cPanel – commonly called “control panel” – is a Linux-based GUI (graphical user interface) and automation tool. It is one of the most popular and widely used tools with which website owners, administrators and resellers who use it to control and manage their websites and servers without any installation as it runs through any of the most common web browsers. cPanel, Inc. the maker of the product is based in Houston, TX. It was first developed as a control panel for Speed Hosting – a now-defunct web hosting provider – and was eventually transformed and modified to serve all hosting environments after the company merged with Webking, another provider.
Today, most providers that offer Linux-based hosting use cPanel as their default control tool due to many reasons, but mainly because it is easy to master in a short time.
But, we will go ahead and have a look at all the other wonderful things that make cPanel so lovable:
Easy Installation: cPanel can be installed with just a few clicks. Once there is a Linux OS the script can be run on, it installs without any issues. Right off the bat, cPanel’s default configuration enables you to work on your server.
Compatibility: years and years of tweaking and configuring have made cPanel one of the most integratable server control software on the market today. You can use it with a wide range of open source applications.
Easy Site Maintenance: cPanel gives you full control of your web site’s files, directories, domain names, network / internet configuration and database administration.
From that one screen you are in command of all aspects of your website. You can install and uninstall software and plugins, you can create new web pages without having to work offline and then uploading them (this is especially useful when you want to create special pages like error or custom “Page not Found” pages).
Permissions and Security: you can change or administer the permissions of your files and directories. What would have been done using the “chmod” command in the non-GUI command line is now available for you to tinker with in full graphical mode.
Also, you can administer accounts and passwords and delegate roles or grant various access levels to your clients or sub-administrators.
Complex Domain Management: cPanel comes with a unique feature which allows you to host one or many domains on each account. You can even go down one level and create as many sub-domains as you are allowed by your hosting provider.
Complete Database Management: cPanel is one of the most powerful database administration software out there. With it, you can create, modify and delete MySQL databases. You can insert, update and delete data from your databases. You can import data from other databases (even when they are not MySQL databases, e.g. MS SQL) using exported files. You can also backup and restore your databases with complete ease.
API Access: those that are tech savvy delight in the fact that cPanel allows for API (application programming interface) access on top of the GUI one. With that kind of access, an administrator can go under the hood and make modifications or adjustments to his cPanel to further enhance his website administration experience.
Web Hosting Company Manger (WHCM): cPanel isn’t just the favorite for website owners and administrators, but also web hosting companies themselves. They can use it to administer their own servers while giving access to users so that they can administer their own websites – seamlessly. When a client or reseller logs into an account, they experience an “illusion” that what they are in control of is a full server of their own.
Email Management: with cPanel, you won’t have to worry about configuring and administering your email accounts. You can assign domain names to all your email accounts and even tweak them by adding auto-responders, for instance. There is even an inbuilt a spam-killer that will make sure you don’t get any junk mail. You can access your emails either online through a web browser or you can configure it to connect to your POP server. All-in-all, cPanel does an amazing job with your electronic communication.
Detailed Statistics: knowing how a website is performing is integral to a website administrator. With cPanel, there is detailed information on the number of visitors the site has gotten and even the site’s rankings can be seen. With the information provided an administrator can see what pages are popular, which country most of the visitors come from, what operating system and browser they used, how many of them were return-visitors… the list goes on. It is a gold mine of information that can be used to improve a site’s SEO and SEM rankings.
Fantastico: this is an application that allows cPanel users to install various applications on their websites without any hassles. WordPress blogs and content management systems like Joomla can easily be installed, configured and be up and running within a matter of minutes.
We could go on, but we’re sure these points show you how using cPanel could make your website administration a breeze.
