5 Best CPanel Alternatives Free in 2022

Web Hosting / By / September 26, 2022 / , , , , , / 10 minutes of reading

Here are a few well-known CPanel alternatives free Web hosting control panels for installing on Linux operating systems like CentOS and Ubuntu to manage websites.

What is cPanel?

CPanel is an online Linux-based graphical interface (GUI) used as a control panel to simplify website and server management. CPanel allows you to publish websites, manage domains, organize web files, create email accounts, and more. It is one of the most popular control panels in the Market.

CPanel provides the most reliable and intuitive server and site management platform. With a rich feature set and customer-first support, cPanel’s automated and configurable platform enables customers to focus on growing their businesses.

If you are looking for some free and open-source web hosting software to manage the Linux hosting service then here in this article, we have comprised the list of top & best ones.

5 Best CPanel Alternatives free in 2022

We have gathered all available open-source & free web panels from the most popular to at least one. You can consider them the best available open-source alternative to paid WHM/Cpanel or Plex.

1. ISPConfig

ispconfig CPanel alternatives

ISPConfig was created back in 2005 by the German company projektfarm GmbH. It’s come a long way since then and is super powerful. To the point where it might be a bit intimidating for noobs. 

The ISPConfig is the popular open-source web control panel that can perform multiple tasks to manage your hosting server. It is available in 22 languages with a web interface to manage multiple servers. Just like the WHM/Cpanel, it can also be installed on the most secure servers such as Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Debian, OpenSuSE based on physical servers and virtual machines. It offers different access level environments Admin, Reseller, and Client Cpanel. It is distributed under the BSD license.

The ISPconfig open-source web hosting control panel written in PHP language supports both Apache and Nginx web servers installed on your managed VPS servers. For the database, MySQL is there.

Single and Multiserver Management capabilities are both there which helps to manage one or more servers from a single control panel. The Add-ons available for the ISPconfig are ISPConfig 3 Billing Module, ISPProtect Malware Scanner, and ISPConfig 3 Migration Toolkit. Extensions/Plugins: ISPConfig 3 mail user interface for Roundcube & SquirrelMail; a module for Exchange servers and  hosted VPS management.

Download ISPconfig: Link and online demo

Features

  • IPv4 and IPv6 support
  • Name-based and IP-based virtual hosts
  • SSL websites and SNI support allow more than one SSL vhost per IP address
  • CGI, PHP (available PHP modes for Apache: mod_php, FCGI, CGI, HHVM, and SuPHP; for Nginx: FCGI (PHP-FPM) and HHVM)
  • Individual PHP settings per website
  • Ruby and Python (Apache only)
  • Rewrites/redirects
  • Custom Apache/Nginx directives
  • Subdomains and Alias domains
  • Password-protected folders (basic HTTP authentication)
  • WebDAV (Apache only), FTP users
  • Shell users (jailed and non-jailed), SFTP, SCP; password- and key-based logins
  • Email: SMTP, POP3, IMAP, POP3S, IMAPS, Email accounts, Email aliases, Spamfilter, Postgry greylisting, DKIM Mail signing
  • Virus filter and Firewall
  • Whitelists and Blacklists
  • Virtualization (through OpenVZ)
  • Quota/Traffic Limits
  • XMPP Chat Server
  • DNS wizard for creating zones easily
  • HTTP: Apache2 and Nginx
  • Master and slave DNS servers
  • Webalizer & AWStats statistics
  • Traffic limits and statistics

Pros

  • Works with a wide range of Linux server configurations
  • Control multiple servers from one panel
  • Competitive range of control features
  • Low server resource needs：ISPConfig is very lenient on server resources, and unneeded service can be disabled to conserve resources (email, DNS, FTP, etc), allowing it to run on very low-RAM servers.
  • Virtualization support：ISPConfig is one of the only open-source control panels that support virtualization technology natively. It allows you to create OpenVZ containers (virtual servers) and set up a virtualized environment. 

Cons

  • Potentially too complex for new users
  • Manual installation required (no one-click)
  • No tech support：Finding technical help can be difficult. Although you can buy an official user manual, no other official means of help is available. You’re forced to ask (or beg) for help in the forum, and the answers may or may not ever come. 
  • Difficult to setup: Getting ISPConfig installed and configured on your server can be a difficult task. It does not come with a one-click auto-installer and is semi-manual. (semi-automatic). Although guides are available, most are user-submitted and may be outdated or incomplete.

