Guide 1

Install a Pterodactyl panel

One command installs the panel, the database, the cache and the web server. One prompt in the middle decides whether you end up with https, so stay at the keyboard for it.

What the panel needs

The installer puts all of this on the server for you. Check the last two rows yourself before you start, because the certificate step depends on them.

PHP
8.2 or 8.3
Database
MySQL 8 or MariaDB 10.6 or newer
Cache
Redis
Web server
nginx
Domain
A record already pointed at the server
Ports
80 and 443 reachable for the certificate

The box this was tested on

This is a comfortable small box, not the floor. It ran the panel and a game server side by side with room left over.

System
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
CPU
2 vCPU
Memory
3.9 GB, plus a 2 GB swap file
Disk
58 GB
Carried
Panel, MariaDB, Redis, Wings and a Minecraft server together

A panel on its own hosts nothing. Wings still has to run on a node before a server can start, and game servers are what actually eat the memory. Give a panel that serves customers its own machine.

Install it

  1. Point the domain at the server

    Add an A record for the name you want, such as panel.example.com, and give it the public IP of the server. Let it resolve before you carry on. Ports 80 and 443 have to reach the server or the certificate cannot be issued.

  2. Run the installer

    Sign in over SSH as root, then run:

    shell
    bash <(curl -s https://pterodactyl-installer.se)

    Answer the questions it asks. It installs Pterodactyl 1.15.1, MariaDB, Redis, nginx, the queue worker and the cron entry.

  3. Accept the Let's Encrypt terms

    Near the end the installer stops and asks you to accept the Let's Encrypt terms. Answer it. This is the one prompt that decides whether you end up with https.

  4. Open the panel

    Go to https://panel.example.com. You should get the panel sign in page over https, with no certificate warning. If https gives you nothing, read the next section.

If the certificate step failed

The panel itself is fine. Only the certificate is missing. Issue it yourself with your own domain and email address:

shell
certbot --nginx -d panel.example.com --agree-tos -m you@example.com --redirect

--redirect sends http traffic to https once the certificate is in place. Reload the panel afterwards and the warning is gone.

Check the version before you theme it

The installer lands on Pterodactyl 1.15.1, which is exactly what NectraUI targets. If you are theming a panel that already existed, upgrade it to 1.15.1 first. Anything else needs --force and is untested.

NextInstall the theme