RAM-only server
A server that runs entirely from volatile memory, so a reboot or a seizure leaves nothing behind on disk.
Glossary
Server seizure
Physical confiscation of a VPN server by authorities, usually at the datacentre rather than from the provider.
Why it matters
It is the event that tests every claim a provider makes. Seizures have happened to several major providers, and how they responded is more informative than any marketing page.
What most explanations leave out
Two things matter afterwards: whether anything useful was on the machine, and whether the provider disclosed the incident. A provider that discloses a seizure it could have concealed is demonstrating something an audit cannot.
Related terms
No-logs policy
A provider’s commitment not to record which sites you visit, when you connected, or what address you connected from.
Warrant canary
A regularly updated statement that a provider has not received a secret legal demand, whose disappearance implies that it has.
Terms are defined here because they appear in our scoring rubric or in provider reviews, not to fill a glossary.