2. CyberPanel

cyberpanel CPanel alternatives

CyberPanel is a interesting and easy to set up open-source control panel. It uses LiteSpeed Web Server instead of the more popular Apache or Nginx web servers. A lot of people like CyberPanel because LiteSpeed Web Server offers excellent performance. You install it on your server – e.g. a VPS that you’ve purchased. Basically, it takes most of the technical complexity out of creating, configuring, and managing your own hosting server.

Features

In terms of features, CyberPanel offers everything that you’d expect from a server control panel including the following:

  • Automatic software installer for WordPress, Drupal, and some other software.
  • ModSecurity to protect your server/sites.
  • One-click Let’s Encrypt installer for SSL certificates, along with automatic renewals.
  • FTP server management.
  • Database management, including phpMyAdmin.
  • DNS management, including a Cloudflare integration.
  • Email support, including webmail powered by Rainloop.
  • Automatic backups, including real-time incremental backups.
  • Staging/clone site functionality for WordPress.
  • Git deployment to your CyberPanel sites.
  • Containerization, including support for Docker containers.

Pros

  • It uses LiteSpeed Web Server, which is rare in a server control panel. Most other panels are only for Apache or Nginx and/or don’t offer native LiteSpeed support.
  • It’s free and open source. If you’re ok with OpenLiteSpeed you get unlimited usage at no cost.
  • It gives you all of the core features that you need to manage sites/servers, along with useful features such as WordPress staging sites and site cloning.

Cons

  • The interface/user experience is not as nice as some other popular tools, especially SaaS server control panels.
  • It can have issues with bugs, especially around new releases. It’s generally a good idea to wait before applying updates.

3. Control Web Panel

control web panel

The Control Web Panel (CWP) is a powerful, community-driven web control panel designed to manage the dedicated servers and VPS. The Linux operating systems it supports are CentOS/RHEL 6. x and CloudLinux distribution. It has different licensing options:

  • A free version.
  • A Pro version — with or without support.
  • A special Pro version for partners.

The installation of the CentOS is very easy with help of a few clicks but make sure you opt for it only for your fresh server. It also comes with the Softaculous Auto app Installer that can install hundreds of different applications on the server with just one click. The inbuilt firewall of the CentOS web which is the CSF firewall is also one of the best in class; it can lock out the whole filesystem to increase the security level. Furthermore, the Varnish cache server is there too.

Download CWP: Link and online demo

Features

  • Apache Web Server
  • Nginx Reverse Proxy
  • Varnish Cache server
  • MySQL/MariaDB + phpMyAdmin
  • Postfix + Dovecot + RoundCube webmail (Antivirus, Spamassassin optional), SPF & DKIM Integration, Mail Routing, and more.
  • Backups
  • AutoFixer for server configuration
  • Softaculous
  • CSF Firewall
  • User Monitoring
  • CloudLinux + CageFS management
  •  DNS Management: FreeDNS, DNS zone template editor, DNS Zone Manager, and more…
  • Live Server Monitoring
  • CSF Firewall, SSL generator, SSL Certificate Manager, AutoSSL  DoS protection, SFTP Security, and more.
  • Auto-update,  Backup manager,  File Manager, cPanel Account Migration

Pros

  • Access to the freedom of a private server through the widely supported easily learned CentOS environment
  • A fine level of control over the core system
  • Easy to learn

Cons

  • Only available for the limited number of servers running CentOS
  • Less friendly interface
  • No multi-server support

4. Virtualmin

Virtualmin CPanel alternatives

Virtualmin is an open source website and domain hosting control panel, based on Webmin. There are two versions of this control panel:

  • Virtualmin GPL, a free, open-source version.
  • Virtualmin Professional, a premium version available for a monthly or annual fee.

Virtualmin is one of the trustable web hosting control panels because of the flexibility and better productive environment provided by it. The Virtualmin is written in Perl language and available in both open source and professional versions. Of course, the professional version has extra features to control the server than the open-source GPL version. It also supports the two-way authentication system and the user can use the Google Authenticator app.

