How do I benchmark a VPS with YABS or Geekbench 6?

What does YABS measure?

YABS (Yet Another Bench Script) runs three tests in one go: disk with fio, network with iperf3, and CPU with Geekbench 6. The version we read on 2 November 2026 was v2026-10-31.

• Disk (fio): four mixed random tests, half reads and half writes, at block sizes of 4k, 64k, 512k and 1m. Each runs for 30 seconds with direct I/O, an I/O depth of 64 and 2 jobs, on a 2 GB test file (512 MB on Arm and RISC-V) written in the directory you start from.
• Network (iperf3): download and upload against public iperf3 servers, with 8 parallel streams. The README warns that it tries to fill the port for about 20 seconds per location, 10 in each direction.
• CPU (Geekbench): Geekbench 6 by default. Since 24 July 2026, the -7 flag runs Geekbench 7 instead; -4 and -5 run the older versions.

It prints the system details first: processor model, vCPU count, RAM, disk, kernel and, unless you skip it, the network owner of the IP address.

How do I run YABS?

The one-line form downloads the script and runs it; the safer form lets you read it first. The README itself asks you to use it at your own risk, and its fio and iperf3 binaries are built by GitHub Actions, with checksums published.

curl -sL yabs.sh | bash

curl -sL yabs.sh -o yabs.sh
less yabs.sh
bash yabs.sh

curl -sL yabs.sh | bash -s -- -i -w yabs-$(date +%F).json

How do I run Geekbench 6 on its own?

Download the Linux build from Primate Labs, unpack it and run geekbench6. The version below, 6.7.2, is the one YABS used on 2 November 2026; take the current number from geekbench.com if it has moved on. Primate Labs lists Linux support from Ubuntu 18.04, on x86-64 and AArch64.

mkdir -p ~/gb6 && cd ~/gb6
curl -sL https://cdn.geekbench.com/Geekbench-6.7.2-Linux.tar.gz | tar xz --strip-components=1
./geekbench6 --upload

How do I read the results?

Read each number for what it measures, and compare it only with results from the same tool and version.

How do I make a benchmark fair?

One run tells you how the VPS behaved for ten minutes; three runs at different hours tell you how it behaves. According to Cobaltfell's survey of 2 November 2026, 10 of the 22 no-KYC crypto hosts that call a CPU dedicated named no processor precise enough to date it, so on those plans lscpu and a benchmark are the only way to learn what you rent. A short routine:

1. Run on an idle VPS. YABS loads every vCPU, the disk and the network port; do it before production traffic arrives.
2. Repeat at three hours of the day, for example morning, evening and night. On a dedicated vCPU, the Geekbench scores should stay close; a wide spread points to contention.
3. Log steal time during the run. Keep mpstat -P ALL 5 open in a second session; what CPU steal time is and how to check it explains the reading.
4. Write down the context: date, lscpu model name, vCPU count, kernel, YABS or Geekbench version, city.
5. Mind your traffic. The iperf3 test pushes the port for about 20 seconds per location; use -r or -i on a metered plan.

A dedicated vCPU should show the same behaviour at every hour. The page on the difference between a shared vCPU and a dedicated vCPU explains why a shared one often does not, and which is the best dedicated CPU VPS provider in 2026 lists the hosts whose promises are worth testing.

A timed job of your own completes the picture: an encode, as in can I transcode video with FFmpeg on a VPS without a GPU, or a model run, as in can I run Ollama on a VPS without a GPU.

Where are Cobaltfell's own results?

Not published yet, on purpose. Our own YABS and Geekbench 6 results, together with the steal time we measure, will be published with their date once our first test machine is delivered. Until then we quote no performance figure of our own.

When they appear, each result will carry its date, the plan, the city, the processor that lscpu reports and the version of the tool, beside the steal time logged during the run. Until then, any number you see for Cobaltfell elsewhere did not come from us.

You can run the same tests on your own VPS from the first login: Root over SSH. Paste a public key at checkout and password login stays off; leave the field empty and the team sets a temporary root password, shown in your dashboard, that you replace at first login. Plans and prices are on how much a dedicated-core VPS costs at Cobaltfell.