# Virtual Private Server ## **What Is a VPS?** A **Virtual Private Server (VPS)** is a virtualized computing environment that runs on a physical server hosted in the cloud. It functions like a standalone server but shares physical hardware with other VPS instances. *** ## ☁️ Key Characteristics * **Virtualized Environment**\ A VPS runs independently with its own operating system, file system, allocated CPU, RAM, and storage; despite being hosted on a shared physical machine. * **Cloud-Hosted**\ The underlying infrastructure is managed by a cloud provider, meaning you do not need to maintain or understand the physical server itself. * **Private and Isolated**\ Your VPS instance operates in isolation from other virtual machines on the same host, offering consistent performance and greater security than shared hosting. *** ## 🛠️ Role in Constellation Network In the context of running a **Constellation Network Validator Node**, the VPS: * Hosts the full node stack, including Tessellation binaries, keystores, and supporting services * Connects directly to the Constellation Hypergraph or metagraph cluster * Acts as your validator’s public-facing presence on the network *** A VPS offers a reliable, flexible, and cost-effective way to run your node 24/7 without managing physical hardware, making it ideal for decentralized infrastructure participation. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.constellationnetwork.io/run-a-node/references/virtual-private-server.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.