1 Introduction

This page is my personal little "recommendation corner", recording some things that I have used for a period of time and think are pretty good: some of them have improved my sense of happiness in life, some have solved practical problems, and some are purely little surprises that make me feel "Wow, it can be like this".

It’s not some “best review on the entire web”, nor is it the kind of “you have to buy if you see these ten things” Amway list - I won’t recommend products that I haven’t used or like, and if there are exceptions, I will make special mention of them.

Some of the pages have promotional links. If you click on them to take a look or even place an order, that would be great (laughs); but if you are just passing by or have no interest at all, that’s totally fine.

This is more like a checklist for "future me" and "you who may have similar needs". If you find this useful, that would be great :).

2. RackNerd VPS

2.1 Overview

RackNerd is a VPS service provider from the United States. In recent years, it has won the favor of many technology enthusiasts in terms of cost-effectiveness. Its product line covers traditional KVM VPS, Windows VPS, dedicated servers, etc., and its positioning is "cheap and practical", especially suitable for users with limited budgets but certain requirements for availability.

Compared with some cloud vendors that charge tens of dollars per month, RackNerd has clear advantages: affordable prices, frequent promotions, and relatively generous resource allocation. The cheapest annual payment package is always between 10 and 30 US dollars, and you don’t have to wait until Black Friday or Double Eleven to "pick up bargains." Although the service is positioned at the low end, it performs well in actual use. It can be used to deploy personal blogs, image hosting, Telegram Bot, reverse proxy, and even run lightweight AI applications.

It should be noted that RackNerd's network lines are not "optimized" and the performance for access to mainland China is average. Taking my personal telecommunications network as an example, the delay in the Chicago data center is stable at around 220ms, while Los Angeles is slightly better, roughly in the range of 150~200ms. Although this delay cannot be used for services with extremely high real-time requirements, it is more than enough as a background task processing node or a service node for mounting Cloudflare CDN (publishing a website directly using a VPS IP address is not slow, but I don't recommend it).

Of course, the network environment in each region is quite different. It is recommended to use the official test IP or Looking Glass to test the network speed and latency before placing an order to avoid pitfalls. But then again, if you plan to use Cloudflare's CDN for your service, the difference in lines is actually not that important.

2.2 About RackNerd's Refund, Cancellation and Service Change Policy

If you plan to purchase VPS services from RackNerd, it is necessary to understand their terms of service, especially the refund and cancellation policies. RackNerd is a cost-oriented VPS provider, and its policies are relatively strict, which is also the "industry practice" for services in this price range.

2.2.1 退款政策

RackNerd's official default isNo automatic refundsThe reason is also very direct: their services will allocate resources immediately after the user pays, and real costs may have been incurred behind the scenes (such as IP allocation, computing resource freezing, etc.). This means that if you regret buying it, you will not be automatically refunded, and you must actively contact customer service to explain the situation. Whether the refund will be made in the end will be handled by RackNerd at its discretion based on the specific situation.

In addition, if you have prepaid your account to form an account balance (i.e. Account Credit), these prepayments are usually alsoCash withdrawal and refund are not supported, can only be used for subsequent purchases or renewals.

Suggestion: Once you find that it is not suitable for you (for example, the line is too bad, the purpose is not suitable),The sooner you contact customer service, the better.The longer you wait, the harder it will be to get a refund, especially after a few hours of opening.

2.2.2 取消服务

If you just planNot renewing a VPS service, RackNerd asks you toSubmit a cancellation request through the user backend at least 5 days before the service expiresAfter cancellation, the relevant servers will be shut down and data will be cleared immediately, so it is critical to make a backup in advance.

If you purchase a special contract service (such as an annual promotional package), cancellation may involve "early termination fees" - cancellation of such services is usually "individually assessed" and there is no guarantee of a refund or termination.

Reminder: RackNerd will not automatically stop the service just because you "don't renew". If you don't cancel manually, you may still be billed (especially if you have PayPal linked to automatic renewal).

2.2.3 降级服务

If you originally purchased a higher-configuration package and later found that you were not fully utilizing the resources and wanted to downgrade, RackNerd’s rules are:Submit downgrade request at least 5 days before renewal, and operate through the work order system. Whether the downgrade can be successful depends mainly on whether the target package is still on sale and whether it supports resource migration. It should be noted that downgrades usually do not result in refunds, but subsequent bills will be charged according to the new configuration.

In general, RackNerd's terms of service are more "tough" than those of mainstream big companies, but this is also the norm for ultra-low-priced VPS. While you enjoy low-priced resources, you also need to bear a certain "inflexibility" cost.

