Migrate from DigitalOcean to Valebyte
Move from DigitalOcean to Valebyte: 2 GB for $7.59 instead of $12, dedicated IP and 10 Gbps unmetered, no bandwidth overage.
Why people leave DigitalOcean
$6 per 1 GB RAM is high in 2026
DigitalOcean's Basic Droplet starts at $6/mo for 1 GB / 1 vCPU shared. Equivalent specs cost $7.59/mo with 2 GB and dedicated vCPU at Valebyte.
Bandwidth caps with $0.01/GB overage
Each Droplet has 1-9 TB/mo allowance, then $0.01/GB. A spike in traffic creates a surprise bill at the end of the month.
Backups and snapshots cost extra
20% of Droplet price for automated backups, $0.06/GB-month for snapshots. Comparable infrastructure at Valebyte includes free snapshots.
Single network speed (no 10 Gbps)
Droplets cap at 2 Gbps egress (Premium AMD) or 1 Gbps. Valebyte VPS uses 10 Gbps unmetered shared port — relevant for video, file sync, scraping.
Limited locations for some regions
15 datacenters but only 1-2 each in APAC, none in LATAM or Africa. Valebyte's multi-provider catalog adds Mumbai, São Paulo, Johannesburg, Dubai.
Managed services lock-in
Managed Postgres, Spaces, App Platform — once you adopt them, migration involves rewriting infrastructure. Self-host the same stack on a $7.59 VPS.
DigitalOcean vs Valebyte: honest comparison
No marketing — actual differences. Including where they win.
| Feature | DigitalOcean | Valebyte |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest VPS | Basic — $6 — 1 vCPU shared, 1 GB, 25 GB | VPS-XS — $7.59 — 1 vCPU dedicated, 2 GB, 20 GB NVMe |
| Network | 1-2 Gbps, 1-9 TB cap, $0.01/GB overage | 10 Gbps unmetered (no overage) |
| Locations | 15 DCs (NYC, SFO, AMS, FRA, LON, TOR, BLR, SGP, SYD) | Multi-provider: FR, NL, DE, NO, JP, IN, US, ZA, AE, BR |
| Snapshot pricing | $0.06/GB-month | Free (included) |
| Automated backups | 20% of Droplet price | Optional, $1-2/mo |
| CPU type | Shared on Basic, dedicated on Premium AMD/Intel | Dedicated vCPU on every plan |
| API + CLI | doctl, Terraform provider | HostPVE-powered API + cURL |
| Object Storage | Spaces ($5/250 GB) | BYO MinIO on VPS or Backblaze B2 affiliate |
| Marketplace | 200+ 1-click apps | Marketplace with 1-click Docker stack |
| Payment methods | Card, PayPal | Stripe, Square, SEPA, USDT/BTC/ETH/TON, MIR/SBP |
Migration checklist: 12 steps
Total time — 1 hour (small VPS) to 4 hours (TB-scale DB). Zero-downtime possible — steps 4-6.
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1
Snapshot your Droplets
DigitalOcean Console → Droplet → 'Snapshots' tab → 'Take Snapshot'. Cost: $0.06/GB until you delete it. For Volumes, snapshot separately.
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2
Export DNS records
DigitalOcean → Networking → Domains → click domain → 'More' → 'Export Zone File'. Most registrars import BIND format directly.
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3
Lower DNS TTL to 300 seconds
Do this 24h before cutover. The default DigitalOcean DNS TTL is 1800s — change all A/AAAA/CNAME records temporarily.
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4
Order your Valebyte VPS matching specs
Match RAM and vCPU; disk you can grow. Pay in your preferred method (card, SEPA, USDT/BTC, MIR/SBP).
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5
Restore data via rsync over SSH
`rsync -avzP --delete /source/ root@new-server:/dest/` for files, configs, Docker volumes. Test with `--dry-run` first.
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6
Migrate Managed Database to self-hosted
Postgres: `pg_dump -h db-cluster-do.com -U doadmin -d defaultdb | psql -h new-server -U postgres`. Same for MySQL with `mysqldump`. ARM-compatible if your new VPS is ARM.
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7
Move Spaces objects to MinIO or Backblaze B2
`s3cmd sync s3://your-space/ s3://new-bucket/` if using Backblaze B2. Or self-host MinIO on your VPS for full S3 compatibility.
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8
Re-deploy your stack
Same `docker-compose.yml` works (Ubuntu/Debian/AlmaLinux on Valebyte). If you used App Platform, deploy as Docker container or systemd service.
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9
Re-create firewall rules
DigitalOcean Cloud Firewalls → list rules → recreate via `ufw` or `nftables`. Test all inbound services with `nmap` from outside.
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10
Update DNS A/AAAA records to new IPs
Wait for old TTL to expire (5 min if you lowered earlier). Watch traffic with `tcpdump` to confirm requests are arriving.
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11
Run both servers in parallel for 48 hours
Don't power off the Droplet immediately. Watch error rates, latency, customer reports. If something breaks — flip DNS back instantly.
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12
Destroy Droplets only after 7 days
Confirm nothing references old IPs (cron jobs, webhooks, hardcoded configs in third-party services). Then destroy via Console or doctl.
Pick a plan that matches your DigitalOcean budget
All plans: 10 Gbps, dedicated IP, full root, KVM console
Frequently asked questions
Will DigitalOcean refund unused balance?
How fast is the actual cutover?
Can I run my Docker Compose stack on Valebyte?
What about App Platform apps?
Do you have an API like DigitalOcean's?
Can I migrate Managed Database without downtime?
How do I move Spaces to MinIO?
Leave DigitalOcean today
10 Gbps unmetered, multi-region, flexible payment (card, SEPA, crypto, MIR). VPS in 30 seconds.
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