Ubuntu Auto-Install USB Guide — Rabid Mining

⚡ Rabid Mining

UBUNTU AUTO-INSTALL
USB GUIDE

Create a USB that installs Ubuntu automatically with the perfect Vast.ai partition layout. Boot it, walk away, SSH in and run one command.

What this does You flash a USB that installs Ubuntu Server completely hands-free — correct partitions, SSH enabled, and the Vast.ai setup script pre-downloaded. When it finishes it reboots and you just SSH in and run one command.

1Flash USB with Etcher

→

2Add config files

→

3Boot from USB

→

4Ubuntu installs itself

→

5SSH in + run script

How the Drive Gets Partitioned

💾

Automatic Partition Layout for Vast.ai

The config creates this layout automatically — optimised for best performance

EFI

512MB — FAT32 — /boot/efi — Boot partition

ROOT 80GB

80GB — ext4 — / — Ubuntu + Vast.ai software

DOCKER (FREE)

REST — Unpartitioned — Vast.ai auto-creates XFS here for Docker

Why leave space unpartitioned? Vast.ai’s installer automatically detects unpartitioned space and creates a high-performance XFS filesystem for Docker containers. This gives you the best rental performance. If you have a second drive, Vast.ai uses that instead.

⚠️ Only one drive with no free space? Vast.ai will create a loopback XFS partition instead — this works but is slower. For best results make sure your root partition is only 80GB and leave the rest free, OR use a second dedicated drive for Docker.

Choose Your Ubuntu Version

✓ RECOMMENDED

Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

Most tested with Vast.ai — battle-proven stability

↓ Download ISO (1.5GB) ↓ Download user-data

Use this file + meta-data below

ALSO WORKS

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS

Latest LTS — works well, slightly less tested with Vast.ai

↓ Download ISO (2.2GB) ↓ Download user-data

Use this file + meta-data below

↓ Download meta-data (required for both versions)

Step 1 — Download & Install Balena Etcher

Get Balena Etcher

Free tool to flash the ISO to your USB drive

↓ Download Balena Etcher

Works on Windows, Mac and Linux. Install it then come back here.

Step 2 — Customise Your Config File

Edit user-data — Set Your Username & Password

Open in Notepad++ and change these two things before flashing

⚠️ Use Notepad++ not regular Notepad! Regular Notepad uses Windows line endings which break the autoinstall config. Download Notepad++ free here. After editing go to Edit → EOL Conversion → Unix (LF) before saving.

Open your downloaded user-data file and find these two lines:

CHANGE THESE IN user-data

    hostname: vastai-rig     <-- your rig name (lowercase, no spaces)
    username: rabid          <-- your login username

To set a custom password, open PowerShell and run:

POWERSHELL — GENERATE PASSWORD HASH

python3 -c "import crypt,getpass; print(crypt.crypt(getpass.getpass()))"

Type your password when prompted. Copy the output hash and replace the password: line in user-data with it.

Step 3 — Flash the USB

Flash the ISO to USB with Balena Etcher

Use a USB drive 8GB or larger — it will be completely wiped

Open Balena Etcher
Click Flash from file → select your Ubuntu ISO
Click Select target → choose your USB drive
Click Flash! → wait for it to finish (~5 minutes)
Do NOT eject the USB yet — you still need to add the config files

Step 4 — Add Config Files to USB

Copy user-data and meta-data onto the USB

These files tell Ubuntu to install automatically

After flashing, the USB appears as a drive in Windows Explorer. You need to create an autoinstall folder and put both files in it.

► OPTION A — POWERSHELL (EASIEST)

Open PowerShell and run these commands. Change D: to your USB drive letter:

POWERSHELL

$usb = "D:"   # <-- Change to your USB drive letter

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force "$usb\autoinstall"
Copy-Item "$HOME\Downloads\user-data" "$usb\autoinstall\user-data"
Copy-Item "$HOME\Downloads\meta-data" "$usb\autoinstall\meta-data"

Write-Host "Done! Config files copied to USB."

► OPTION B — WINDOWS EXPLORER (MANUAL)

Open Windows Explorer → find your USB drive
Create a new folder called exactly autoinstall at the root of the USB
Copy user-data into the autoinstall folder
Copy meta-data into the autoinstall folder

Final USB structure should be:
USB:\autoinstall\user-data USB:\autoinstall\meta-data

Step 5 — Boot & Install

Boot Your Rig From the USB

Ubuntu detects the config and installs completely automatically — no input needed

Plug USB into your mining rig and power it on
Spam F12 (or F8 / F11 / DEL depending on your motherboard) to get the boot menu
Select your USB drive from the list
Ubuntu detects the autoinstall config and begins installing automatically
Do not touch anything — takes about 10-15 minutes
Screen will say “Installation complete!” then reboot
Remove the USB as soon as it reboots!

⚠️ Pull the USB the moment it reboots — otherwise it boots from USB again and reinstalls. Watch for the screen going black then pull it out.

Step 6 — SSH In & Run the Vast.ai Script

One Command to Finish Everything

Ubuntu is installed — the Vast.ai script is already downloaded and waiting

First SSH in from your other PC. See the Rabid Mining Vast.ai Setup Guide for SSH instructions. Once connected you’ll see the Rabid Mining welcome message.

RUN THIS AFTER SSHING IN

sudo bash ~/vastai-setup.sh

The script will ask for your Vast.ai install key. Get it from cloud.vast.ai/host/setup before running. While the script runs (~15-20 mins) go forward your ports on the router!

✓ COMPLETE FLOW SUMMARY

Download Ubuntu ISO + Etcher + user-data + meta-data
Edit user-data — change username/password in Notepad++
Flash USB with Etcher
Add user-data & meta-data to USB:\autoinstall\ folder
Boot rig from USB → Ubuntu installs automatically (10-15 mins)
Remove USB when rig reboots
SSH into rig from your PC
Run sudo bash ~/vastai-setup.sh
Paste your Vast.ai install key when prompted
Forward ports 40000-40100 on your router while script runs
Final reboot → set price → go live! 💰

← Back to Rabid Mining Vast.ai Setup Guide