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Linux servers are provisioned without a graphical interface. Install XFCE to get a desktop environment for administration or troubleshooting tasks that are easier to perform in a visual workspace. XFCE is lightweight and runs well even on low-resource servers.
XFCE desktop environment
Connect to the server via SSH or VNC before starting. The login credentials are available on the Instructions tab in the Hosting portal.

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Install XFCE

Select the tab that matches the server OS.
1. Update the package list:
2. Install the XFCE environment and additional components (panel, file manager, and various plugins):
The system warns that the installation requires several hundred megabytes of disk space.
Disk space warning
Confirm with: y
Confirmation prompt
3. Install a display manager to launch XFCE. What happens next depends on the Ubuntu version:
The installer prompts to choose between gdm3 and lightdm. Select lightdm and press Enter.
Display manager selection: lightdm selected
The system warns that the installation requires several megabytes of disk space.
xinit disk space warning
Confirm with: y
Confirmation prompt
4. Start the desktop environment.If lightdm was installed in step 3, reboot the server — the graphical interface starts automatically:
If xinit was installed in step 3, start the graphical interface directly:

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First start

On first start, XFCE prompts to select a panel configuration. Select Use default config to get the taskbar, clock, and pre-configured Applications menu. The empty panel option requires manual configuration.
XFCE first-start panel configuration dialog
The desktop with the default configuration looks as follows (minor details may vary by OS):
XFCE desktop with default configuration
If only folders and widgets are visible and the panel with the Applications button is missing, the panel is hidden at the top — move the slider up to reveal it.
Slide up to reveal the hidden panel
On Ubuntu with lightdm, the desktop starts automatically on each server boot. On CentOS and Debian (and Ubuntu with xinit), the terminal opens after a reboot — run startx to start XFCE again. To open a terminal inside XFCE, click Applications in the upper-left corner and select Terminal Emulator.
XFCE Applications menu with Terminal Emulator selected

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Log out

Logging out of XFCE returns the session to the terminal. On Ubuntu with lightdm: press Ctrl+Alt+F1 — the session returns to the terminal immediately. The desktop restarts automatically on the next server boot. On CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu with xinit: 1. Click Applications in the upper-left corner and select Log Out from the menu.
XFCE Applications menu with Log Out selected
2. Select Log Out in the confirmation window.
Log Out confirmation window
The session returns to the terminal. To start XFCE again, run startx.