Suggestion: Confirm the purpose and needs before placing an order. If you just want to try it out or try it out, you can first choose a short-term or lowest-end version for testing to avoid subsequent disputes.

2.2.4 About Renewal

It is worth mentioning that RackNerd's VPS package isUsually no price increaseThis is quite generous in the VPS market. As long as you place an order successfully, you can renew the subscription at the original price for a long time. This is commonly known as the "heirloom package" in the industry. Compared with the routine of some large domestic manufacturers that offer a low price in the first year, double the price in the second year, and double the price again in the year after that, this "price lock" strategy is more suitable for long-term use.

In addition, its bandwidth and traffic quotas are also quite generous, especially compared to its price, the cost performance is indeed not low. During Black Friday, Double 11 and other promotional events, RackNerd usually launches a batch of very attractive limited edition VPS packages with low prices and solid configurations. Although the quantity is limited, there are still many people rushing to grab them. Generally speaking, it is not difficult to get one.

Overall, I am quite satisfied with my experience with RackNerd. Although it is not a top brand, its reputation has been steadily rising in the industry in the past two years, and it is an emerging manufacturer worth paying attention to. If you are planning to buy a cheap and practical VPS, you might as well put it on your list of options.

2.3 About VPS Management Panel: SolusVM

Most of the VPS provided by RackNerd are used in conjunction with SolusVM Control panel, which is a relatively traditional but still stable and reliable virtual machine management panel:

Through this panel, users can easily complete common VPS operation and maintenance operations, such as:

• Restart, shut down, and start your VPS

• Reinstall the system (supports multiple Linux distributions, such as Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS)

• View system resource usage (CPU, memory, traffic, etc.)

• Change the host name and set the root password

• Manage SSH keys (some functions depend on the host configuration)

Although the UI style is relatively old, it is intuitive in function, quick in response, and the operation process is relatively stable. For technology novices, there is not much threshold to get started.

In general, SolusVM is a "good enough" VPS management panel. Although it is not as cool as some emerging panels (such as Proxmox and VirtFusion), it is still very suitable for managing small VPS instances on RackNerd, and its functions can basically cover all daily operations.

2.4 关于 Racknerd VPS 机房位置选择的重要提醒

For users in mainland China, the geographical location of the VPS affects the speed and experience of "direct connection", especially inNot using CDN accelerationOr needDirectly connect to remote SSH, build scientific services, build your own blog, and other low-latency requirementsWhen choosing a computer room, it is particularly important.

It is recommended to give priority to data centers located in the West Coast of the United States, which include:

• Los Angeles: The most common choice, the backhaul is mostly CN2 GT or CTG (telecom backbone), which is friendly to telecom and Unicom users, and the delay is about 140~200ms;

• San Jose: Geographically closer to the mainland, some routes are faster than Los Angeles, but there are fewer merchants and nodes are more expensive;

• Seattle: Provided by some service providers, usually less popular, but theoretically also has lower latency.

These cities usually have betterNetwork quality when returning home, especially if the service provider is connected to CN2 GIA (Boutique Network) or optimizes the return route, the experience will be better.

In short, if you care about the "direct connection" access experience, you might as well make the location of the data center one of the first priorities in your VPS purchase decision:Los Angeles and San Jose are still the golden options of "conservative and practical"Even if you don’t pursue extreme speed, choosing a good data center can at least avoid being troubled by high latency and unstable lines.

Of course, the above suggestions are mainly for users who care about the experience of direct connection to VPS in mainland China. If your service itself plans to use Cloudflare CDN or similar transit acceleration solutions, then the "direct connection" delay is not so critical. In this case, the choice of the location of the data center is relatively free: for example ChicagoAs a core node in the central United States, it not only has a relatively balanced back-to-source access to the east and west coasts of the United States, but also has a good performance in the direction of Europe, making it suitable as a "globally friendly" source station choice.

RackNerd还有不少数据中心：

不过，对于廉价的年付优惠机型，选择就很有限了。

2.5 关于技术支持：传统但不掉链子

RackNerd 的技术支持主要通过官网后台的 工单系统(Ticket System，) 提供服务，不支持在线聊天、邮件直达、电话或 Telegram 群组等更“现代化”的支持方式。一切问题都需要你在客户后台提交工单来处理，这是 RackNerd 一贯的风格：简单、传统，但稳定可依赖.

