Set the hostname and timezone

A clear hostname makes your server easy to recognize in logs and prompts, and the right timezone keeps log timestamps, scheduled jobs and backups accurate. Both settings take only a few minutes.

Before you begin

• A sudo-enabled user logged in over SSH.
• A name for your server. Use lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens, such as web1 or mc-survival.
• If you plan to point a domain at this server, decide on the full name too, such as web1.example.com. The DNS guides cover that step.

Step 1: Check the current settings

hostname prints the short name, and timedatectl prints the clock and timezone. Run both to see where you are starting from:

hostname
timedatectl

web1
               Local time: Sat 2026-10-31 09:14:02 UTC
           Universal time: Sat 2026-10-31 09:14:02 UTC
                 RTC time: Sat 2026-10-31 09:14:02
                Time zone: Etc/UTC (UTC, +0000)
System clock synchronized: yes
              NTP service: active

Step 2: Set the hostname

hostnamectl set-hostname changes the name permanently, so it survives reboots. Replace web1 with your chosen name:

sudo hostnamectl set-hostname web1

Your current session still shows the old name until you log in again. That is expected.

Step 3: Add the name to /etc/hosts

Some tools look up the server's own name in the /etc/hosts file. If the name is missing, sudo may print a warning. Open the file in the nano editor:

sudo nano /etc/hosts

Find the line that begins with 127.0.1.1 and make it match your names. Use the full name first, followed by the short name:

127.0.1.1 web1.example.com web1

Save with Ctrl+O, press Enter, then exit with Ctrl+X.

Step 4: Stop cloud-init from resetting the name

Many cloud images use a tool called cloud-init, which can reset the hostname on reboot. Tell it to leave your choice alone by creating a small configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/cloud/cloud.cfg.d/99-preserve-hostname.conf

Type this single line, then save and exit:

preserve_hostname: true

Step 5: Set the timezone

Search the list of timezone names first. The grep filter narrows the long list to the region you want:

timedatectl list-timezones | grep -i europe

Then set your choice. Many admins keep servers on UTC, which avoids confusion about daylight saving time. The example below uses a US timezone:

sudo timedatectl set-timezone America/Chicago
timedatectl status

Check that System clock synchronized says yes. That means the clock is kept accurate against network time servers.

Step 6: Confirm the changes in a new session

Log out and back in so the new name appears in your prompt:

exit
ssh alex@203.0.113.10

alex@web1:~$

Troubleshooting

• "sudo: unable to resolve host web1". The name is missing from /etc/hosts. Repeat Step 3.
• The hostname reverts after a reboot. Cloud-init is overriding it. Confirm the file from Step 4 exists and contains preserve_hostname: true, then run sudo hostnamectl set-hostname web1 again.
• The clock is not synchronized. Check the time service with sudo systemctl status systemd-timesyncd --no-pager. Wait a few minutes after a fresh boot, then run timedatectl status again.
• The timezone name is rejected. Timezone names are case-sensitive and use the form Region/City. Copy the exact name from the list in Step 5.

Next steps

Your server now has a clear name and an accurate clock. Next, consider adding swap space if your server has little memory.