenVPN service not running
- Network connectivity issues
Solutions:
- SSH into the server and check OpenVPN status:
systemctl status openvpn@server
- Check firewall rules:
ufw status # Ubuntu
firewall-cmd --list-all # CentOS
- Restart OpenVPN service:
systemctl restart openvpn@server
Troubleshooting Steps:
- Verify server status in admin panel
- Check OVPN file integrity
- Test connection from admin panel
- Verify mobile app has latest server list
- Check mobile app logs for specific errors
Performance Optimization:
- Check server resource usage (CPU, RAM, bandwidth)
- Monitor concurrent connection count
- Optimize OpenVPN configuration
- Consider upgrading server specifications
- Implement load balancing across multiple servers
Server Management Best Practices
- Regular security updates
- Monitor server performance
- Backup configurations regularly
- Use strong passwords/keys
- Document server configurations
- Test failover procedures
- Ignore security updates
- Use default passwords
- Skip configuration backups
- Overload servers beyond capacity
- Make changes without testing
- Disable logging and monitoring
Ready for Advanced Topics?
Now that you understand server management basics, explore these advanced topics: