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What is cPanel & WHM? Features, differences and beginner FAQs - DEV - 10-08-2026
What is cPanel & WHM?
cPanel & WHM is a commercial web hosting control panel for Linux servers. It gives website owners and hosting administrators separate interfaces for their work.
cPanel vs WHM: the key difference
- cPanel is the website owner's dashboard: manage a hosting account's websites, files, databases and email.
- WHM (WebHost Manager) is the administrator/reseller interface: create hosting accounts and manage hosting packages. Server administrators also use it for server-wide configuration.
Main features
- Websites and domains: domain management, redirects and file management.
- Email: mailboxes, webmail, forwarders and related account tools.
- Databases: database management and phpMyAdmin.
- PHP: MultiPHP tools, where enabled by your host.
- Backups: account backup tools; server backup policies are managed separately.
- Applications: WP Toolkit and other integrations, depending on the hosting package.
Who is it for?
Website owners using shared hosting, resellers managing customer accounts, and administrators running a hosting business. For a single experimental website, compare the licence cost with the VPS cost before choosing it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is cPanel free?
No. cPanel & WHM requires a licence. A hosting provider may include access in its package. For your own VPS, check the appropriate Cloud licence and current terms rather than assuming the VPS price includes it.
Can I install it on Windows?
It is a Linux hosting platform. Use the current official installation requirements to choose a supported operating system and version.
Is a cheap 2 GB VPS enough?
Do not buy based on RAM alone. Check the requirements for your selected OS, storage, networking and planned workload. An installation minimum is not a comfortable production sizing recommendation.
Does the panel make my server fully managed?
No. Updates, access control, monitoring, mail deliverability and tested recovery still need an owner. Keep an off-server backup and test restoring it.
Can I install it beside aaPanel or another hosting panel?
Use a separate clean server for testing. Combining hosting panels can create conflicting web, mail and database configurations. Back up before reinstalling a VPS.
Before your first setup
Confirm the licence, supported OS and provider networking requirements. Start with a test domain, verify DNS and HTTPS, and test a backup before moving important sites. Do not change production DNS until the destination works.
Need help? Start a thread here with your OS, cPanel/WHM version, exact error and relevant redacted logs. Never post passwords, API keys or private backup links.
Official sources: cPanel vs WHM; cPanel tools documentation; Licensing guide; Ubuntu installation requirements.
Introduction checked against official documentation on 8 October 2026. Features and licence terms can change.