cPanel is a popular Linux control panel used by web hosting companies to offer low cost Linux hosting services such as shared web hosting, although it is also available with most Linux VPS server and Linux dedicated server packages. As well as making it easier for hosting customers to manage their own shared web hosting accounts, cPanel also makes it easier for system administrators to manage the servers that they are responsible for. cPanel is a standard feature of most Linux shared hosting packages and so any cheap web hosting provider you find should be able to provide you with cPanel hosting. If you prefer to use a Linux VPS server or Linux dedicated server then you may find that you have to pay extra for a cPanel license. It is recommended that you have a medium to high specification server if you wish to run cPanel because the control panel and its subsidiary applications will require a decent amount of resources to be able to run effectively; the more websites that you are going to be hosting on your cPanel server, the more server resources you are going to need to help guarantee a certain level of stability to those that you are hosting for.
Low Cost Web hosting
cPanel is the ideal control panel to use for low cost web hosting services because it is fairly low cost meaning that it is easy to offer low cost web hosting services whilst maintaining a profitable hosting service. Cheap web hosting services are usually where most users begin when using web hosting for the first time and Linux shared hosting packages are generally very easy to manage and understand when using a cPanel hosting package. You shouldn’t expect too much in the way of server resources when using a low cost web hosting package because web hosting companies aren’t going to be too generous – the more you’re paying for your web hosting package, the greater the resource assignments that you can expect to receive for your money. A low cost cPanel hosting package may not offer you much in terms of reliability either, but at the end of the day you are unlikely to be using a low cost hosting package for the hosting of a website that either provides you with income or can be classed as mission critical to the running of your business.
PHP and MySQL Web Hosting
Linux cPanel hosting services are incredibly popular for the hosting of PHP and MySQL based websites because of the features that cPanel is able to offer that are orientated towards both as well as the support for both that Linux distributions are able to provide as standard. Linux is part of the standard ‘LAMP’ (Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP) configuration that is seen by most web developers as being the most efficient and easy to use development combination available when creating large and scalable websites; this means that it is the best operating system to use when looking to host a website that has been created using MySQL and PHP. cPanel can offer you web-based tools that will allow you to create and modify MySQL databases as you need; you will also be able to use PHPMyAdmin to manage the contents of your MySQL databases as you wish. In terms of PHP, Linux will allow you to use .htaccess files to control how you interact with your PHP scripts; you can also use the cPanel file manager to set the file and folder permissions that you need in order for your PHP web scripts to function properly.
cPanel Shared Hosting and Reseller Hosting
If you are looking for a good starting point with web hosting then a cPanel shared hosting package can provide you with the resources and features required to allow you to make the most of what the Linux platform has to offer. cPanel is the frontend that you can expect to be using if you have chosen to use a cPanel shared hosting service, whilst if you feel that a Linux reseller hosting package may be more beneficial to you then yoy will be provided with access to the WHM panel which is also part of the cPanel application suite. Using cPanel in a shared hosting medium will provided you with added security benefits which are important because you can’t always count on the security of other websites that are hosted on the same shared hosting server as yours; it is up to you to make sure that your own hosting account is secure by using complex passwords and coding your website to a high standard.
cPanel Server Hosting
If you have the money to invest in a server hosting service, then you may find that a cPanel VPS server or cPanel dedicated server can provide you with more resources for your money as well as a dedicated hosting environment. Any good web hosting company should be able to offer cPanel has an optional extra for their Linux VPS server and Linux dedicated server customers as obtaining licenses for a low cost is fairly easy. cPanel will provide you with a web interface through which you can manage your server more effectively, this being WHM (Web Host Manager); cPanel can be used as a management interface for client accounts. A cPanel server hosting service will allow you to offer your own Linux shared hosting packages to your own clients if you are looking into starting your own web hosting business.
In conclusion, cPanel is a highly effective web hosting control panel that can benefit the users of both shared web hosting services and dedicated web hosting services. Although cPanel is only available for Linux servers, it will improve your web hosting experience in both situations by providing you with an intuitive interface for shared web hosting and an easy to use server and reseller management interface in the form of WHM (Web Host Manager). Although you’ll have to pay for a cPanel license when using a dedicated hosting service, you will find that it is money well spent because it will make it easier for you to manage your server.