netcup & European VPS Glossary (English–German Reference)

Table of Contents40 sections

Because netcup is a German infrastructure provider, you will frequently encounter German legal, billing, and technical terms inside the control panels, invoices, and community forums. Every entry below translates the term and explains what it actually means for your server and wallet.

Looking for step-by-step administration guides? Browse our Knowledge Base or check the 24 Common Questions FAQ.

Products & Hardware Architecture#

VPS (Virtual Private Server)#

A virtualized server instance carved out of a physical hypervisor using KVM, with its own isolated OS kernel, IP address, and disk volume. netcup's x86 and ARM64 VPS lines use shared vCores, making them ideal for web servers, reverse proxies, and bursty workloads at a fraction of dedicated-core pricing.

Root Server (Dedicated-Core KVM Server)#

netcup's flagship virtualized server tier where 100% of the assigned AMD EPYC 9645 (Zen 5) CPU cores are dedicated to your instance and never shared with neighbors, paired with DDR5 ECC RAM and pure NVMe storage. Ideal for production databases, CI/CD build nodes, game servers, and high-concurrency containers. (Root Server Guide)

vCore (Virtual CPU Core)#

A virtual CPU thread assigned to a VPS. On netcup VPS plans, vCores are shared resources: short bursts to 100% CPU are completely fine, but pinning all vCores at 100% 24/7 will trigger automated fair-use throttling. If your baseline CPU load exceeds 60% continuously, choose a Root Server instead.

CPU Steal Time (%st)#

The percentage of time a virtual CPU waits for the physical hypervisor because another neighboring VM is using the physical core (visible in top or htop). On netcup Root Servers, %st is near 0%; on heavily oversold budget hosts like Contabo, high steal time causes severe application lag.

ARM64 (VPS ARM Series)#

Cloud instances powered by 64-bit ARM processors (Ampere Altra platform) backed by pure NVMe storage. They offer outstanding price-per-core and energy efficiency, though all software and Docker containers must support the linux/arm64 architecture (Windows is not supported).

Local Block Storage#

Additional high-capacity disk volumes in the Nuremberg datacenter that can be attached directly to your server instance as a block device (/dev/vdX). Billed separately by capacity, ideal for media libraries and backup archives.

Webhosting (Shared Managed Hosting)#

Managed web hosting packages that include free inclusive domains, Let's Encrypt SSL, SSH access, Ruby/Node.js/Python support, and 1-click WordPress installers—allowing you to host sites and business email without managing a Linux kernel.

German Billing, Tax & Contract Law#

Gutschein (Voucher / Coupon Code)#

The German word for a promotional voucher code. Inside the netcup shopping cart, you redeem a Gutschein in the Gutschein einlösen field to claim free billing months, 30% lifetime webhosting discounts, or a €5 new-customer credit. (Active Gutschein List)

VAT / MwSt. (Value Added Tax / Mehrwertsteuer)#

Germany's standard Value Added Tax rate is 19% (19% MwSt.). netcup dynamically adjusts pricing based on your verified billing country: customers outside the European Union (e.g., US, UK, Canada, Switzerland, APAC) pay 0% VAT (net price), saving ~19% compared to German gross prices. (VAT & Payment Guide)

Net Price vs. Gross Price (Netto vs. Brutto)#

Netto (Net) is the price excluding VAT (paid by non-EU customers and EU businesses with a valid VAT ID via Reverse Charge). Brutto (Gross) includes the local EU VAT rate. Always check whether a price table quotes Netto or Brutto before comparing providers.

Mindestvertragslaufzeit (Minimum Contract Term)#

The binding contract duration (1, 12, or 24 months). Longer commitments unlock deep monthly discounts (~13% off on 12-month terms, ~26% off on 24-month terms). Under German law, fixed-term contracts cannot be terminated early simply because you stopped using the server.

Kündigungsfrist (Cancellation Notice Period — 31 Days)#

The mandatory advance notice required to stop a contract from auto-renewing. At netcup, you must submit your cancellation in the CCP at least 31 full calendar days before the current contract period ends. Missing this deadline by even one day automatically extends the contract for another full term. (Cancellation & Refund Guide)

Widerrufsrecht & 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee#

Your statutory consumer right of withdrawal (Widerrufsrecht, 14 days in the EU) plus netcup's voluntary 30-day satisfaction guarantee (30-Tage-Geld-zurück-Garantie) on new hosting and server orders. Within 30 days of ordering, you can revoke the contract via CCP to receive a full refund to your original payment method (domains and select flash deals excluded).

Grandfathered Pricing (Bestandsschutz)#

Under German contract law, existing active contracts keep their agreed monthly price and hardware specs upon renewal, even if netcup raises prices for new orders (such as the G12.5 update). Never cancel a rare Black Friday Pro or Ultra contract unless you are sure you no longer want that price lock.

Transfer Code / Contract PUSH#

An official feature inside the CCP that lets an existing customer transfer an active server contract (including its IP addresses and grandfathered Black Friday pricing) to another netcup customer's CCP account at €0 transfer fee.

Hourly Billing (Stundenabrechnung)#

Available on flexible G12/G12.5 configurations: billed at monthly rate ÷ 720 hours, allowing you to cancel at any time and receive a pro-rata refund for unused prepaid balance.

