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Auto-Buy: Providers & Categories

Auto-Buy means CloudCO submits an immediate order through your saved provider credentials when a listing matches your rule (price, specs, location, and target category).

It is not available on the Free plan (rules can still notify you so you can order manually).

If Auto-Buy is off, matching listings only trigger notifications (subject to your throttle settings). Many categories are useful for alerts even when automatic ordering is not supported.

One acquisition per rule (no bulk buying)​

Auto-Buy is designed to stop after the first successful order for that rule:

  • The engine considers at most one matching listing per evaluation cycle and attempts one order.
  • When an order succeeds, the rule is marked completed and will not Auto-Buy again—you will not sweep the entire feed or buy every matching row.
  • A completed rule cannot be resumed back to active. The Resume action is only available for paused rules; trying to resume a completed rule via the API returns HTTP 400. If you want to buy another server, create a new rule — a completed rule represents a finished acquisition and is preserved as history.
  • If you want multiple servers over time, create multiple rules (each completes after its own successful purchase).

Failed attempts (stock taken, API error, etc.) do not complete the rule; the rule can match again on a later cycle until one purchase succeeds or you pause/delete it.

Summary matrix​

ProviderCategories where Auto-Buy can complete an orderCategories you might see in the hub but cannot Auto-Buy through CloudCO today
Hetzner RobotAuction onlyDedicated, GPU, VM, Storage (and any row whose API category is not exactly Auction)
OVH EU / OVH CADedicated, GPU, and Storage (catalog lines our integration lists—ordering uses the OVH cart flow, not Hetzner’s auction API)N/A for auction-style rows—we do not expose Hetzner-style Auction on OVH
DigitalOceanVM, GPU (capacity / Droplet size listings)Other categories are not used for DO rules
VultrVM, Dedicated, GPU (plan listings we monitor—instances are created via API)Other categories are not used for Vultr rules

Hetzner Robot (important nuance)​

The live feed and filters may group bare-metal auction stock under Dedicated or GPU for easier browsing. That is a display/filter convention.

The automatic order path still calls Hetzner’s Robot auction reservation API. In code, only products whose product_category is Auction are allowed to complete Auto-Buy.

So:

  • Auto-Buy works for true Serverbörse / auction SKUs (product_category: Auction).
  • Auto-Buy does not run for standard dedicated/GPU catalog lines, cloud VM types, or Storage Boxes—even if a rule’s target category or the hub filter matched them for notifications or manual follow-up.

For racing, stock, and FCFS behavior on auction stock, see Hetzner reservation details.

OVH Europe & OVH North America​

OVH rules use our dedicated / eco catalog integration. When Auto-Buy triggers, CloudCO places an order via the OVH ordering API (cart checkout flow). There is no Hetzner-style “Auction-only” gate on this path.

Use Dedicated, GPU, or Storage target categories as offered in Create Rule for that subsidiary (ovh-eu vs ovh-ca). Respect currency when setting max price (EUR vs CAD/USD)—see How sniping works.

DigitalOcean & Vultr​

Both providers use VM-style listings in CloudCO. Auto-Buy provisions a Droplet (DigitalOcean) or instance (Vultr) using your API token when a matching size/region appears.

Direct Snipe (Dashboard Action)​

In the Sniper Hub, you can also click the SNIPE button directly on a row in the live feed. This performs an immediate, one-off purchase without requiring an existing rule.

  • Requirements: At least a Pro tier subscription and connected provider credentials.
  • Mechanism: CloudCO sends exactly one buy request to the provider and reports the outcome. No sniper rule is created, Auto-Buy is not enabled, and the action is not retried if the order is rejected (e.g. stock gone, racing loss). The reservation, when successful, is recorded in your Snipes history (labelled Direct Snipe — no rule number).
  • Rule limits: Direct Snipe does not count against your active rule slots (it does not create a rule).
  • Want retries?: Create a sniper rule with Auto-Buy enabled — that path is designed for repeated matching attempts until the first successful purchase.
  • Availability: Like Auto-Buy, this is only available for categories that support automated API ordering (see the matrix above).

Quick reference: notification vs Auto-Buy​

SituationTypical outcome
Match + Auto-Buy on + provider supports order for that categoryOne order attempted per cycle for that rule; on success the rule completes and stops Auto-Buy
Match + Auto-Buy on + Hetzner + category is not AuctionOrder not submitted for that product; check notifications / hub for manual steps
Match + Auto-Buy offNotification only (no automatic order)