RDP & SSH Access, Upgrades, and Backups: What You Really Get With Dedicated Server Hosting

When you first look at dedicated server hosting, the big question is simple: will you actually have full control of the box, or just a fancy remote machine you can’t really touch?
Things like RDP access, SSH access, upgrades, and backups decide whether your server works for you or drains your time and budget.
This guide walks through what you can usually do with a dedicated server so you know exactly what you’re getting before you commit.

Remote Access: RDP and SSH

On a proper dedicated server, you don’t just get a login—you get Administrative RDP on Windows or root SSH on Linux.

You sit at your desk, open your RDP client (for Windows) or terminal (for Linux), punch in the IP, and you’re on the server as if you were plugging a keyboard straight into the rack. You can:

• Create and delete users

• Install services and tools

• Change system settings

• Restart services or the whole machine

You’re not waiting for a support ticket to change a small setting. You just log in and do it.

Having full RDP and SSH access from day one is what makes dedicated server hosting feel “real”—you own the decisions, and you own the fixes.

If you like that level of control but don’t want to fight slow deployment or strange limits, it’s worth using a provider built around instant access and clean networking.
👉 Spin up a GTHost dedicated server with full RDP/SSH access in minutes and start managing it your way.
Once you’re in, you can lock down passwords, harden your firewall, and get your apps online without waiting on anyone.

Installing Your Own Software and Apps

With full administrative or root access, you’re free to install almost anything that runs on your chosen OS:

• Web servers (IIS, Nginx, Apache)

• Databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server)

• Application runtimes (.NET, Node.js, PHP, Python, Java)

• Monitoring agents, security tools, internal business apps

The workflow is simple: connect via RDP or SSH, run your installer or package manager, configure, test, and go live. No need to ask permission.

The only real limits are:

• What the OS supports

• Resource limits (CPU, RAM, disk, network)

• Your own security policies and licensing

Upgrading and Downgrading Server Resources

Your traffic and workloads rarely stay the same. Good dedicated server hosting lets you adjust resources instead of feeling trapped.

Upgrading

Most providers allow you to upgrade:

• CPU (more cores, higher clock)

• RAM

• Storage (bigger or faster disks, NVMe/SSD)

• Network port speed or bandwidth limits

Upgrades depend on the underlying chassis and hardware. Sometimes it’s as simple as adding RAM or drives. Sometimes you move to a different node. Either way, this is usually done through a support request and a short maintenance window.

Downgrading

Downgrades are also possible, as long as your server still meets the minimum hardware needed to run your OS and applications smoothly.

You might:

• Drop from a huge RAID 10 array to a smaller disk set

• Reduce RAM if your workloads were overestimated

• Move to a more modest CPU once you know real usage

It’s always smart to check with support before a downgrade so you don’t cut resources that an app quietly depends on.

Setup Time: How Long Until You Get the Server?

Dedicated servers aren’t always “instant,” because there’s real hardware involved.

Typical patterns look like this:

• Standard configurations: often ready within 1–4 business days, assuming all parts are in stock

• Custom builds (unusual CPU, special RAID, extra NICs, big backups): can take a bit longer while the hardware is prepared and tested

During setup, the provider usually:

• Installs your chosen OS

• Applies basic network and IP configuration

• Runs hardware checks

• Hands over RDP/SSH login details

Once you get those details, you take over.

Ports, Firewalls, and Network Rules

Most dedicated servers come with all ports technically open on the network side. The provider usually doesn’t block ports by default.

But that doesn’t mean you should leave everything wide open.

In practice, you:

• Enable only the ports you need (80/443 for web, specific app ports, etc.)

• Lock down RDP (3389) and SSH (22) with firewall rules, VPN, or IP allowlists

• Turn off unused services and close their ports

You control the server’s firewall—Windows Firewall, iptables, nftables, firewalld, or tools like UFW. This is where you harden your box and keep random scans from turning into real problems.

IPv4 and IPv6 (Dual Stack)

Modern dedicated server hosting usually gives you dual stack networking, meaning:

• IPv4 addresses: still the default for most of the internet

• IPv6 addresses: ready for future growth and modern networks

With native IPv4 and IPv6 support, you can:

• Serve users on both protocol stacks

• Test IPv6-only environments

• Avoid being stuck when IPv4 gets more constrained

Your apps don’t need to change much—most modern stacks just listen on both.

Backups: Automated vs Self-Managed

Backups are where many people cut corners until something breaks.

You’ll often see two main setups:

• Self-managed servers: backups available as an add-on; you choose what to back up and how often

• Fully managed servers: automated backups are often included, with defined retention and restore options

You can also mix in your own backup strategy:

• File-level backups to remote storage

• Database dumps on a schedule

• Full image backups for disaster recovery

What matters is that restores are tested and documented, not just “configured once and forgotten.”

Network Uptime and SLA

Most dedicated server providers aim for at least 99.9% network uptime in their SLA.

In real life, good networks can run at or near 100% uptime for long stretches, but the SLA number is your guarantee for:

• Credit or compensation if uptime drops below the promise

• A baseline expectation you can plan around for your own SLAs

For production workloads, that 0.1% still matters. It’s about 43 minutes per month, so you want a network that consistently beats the minimum.

Storage and RAID Options

You’ll usually see a mix of software RAID and hardware RAID options, including:

• RAID 0 – fastest, no redundancy

• RAID 1 – mirroring, good simple redundancy

• RAID 5 / 6 – parity-based, better capacity with fault tolerance

• RAID 10 – often the sweet spot for speed and redundancy

The right RAID level depends on what you care about:

• Databases and write-heavy apps: RAID 10 is popular

• Large file storage: RAID 6 or RAID 5 (with care)

• Labs and test environments: sometimes RAID 0 for speed, if you can afford failures

Control Panel Options

If you don’t want to manage everything by hand, control panels help a lot.

Common options include:

• Linux servers: cPanel, Plesk, and others

• Windows servers: Plesk, SolidCP, MSPControl

Control panels can:

• Create websites, mailboxes, and databases from a web UI

• Handle SSL certificates and DNS updates

• Let multiple customers or teams share the same server safely

They’re optional, but they save time if you’re hosting many sites or clients.

Operating Systems You Can Run

Dedicated servers usually support a wide range of OS choices.

For Linux dedicated servers, you might see:

• CentOS and its successors

• Ubuntu LTS versions

• Debian stable releases

• Other popular distributions on request

For Windows dedicated servers, common options include:

• Windows Server 2012 R2

• Windows Server 2016

• Newer Windows Server versions, depending on licensing and hardware

You usually pick your OS during order. If you change your mind later, you can request a reinstall, but remember that wipes the current data, so backups are a must.

Conclusion

A good dedicated server should give you full RDP and SSH access, flexible upgrades and downgrades, solid backup options, and a stable network with real uptime and dual-stack IPv4/IPv6 support. When all of that is in place, you can focus on your apps instead of babysitting hardware.

If you’re running projects that need fast deployment, root-level control, and predictable performance, it’s worth choosing a provider that builds around those needs. That’s why GTHost is suitable for flexible, always-on dedicated server hosting—you get instant access, realistic SLAs, and modern hardware without the usual drama.
👉 See why GTHost is suitable for flexible, always-on dedicated server hosting and launch your next server in minutes.