retivoby Wali
Docs
  1. Docs
  2. Getting started

First start of the appliance

The setup menu on the VM's console, linking to your company, and opening the web interface.

When the appliance starts for the first time, its console shows the setup menu. Use the arrow keys, Tab and Enter. It takes about two minutes.

1. Network

  • Automatic (DHCP) if your network hands out addresses. Reserve the address for the VM in your DHCP server, so the web address doesn't change.
  • Fixed address: enter the address with its prefix (for example 10.20.0.15/24), the gateway, DNS servers and, if you use one, the search domain.

The menu then checks the gateway, DNS and the connection to dash.retivo.net and shows the result. If the connection to dash.retivo.net fails, check the firewall (TCP 443 outbound) or set a proxy in step 3.

2. Computer name and time zone

The name appears in the browser's certificate and on dash.retivo.net. The time zone sets when the daily backup runs. You can add your own NTP servers; otherwise the public Ubuntu servers are used.

3. Proxy

Only if this network reaches the internet through a proxy. Enter it as http://proxy.example.local:3128. Retivo, updates and Ubuntu's security updates all use it.

4. Administrator

The username and password for the Retivo web interface. The password needs at least 10 characters. You can add more users, with roles and device groups, in the web interface under Settings > Users.

Retivo stays locked until the appliance is linked to your company on dash.retivo.net.

  1. The console shows a code such as K7QF-29MD and the address dash.retivo.net/activate.
  2. On any computer, open that address and sign in with an owner or admin account of your company. Your email code is asked as at every sign-in.
  3. Enter the code. Check that the computer name and addresses are this appliance, then choose Approve and link.
  4. The console shows Linked within a few seconds.

Your license sets how many nodes and devices you can use. If all your nodes are in use, remove an old one under Download & setup first, or write to hello@retivo.ae.

Note

No dash.retivo.net account yet? Create one at dash.retivo.net and activate a license first. The code stays valid for 15 minutes; choose Link again in the menu for a new one.

6. Open Retivo

Open https://<appliance address>/ in your browser. The appliance uses a self-signed certificate, so the browser asks you to confirm the first time. Sign in with the administrator from step 4, then follow First steps.

The console menu afterwards

The console always shows the web address, the license status and the version, with a menu for:

Menu What it does
Network, Computer name, Time zone and NTP, Proxy Change the settings from setup
Administrator password Set a new password, or add an administrator, if nobody can sign in any more
Link or unlink Link to dash.retivo.net, or remove the link
Update Retivo Install a new Retivo version, see Update the appliance
Diagnostics Services, network, internet checks, disk space and the latest Retivo log
Restart Retivo, Reboot, Shut down As it says

If something doesn't work

What you see What to do
The web page doesn't open Check the address on the console. From your computer, TCP 443 to the appliance must be allowed.
"Could not get a code" The appliance can't reach dash.retivo.net. Open Diagnostics: check the gateway, DNS and HTTPS lines, and set a proxy if you need one.
"This company can have 1 node" Your license is in use by another node. Remove the old node under Download & setup, or ask for more nodes.
"Linked on another machine" This VM is a copy of a linked one. Unlink it in the console menu and link it again as a new node.
Retivo shows "locked" after a long outage The appliance must reach dash.retivo.net at least every 14 days. Restore the connection; it unlocks by itself.

Last modified October 27, 2026