What is cPanel?
cPanel is at the same time a software, a company name. As software, it is a control panel that simplifies the management of a website. In its raw state, running a web server requires extensive technical knowledge. However, when using cPanel login, you don’t need extensive technical knowledge. It offers a friendly and intuitive web interface through which the user can perform more or less complex tasks.
cPanel is part of the cPanel / WHM software suite. The set automates the tasks of managing the web server. These include getting a website online, creating email addresses, getting a back up and restoring and more. WHM (WebHost Manager) is for the administrator and cPanel for the end user.
What is the usage of cPanel software?
In order to post a website, it is necessary to first acquire a hosting space where the site will be stored and accessible to the Internet users. As part of shared hosting, the web host takes care of the administration and grants each user an account. For a long time, users of a server were forced to call on the server administrator to carry out tasks such as putting the site online, creating subdomains. In fact, they do not always have sufficient technical knowledge to administer a web server. Moreover, users of the same server could not have administrator rights, otherwise other users would be affected.
One can easily imagine the workload that the administrator had to bear and the loss of time that this working model caused. Gradually, the use of the Internet became popular, leading to an increase in the number of websites. It became necessary to opt for a more effective and efficient solution. Control panels like cPanel were born to lighten the administrator’s workload and empower end users. cPanel has the advantage of:
- The extreme popularity. Its documentation is abundant and accessible if the need for help arises.
- Cpanel is easily maintained and updated
- Intuitive and easy to use, despite its advanced features.
- With installer software like Softaculous, extending cPanel is a snap.
- In addition to the tasks of managing a website, it also includes additional features. Including the creation of email addresses, DNS management and more.
- It contains several third-party software to add value to the services.
Cpanel alternatives
Other control panels exists as alternatives of Cpanel login. Below is a non-exhaustive list.
- Plesk: more recent than cPanel but comes second in popularity. It supports Windows and Unix operating systems. However, it is not suitable for shared hosting plans.
- Interworx. Ideal for a cluster, but does not support multiple technologies like NodeJS and is not very scalable.
- Proprietary Control Panels: Many web hosts offer their own panels to their customers.