Virtualmin is developed for Linux and BSD systems and includes features such as:

Features

  • Domain management: flexible domain accounts, managing mail domain, DNS, databases, web applications, and more.
  • Email: Manage mailboxes, forwarders, autoresponders, alias, spam and antivirus scanning, RoundCube, and Squirrelmail.
  • User and Reseller Accounts and ACLs
  • Access Control List is configurable using Account Plans and Server Templates.
  • Security: Two-factor authentication, certificate logins, brute force protection, and many other security features.
  • Disk Quota, File system Backup, Log File retention, MIME Type program, PAM Authentication, Schedule commands & Cron jobs, Users, and Groups.
  • Bandwidth Monitoring
  • Script Installer, account plans, Plugins
  • Alerts, Graphs, and Logs
  • Backups And Cloud Integration: Amazon S3 bucket, Backup Encryption keys, Backup logs, Backup virtual servers, Cloud Storage providers, Restore backups, Running backups, Schedule backups
  • Databases: Adding, removing, exporting, and importing database dumps, PHPMyAdmin and PHPPgAdmin Install Scripts, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and a lot more.
  • Install Scripts: It provides 100 web applications such as CMS, CRM, forums, commerce, issue tracking, community, webmail, database management, mailing list management, and more.

Pros

  • Cost-Effective: The “GPL” version is available free of cost, and the “Professional” version (which comes with support) is priced competitively with the other payware panels.
  • Linux knowledge not required: Unlike most of the other GUIs, which still require command-line for some functions, Virtualmin contains almost everything you need, so you rarely need to SSH into the server.
  • Android and iOS support: Unlike most of the panels, Virtualmin is mobile-ready. You just need a smartphone with internet access to manage your server.
  • Easy Setup: Virtualmin piggybacks on Webmin, which is itself simple to install. Virtualmin installs as a Webmin module, and automatically configures itself like cPanel.
  • Built-in website builder: While most panels require third-party (often payware) plugins for site building, Virtualmin has developed their own built-in tool. It’s comprehensive, and can create almost any type of site. 

Cons

  • UI isn’t user friendly: Compared to its rivals, Virtualmin has a convoluted and dated user interface. It can be difficult to find what you’re looking for.
  • Steep learning curve: Virtualmin is indeed powerful, and lets you avoid SSH. But it doesn’t always use standard terminology.
  • Limited support: Virtualmin GPL users are only able to use the community support. And sadly, it’s very limited, as it has a small user base compared to the commercial panels. 

5. Vesta CP

vestacp CPanel alternatives

VestaCP is another open-source web control panel with a one-touch app installer is called Softaculous. Because of it, the user can install more than 439 apps with one click such as WordPress, Joomla, and more. It comes with firewall iPTables or  fail2ban. For the webserver, it supports NGINX, Apache, PHP-fpm, and PHP.  It also comes with monitoring tools such as Monit, Webalizer, AWStats, and RRDtool.

You can install it on Debian, Ubuntu, and Centos/RHEL. The user interface of the VestaCP is a little bit different than traditional but simple, clean, and intuitive. The user surf through the interface using the Keyboard shortcuts that increase the speed of accessing the server. The inbuilt firewall which I mentioned earlier can ban the IP address those are trying to access the server with too many bad login attempts.

Download vestcp: Link and online demo

Features

  • Supports 26 languages and regions around the world.
  • Monitors server including server stats, logs, and analytics, etc.
  • Written in  PHP/JavaScript
  • Softculous
  • CLI interface support
  • Backup and Cron jobs supported
  • Mail solution it provides: SpamAssasin (antispam solution), ClamAV (antivirus engine), Dovecot (IMAP/POP3 server), Exim + RoundCube (mail server).
  • DNS management
  • Vesta core is written in bash
  • Database it supports MySQL + phpMyAdmin and PostgreSQL + phpPgAdmin
  • Web File Manager: To browse, copy, edit, view, and retrieve all of your web domain files
  • FTP manager: VsFTPD, ProFTPD

Pros

  • Great-looking user interface and analytics
  • Simple auto-installer
  • Works with CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu

Cons

  • Abandoned by developer
  • Customer support is fee-based
  • Some security vulnerabilities

Conclusion

Although cPanel is considered as the best web control panel, it isn’t free. To help you pick a free control panel, I have listed some of the best free and open source web hosting control panels.

If you’re a technical neophyte, or you’ve never run a server before, try VestaCP. More advanced users should choose based on their server configuration. If you’re running CentOS, get Control Web Panel. Ubuntu and Debian users will like VirtualMin best. If you’re a reseller or ISP looking to manage multiple servers from the same interface, get ISPConfig. Pick up one of the open source control panels and host your site on DatabaseMart VPS effortlessly.

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