实际体验上，工单响应速度通常在1～6小时之间浮动，工作日白天（以美西时间为准）处理效率较高，有时候 15 分钟内就能收到回复；而在夜间或周末，响应时间可能会延长一些。不过从用户反馈和本人经历来看，RackNerd 的工单处理态度还是不错的，没有敷衍搪塞的情况，处理问题也较为到位，属于“低调但靠谱”的类型。

需要注意的是，RackNerd 的技术支持只处理与其服务直接相关的基础问题（比如开机异常、重装系统失败、网络连不通等）。如果你遇到的是软件层或系统内配置的问题，比如 Docker 启不动、nginx 配错了、iptables 把自己锁了，那基本就需要靠自己解决了——工单一般会 politely 告诉你“超出支持范围”。

温馨提示：如果你是新手或不擅长排查问题，RackNerd 的“自助+工单”模式可能会让你感到不够方便。建议准备一点基础的 VPS 运维知识，或者在社区、搜索引擎里多多自助解决问题。

总的来说，虽然 RackNerd 没有实时客服，但他们的工单系统在可靠性和响应质量上还是可以打 7~8 分的。对于习惯了折腾 VPS 的用户来说，完全足够使用。

Note 1:RackNerd官方知识库

Note 2:技术支持

2.6 经典套餐推荐

2.6.1 概述

Although the annual VPS packages currently displayed on the RackNerd official website seem to be limited, the choices seem to be limited, such as the current 2025 New Year discount models:

But in fact, many of the classic discounted models it has launched over the years during holiday events such as Black Friday, Independence Day, and Labor Day are still available for purchase - but these "hidden packages" are not publicly listed on the official website homepage or product catalog. If you still have the purchase link from that year, you can still place an order successfully most of the time.

Therefore, I have collected some RackNerd discount package lists that are still valid. They include the main packages visible on the official website, as well as some models that have been "taken off the shelves" but are still available for purchase. They are for your reference. This is a backup shopping list so that you can avoid detours and buy directly when necessary.

2.6.2 高配

2.6.2.1 高配1-882

The VPS released around Black Friday 2024 is the most cost-effective model among high-end models! The main advantage of this VPS is that the hard disk and memory are relatively large (the main model I currently use). Official website promotion link:Racknerd_High Configuration 1_882.

You can use the SuperBench script to test:

wget -qO- --no-check-certificate https://raw.githubusercontent.com/oooldking/script/master/superbench.sh | bash

The results are as follows:

2.6.2.2 高配2-906

The VPS launched in the new year of 2025 is about the same price-performance ratio as my 882, but it has 0.5G less memory, but 5BG more disk space and 500G more traffic per month. It depends on what you think. The official website promotion link is:Racknerd_High Configuration 2_906.

2.6.2.3 高配3-907

The highest configuration for the 2025 New Year promotion, if you have enough budget, it is still worth it! Official website promotion link:Racknerd_High Configuration 3_907.

2.6.3 中配

2.6.3.1 中配1-881

RackNerd 2024 Black Friday Package. The balance of memory, storage and personality is the best in the middle configuration. It is good for building websites and has a lot of things to play with! Official website promotion link:Racknerd_Medium 1_881.

2.6.3.2 中配2-905

RackNerd 2025 New Year's discount, if you have a little more budget on the basis of 881, the memory and disk space will be slightly improved. The key is that the monthly traffic will increase by 1500G. Friends who have a large demand for traffic are still worth buying. The official website promotion link is:Racknerd_Medium 2_905.

2.6.3.3 中配3-697

This model is not as cost-effective as 881, but it is almost the same: the memory is 0.5GB less, but the monthly traffic is 1500G more. For friends who have a large monthly traffic demand, this model is more suitable than 881. Official website promotion link:Racknerd_Medium 3_697.

2.6.4 低配

2.6.4.1 低配1-879

Black Friday promotion in 2024 is not as good as 903, official website promotion link:Racknerd_Low Configuration 1_879.

Note: I also bought this model, mainly to test some applications, and also used it part-time as a jump server (opened 443 and SSH ports). However, I was too quick to buy it and didn't notice 903. It has the same price but has 4G disk space and 500G traffic. Alas, although I don't use it, I am very unhappy. The test results are as follows:

2.6.4.2 低配2-903

In the 2025 New Year promotion, you can get 4G storage and 500G traffic per month by slightly increasing the budget of 879 by 0.3 USD. It is obviously more cost-effective. It is the first choice for jump servers and scientific machines. The official website promotion link is:Racknerd_Low Profile 2_903.

3 Message

That’s all for now. I will try my best to keep updating the available discount models in the future. I hope everyone can find their favorite VPS.