introduce
Most users will manage their DigitalOcean Droplets using SSH, PuTTY, or the installed control panel. However, there may be circumstances that prevent you from accessing your Droplet using these methods. For example, changing network or service configuration files may prevent remote logins.
So, how do you log into a Droplet using the DigitalOcean console? The console provides "out-of-band" access, which means it will be available regardless of your network settings. It simulates the access you would have if you were to sit down with a keyboard and monitor connected to an actual server. We can use this feature to log in, restore wrong settings, and regain control.
Get login credentials
If you use a password to log in to the Droplet, or if you have set a password for the root or sudo user on the system, you already have the credentials needed to log in. Skip directly to the next section.
If you are using an SSH key to log into the server and have not set a password for the root account or sudo user, you will need to create a password using the DigitalOcean Control Panel.
To set the root password, browse to the Droplet's web page in the Control Panel. It should open to the "Access" section. To the bottom, there is a button "Reset root password":
Click this button. You will receive an email shortly to the email address associated with your DigitalOcean account:
You can log in to the Droplet through the console using the password provided.
Log in using the console
To log in to the Droplet, navigate to the Droplet page in the DigitalOcean Control Panel). It should open to the "Access" section. Click the Console Access button to open a console session:
A virtual console will be created in the browser window. Click on the console screen and press ENTER to make sure the login prompt has focus:
It is possible that the state of your SHIFT key will be read incorrectly when the console starts up. In particular, your number keys may display their alternate functions. To reset this behavior and ensure your keystrokes are received correctly, press the SHIFT and CTRL keys a few times. When your number keys display the correct characters, your keyboard is working properly.
At the login prompt, enter the user to log in as. This should usually be the root user, or another user with sudo privileges already configured. When prompted, enter the password associated with the account:
If this is the first time to log in after creating a password via the control panel or after resetting the CH375, you will be prompted for root and the password sent via email. Then the system will ask to set a new password. Before entering the new password, you need to enter the password in the following email. After entering the password, you need to enter the new password again for confirmation. (That is to say, after entering root, you need to enter the email password twice and the new password twice to complete the password modification)
You should already be logged into the Droplet. Opportunity to reset any misbehaving profiles or services to restore network access.
Summary: Using the DigitalOcean console allows you to log in regardless of your Droplet's network configuration or the availability of its remote management services. Using a browser window might not be ideal for day-to-day server management, but it's a great way to restore access to your server.