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Instance

Updated on 15 September, 2025

Manage Vultr virtual machine instances through the command line with commands for creating, listing, modifying, and deleting cloud servers.

The vultr-cli instance command manages Vultr virtual machine instances, allowing you to create, list, modify, and delete cloud servers through the command line interface.

Usage

console 
$ vultr-cli instance

Examples

console 
# Full example
$ vultr-cli instance

Available Commands

  • app - Application commands for an instance
  • backup - List and create backup schedules for an instance
  • bandwidth - Get bandwidth usage
  • create - Create an instance
  • delete - Delete an instance
  • get - Get info on an instance
  • ipv4 - IPv4 instance commands
  • ipv6 - Display instance IPv6 info
  • iso - Manage ISOs on an instance
  • label - Label an instance
  • list - List all instances
  • os - Operating system commands for an instance
  • plan - Plan commands for an instance
  • reinstall - Reinstall an instance
  • restart - Restart an instance
  • restore - Restore instance from backup or snapshot
  • reverse-dns - Commands to handle reverse DNS on an instance
  • start - Start an instance
  • stop - Stop an instance
  • tags - Update tags on an instance
  • update-firewall-group - Assign a firewall group to instance
  • user-data - Commands to manage user data on an instance
  • vpc - Commands to handle vpcs on an instance
  • vpc2 - Commands to handle vpc2s on an instance
Bandwidth
Displays bandwidth usage data for a specified Vultr instance to help monitor network consumption over a defined time period.
Create
Provisions a new virtual machine instance on Vultrs cloud platform with customizable configuration options.
Delete
Permanently removes a specified Vultr virtual machine instance from your account using its ID.
Get
Retrieves detailed information about a specific Vultr instance including its configuration, status, and resource allocation.
Label
Update the label (name) of a Vultr virtual machine instance for easier identification and management
List
Displays all virtual machine instances in your Vultr account with their IDs, names, status, and configuration details.
Reinstall
Reinstalls the operating system on a Vultr instance while preserving its configuration and IP address.
Restart
Reboots a specified Vultr virtual machine instance, causing a temporary service interruption while the system restarts.
Restore
Restores a Vultr instance to a previous state using a backup or snapshot for recovery purposes.
Start
Powers on a previously stopped Vultr virtual machine instance to make it accessible and operational again.
Stop
Halts a running Vultr instance while preserving its configuration and data for later resumption.
Tags
Manage organizational tags for your Vultr instances to enable better categorization and filtering of your virtual machines.
Update Firewall Group
Assigns a different firewall group to an existing Vultr instance to apply updated network access rules and enhance security.
App
Manages pre-packaged applications on Vultr instances, enabling listing, installation, and configuration of software.

Change

Modify the configuration settings of an application running on a Vultr instance.

List

Displays all available application images that can be deployed when creating Vultr instances, helping users select pre-configured software environments.

Backup
Manages instance backup operations including creation, listing, retrieval, and deletion of server backups on Vultrs platform.

Create

Creates a backup of a specified Vultr instance to preserve its current state for disaster recovery or migration purposes.

Get

Retrieves detailed information about a specific Vultr instance backup, including its properties and metadata.

IPv4
Manage IPv4 addresses for Vultr instances, including listing, adding, and removing IP addresses from virtual machines.

Create

Assigns a new IPv4 address to an existing Vultr instance to enhance network connectivity

Delete

Permanently removes a specified IPv4 address from a Vultr instance, revoking all access to that IP address.

List

Displays all IPv4 addresses for a specified Vultr instance with their network configuration details.

IPv6
Displays and manages IPv6 address information for a specified Vultr instance.

List

Lists all IPv6 addresses associated with a specified Vultr instance for network management.

ISO
Manages ISO image attachments for Vultr instances, enabling users to connect, remove, and view ISO files on their virtual machines.

Attach

Mounts an ISO image to a specified Vultr instance, enabling boot from or access to ISO content.

Status

Displays the current status of an ISO attachment to a specific Vultr instance.

OS
Lists available operating systems for Vultr instances to help users select when creating or reinstalling servers.

Change

Changes the operating system on an existing Vultr instance, requiring a virtual machine restart.

List

Displays all available operating systems that can be installed on Vultr instances to help users select an OS during instance creation.

Plan
Displays available Vultr server plans with pricing, specifications, and IDs to help users select the right configuration when deploying new instances.

List

Lists available Vultr server plans with their specifications and pricing to help users select appropriate instance configurations.

Upgrade

Upgrade your Vultr instance to a higher-tier plan with more resources without reinstalling your system.

Reverse DNS
Manage reverse DNS (PTR) records for your Vultr instance IP addresses to set custom domain lookups.

Default Ipv4

Resets an instances IPv4 reverse DNS record to Vultrs default hostname format.

Delete Ipv6

Removes a reverse DNS record for an IPv6 address from a Vultr instance, reverting to default DNS settings.

List Ipv6

Displays all configured reverse DNS records for IPv6 addresses associated with a specific Vultr instance.

Set Ipv4

Configure reverse DNS (PTR record) for an IPv4 address on a Vultr instance to enable proper reverse IP lookups.

User Data
Retrieves or sets cloud-init user data for customizing Vultr instance configuration during server provisioning.

Get

Retrieves the cloud-init user data script for a specified Vultr instance to view its configuration.

Set

Updates cloud-init user data for an existing Vultr instance to modify its configuration post-deployment.

VPC
Manages VPC network connections for Vultr instances, enabling attachment, detachment, and listing of associated networks.

Attach

Connects a Vultr instance to a specified VPC network to enable private communication between resources within that VPC.

Detach

Removes a server instance from a VPC network, disconnecting it from the private network environment.

VPC2
Manages VPC 2.0 network connections for Vultr instances, enabling attachment, detachment, and listing of associated networks.

Attach

Attaches an existing Vultr instance to a VPC 2.0 network to enable private network connectivity between resources.

Detach

Disconnects a server instance from a VPC 2.0 network by removing the network interface.

List

Lists all VPC 2.0 networks attached to a specific Vultr instance with their connection details and network information.