Rescue mode starts a temporary recovery environment so you can inspect or copy data from the normal VPS disk. It is useful when the installed operating system cannot boot, but it is not an automatic repair or a replacement for an independent backup.
IN THIS ARTICLE
What you need before you begin
Confirm that rescue mode is available for your service and virtualization type. Record the failure and preserve existing backups. If a disk is failing or data recovery is the priority, avoid write operations until you have a recovery plan.
Before mounting: account for filesystem journal recovery
A read-only recovery intention needs a filesystem-specific procedure. For example, an ext4 filesystem can replay its journal during mounting even when a read-only mount is requested. The kernel documentation describes additional options for preventing journal replay, but skipping recovery can leave an inconsistent view of the filesystem.
Identify the actual filesystem, encryption, RAID or volume layers before choosing a mount method. When preserving evidence or recovering a failing disk is the priority, obtain a suitable image or administrator-assisted recovery plan before mounting the source. Do not paste an ext4 option onto XFS, Btrfs, NTFS or an unknown device.
The desired result is a verified copy on independent storage with no unintended changes to the original. Keep the original failure message and record every recovery operation.
01 Use Virtualizor rescue mode to inspect an unbootable VPS
- Open the correct VPS management page and choose Rescue Mode.
- Set a strong temporary rescue password when requested and enable the mode. Wait for the platform task to complete before starting other operations.
- Connect using the rescue environment instructions, through authorized SSH or the console. Confirm you are in the recovery environment rather than the normal installed system.
- Inspect the storage layout with read-only commands such as
lsblk -f. Identify the original filesystem by device, size and UUID; do not assume it is always a particular disk name. - Mount a healthy filesystem read-only when copying data, if appropriate for that filesystem and recovery plan. Export important files to independent storage before attempting repairs.
- If a repair is necessary, follow the filesystem or operating-system documentation for that exact layout. Never run a filesystem repair against a filesystem that is mounted for normal writes.
How do I verify the original disks are visible in rescue mode?
Validate recovered files or database backups on a separate system. Keep a record of every change. Before returning to normal boot, finish copies, exit chroot sessions and cleanly unmount manually mounted filesystems.
Troubleshoot unexpected results
If a disk is missing or reports input/output errors, stop and contact support. Do not format, initialize or repeatedly repair the disk to make it mount. If rescue SSH is unreachable, use the console and verify the temporary credentials and network state.