Fair-Use Policy#

Contractual boundaries governing shared resources. netcup permits short 100% CPU bursts on VPS plans, but continuous 24/7 saturation (crypto mining, permanent video transcoding) leads to temporary CPU throttling. On network ports, exceeding an average of 2 TB of outbound traffic over a rolling 24-hour window temporarily shapes port speed from 2.5 Gbps down to 200 Mbps without charging overage fees.

SEPA Bank Transfer (Überweisung)#

Single Euro Payments Area bank transfer. Supported by netcup alongside PayPal and Visa/Mastercard; clears in 1–2 business days with zero transaction fees across Europe (and via Wise/Revolut EUR accounts).

Control Panels & Server Administration#

CCP (Customer Control Panel)#

netcup's billing and account portal (customercontrolpanel.de). Used to manage personal details, view and pay invoices, order upgrades, generate Transfer Codes, and submit contract cancellations (Kündigung).

SCP (Server Control Panel)#

netcup's technical infrastructure portal (servercontrolpanel.de). Used to start/stop/reboot instances, mount ISOs, reinstall Linux/BSD templates, manage snapshots, open the HTML5 VNC console, boot into the Rescue System, and configure rDNS. (SCP Complete Guide)

Snapshot (Offline vs. Online)#

A point-in-time copy of your virtual disk managed inside SCP. Offline snapshots (taken while the server is powered off) guarantee 100% filesystem consistency, whereas Online snapshots run without downtime but may have uncommitted database buffers under heavy write load. Note: snapshots reside on the same storage cluster and do not replace offsite 3-2-1 backups.

HTML5 VNC Console (KVM-over-IP)#

A browser-based virtual monitor and keyboard inside SCP that connects directly to your server's video output. Essential for emergency recovery when a broken firewall rule (ufw/iptables) or SSH misconfiguration locks you out of port 22.

Rescue System (Rettungssystem)#

A live Debian-based recovery environment booted over the network via SCP. Allows you to mount your server's primary disk to repair GRUB bootloaders, reset forgotten root passwords, or copy critical data off a corrupted OS.

rDNS / PTR Record (Reverse DNS)#

A DNS record mapping your server's IPv4 or IPv6 address back to your hostname (configured in SCP under Network). Matching forward (A/AAAA) and reverse (PTR) DNS is mandatory if you run a self-hosted mail server (Postfix/Mailcow) so Gmail and Outlook do not reject your emails.

Custom ISO & DD Image Installation#

Mounting an official .iso image via SCP or writing a raw disk image directly onto the block device (dd) to run custom operating systems such as Windows Server, Proxmox VE, Alpine, or NixOS. Warning: dd overwrites the entire disk. (Custom OS & DD Guide)

Partition Resize (growpart / resize2fs)#

When upgrading a server tier or deploying certain minimal templates, the root partition may not automatically fill the entire virtual disk. Running growpart and resize2fs (or xfs_growfs) expands the filesystem to use 100% of your allocated storage.

fail2ban & SSH Hardening#

An intrusion-prevention daemon that scans /var/log/auth.log and automatically bans IP addresses attempting brute-force SSH logins. Together with SSH key authentication, it forms the baseline security checklist for any public server. (Server Security Checklist)

Networking, Peering & Diagnostics#

Looking Glass & Test IPs#

Public diagnostic endpoints operated by a hosting provider across its datacenters (Nuremberg, Vienna, Amsterdam, Manassas US) so prospective buyers can test ping latency, routing hops, and test-file download speeds before ordering. (Datacenter Speedtest & Looking Glass)

DE-CIX & AMS-IX Peering#

Europe's premier Internet Exchange Points in Frankfurt (DE-CIX) and Amsterdam (AMS-IX). netcup peers directly at major European IXPs with over 2 Tbps of external capacity, ensuring ultra-low 1–10 ms latency across Central and Western Europe.

TCP BBR Congestion Control#

A modern TCP congestion control algorithm developed by Google (net.ipv4.tcp_congestion_control = bbr). Compared to the legacy cubic default, BBR significantly improves throughput and reduces latency spikes over transatlantic (EU-to-US) and intercontinental links.

MTR (My Traceroute)#

A network diagnostic tool combining ping and traceroute to continuously measure packet loss and latency jitter at every router hop between your client and the server. Essential for distinguishing local ISP congestion from backbone routing issues.

IOPS & fio#

Input/Output Operations Per Second, typically measured with the Linux fio benchmark tool using 4K random read/write workloads. Unlike sequential MB/s numbers, 4K random IOPS determine how fast databases (PostgreSQL, Redis) and Docker builds perform in real life.

iperf3#

The industry-standard command-line tool for measuring maximum achievable TCP and UDP bandwidth between two servers, used to verify your 2.5 Gbps port throughput.

2 TB / 24h Bandwidth Rule#

netcup's transparent traffic policy: all VPS and Root Servers include unmetered monthly traffic, and your 2.5 Gbps port is only throttled to 200 Mbps if your rolling 24-hour outbound average exceeds 2 TB (you are never billed surprise overage fees).

DDoS Protection (Always-On Mitigation)#

Automated network-edge traffic scrubbing included free of charge across all netcup datacenters to filter volumetric L3/L4 flood attacks before they reach your virtual NIC.

Related Reading#

• Knowledge Base Directory
• Server Lineup & Pricing Tables
• 24 Frequently Asked Questions