What the?Red?Means The lines that the user needs to enter or customize will be in?red?in this tutorial! The rest should mostly be copy-and-pastable. The Basics When you first begin to access your fresh new server, there are a few early steps you should take to make it more secure. Some of the first tasks required on a virtual private server can include setting up a new user, providing them with the proper privileges, and configuring SSH.