Step-by-step guide: from registration to a working domain in 10 minutes.

How It Works#

Before you begin, it’s important to understand the basic setup. PrivateFlare is a reverse proxy. It accepts your visitors’ traffic and forwards it to your server (backend), hiding its real IP.

The setup is simple:

Visitor → Your domain → PrivateFlare node → Your backend (server)

Three elements are involved in this chain:

WhatWhy
BackendYour real server — tracker, landing page, CMS. We hide its IP.
NodeA VPS with the PrivateFlare client installed. Accepts traffic, filters it, proxies it to the backend. There can be multiple nodes.
DomainYour domain. DNS points to the node’s IP, not the backend’s.

A visitor goes to your domain, reaches the node, the node forwards the request to the backend and returns the response. The visitor never learns the real IP of your server.

A single node can serve an unlimited number of domains. You can have as many domains as you want — all of them will be accessible through any of your nodes.

Step 1. Registration#

  1. Go to panel.privateflare.com
  2. Register
  3. Make sure to activate your account — an activation link will be sent to your email. Without it, nothing will work.

After activation, you will be taken to the control panel.

Step 2. Ordering a VPS (Node)#

A node is a VPS (virtual server) on which we will install the PrivateFlare client. This is not your backend, but a separate disposable server — it accepts traffic and proxies it.

Where to Order#

Any hosting provider with any virtualization type will work. Hosting recommendations are in a separate section.

Which OS to Choose#

Supported operating systems: Rocky 8–9, CentOS 8–9, Debian 10–12, Ubuntu 20–24.

Clean images only! No control panels, pre-installed software, LAMP/LEMP stacks. The installer will set up everything needed on its own.

How Many Resources Are Needed#

LoadRecommendationsApproximate Cost
Up to 1,000 visits/dayAny minimal VPS$2–3/mo
1,000 – 5,000 visits2 GB RAM or more$4–5/mo
5,000 – 50,000 visits4 GB RAM or more, 4 cores$8–15/mo
MoreContact support — we’ll help you choose—

Step 3. Connecting a Node#

After ordering a VPS, you will receive an IP, login, and password for SSH access.

3.1. Connect to VPS via SSH#

On Windows — use PuTTY or the built-in terminal (Windows Terminal). On Mac/Linux — use the terminal:

ssh root@YOUR_VPS_IP

3.2. Get the Installation Command#

In the PrivateFlare panel, go to the Nodes section and click the “Add node” button.

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In the dialog that opens:

  1. Set a name for the node (can be changed later)
  2. Copy the installation command

image

3.3. Run the Installation#

Paste the copied command into the SSH terminal and press Enter. Wait approximately 20 seconds.

Warnings during installation are normal. A successful completion looks like this:

image

Within a minute, the node will appear in the control panel with an Online status.

Installing a Specific Version#

If you need a specific client version:

curl -s https://repo.privateflare.com/install | bash -s YOUR_TOKEN node_name -build VERSION_ID

The -build flag can be placed anywhere after bash -s.

Step 4. DNS Configuration#

Now you need to point your domains to the node. To do this, in the control panel of your domain registrar (Namecheap, Reg.ru, GoDaddy, etc.):

  1. Delete old A records
  2. Add one A record with your node’s IP address

Tip: do this in advance, before adding domains to PrivateFlare. DNS updates can take from 5 minutes to several hours.

You can also use PrivateFlare’s own NS servers (ns1.privateflare.com, ns2.privateflare.com) and manage DNS directly from the panel.

Step 5. Adding Domains#

Go to the Domains section and click “Add domains”.

Main Settings#

FieldWhat to Enter
BackendIP address of your backend (tracker, CMS, landing page)
DomainsList of domains, one per line
SSLEnable — certificates will be generated automatically
Force HTTPSEnable — all HTTP requests will be redirected to HTTPS
TagsTags for grouping (optional)

More details about all settings, including domain masking, are in the Adding Domains section.

After Adding#

  • Domains will appear in the list
  • If SSL is enabled — certificates will start generating automatically (usually 1–2 minutes)
  • The domain status will change to Online when DNS updates and the node can reach the backend

Step 6. Verification#

Open your domain in a browser. If you see content from the backend — everything is working.

If something is wrong:

  • Check that DNS has updated: ping your-domain.com should show the node’s IP
  • Make sure the backend is directly accessible by IP
  • If the certificate is not generating — see troubleshooting
  • Contact support — we’ll help you figure it out

What’s Next#

After the basic setup, we recommend exploring:

Backward But why do I need it... Adding Domains Forward