cPanel and Plesk are frequently compared because they are two of the most popular web hosting control panels on the market. Because both of them are trendy options, you may be assessing the advantages and disadvantages of each control panel. If this is the case, continue reading as we explain the most significant distinctions between them.
When it comes to determining which control panel is the finest, it boils down to personal preference, as it does with most things. You may argue that cPanel is a sound control panel, and this is because it has been in existence for a little longer than Plesk.
Even though both control panels provide many of the same functionality for server administration, there are some significant variations between them.
What is Cpanel?
A web hosting control panel built on the UNIX operating system uses automation and a graphical user interface to simplify web hosting. You can paint images by using cPanel, whether you are using it for a virtual private server or dedicated server.
Furthermore, CPanel is a simple control panel for your cloud region and packages on your net host server, a desktop application. cPanel’s intuitive point-and-and-click GUI streamlines many typical website administration tasks, including database, website report, and email account management.
As part of the cPanel server’s management, customers can examine their website’s stats and monitor their domain name records. You can access all of cPanel’s features through a well-known web browser.
If you utilize cPanel, you’ll see who is visiting your website and what pages they are looking at. You’ll even be able to see which discs are being used. You can map external e-mail addresses to cPanel’s forward and aliases functionalities.
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What is Plesk?
As an internet interface, Plesk provides a user with access to all of their assets and hosting options in one place. As the CPanel server’s control panel, Plesk allows IT, professionals, to manage the network, DNS, mail, and other resources through a powerful yet user-friendly GUI (GUI).
Plesk is a website hosting control panel that serves as a link between system providers and their customers. It is a graphical web-based hosting administration panel that makes it easier for you to construct and administer websites on your VPS servers.
Plesk streamlines internet maintenance procedures to meet the demands of today’s web and online program administrators. In addition to a server-to-site security core and a term Press Toolkit, Plesk cloud administration provides a user-friendly management desk, server-level automation, support facilities, and total safety.
Similarities Between Cpanel and Plesk
- Renewing and registering domain names; modifying DNS records; resolving DNS queries; and managing subdomains.
- Setting up new email accounts, email forwarders, and email spam filters is part of email system management.
- User account administration, password management, and file system quotas are all included in FTP management.
- Web-based access to a file system
- Keys and passwords for SSH users
- management of a database
- Assistive administration:
- Access to a third-party backup application or an internal backup utility
- Reporting on log files and gaining access to them
- There are numerous plugin systems available, such as WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, ZenCart, and many others, for setting and installing extra services and applications.
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Key Differences
| Cpanel | Plesk |
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Comparison Chart Between Cpanel and Plesk
| cPanel | Plesk | |
Software & Extensions |
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| Operating Systems | CentOS, CloudLinux, or RHEL 7, or Amazon Linux | Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS, RHEL, Cloud Linux, Amazon Linux, Virtuozzo Linux, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP |
| Web Servers | Apache | NGINX & Apache |
| Auto Installers | Fantastico, SiteApps, Softaculous, Installicious | Web Applications (built-in), WordPress Toolkit, Joomla Toolkit, Softaculous |
Security Features |
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| Auto SSL | Let’s Encrypt SSL | Let’s Encrypt SSL, Symantec |
| Others | SSH access, IP blocker, hotlink protection, leech protection, ModSecurity, two-factor authentication. | SSH access, Web Application Firewall, WordPress / Joomla auto security check, Google Authenticator, ImunifyAV (malware monitoring), Fail2Ban (IP blocking) |
Statistics Features |
||
| Services | Analog, Awstats, Webalizer | Webalizer, Plesk Traffic Manager, AWStats |
| Other Features | Custom Reports, Graphical Analysis, logs, log rotation | Real-Time Bandwidth, Custom Reports, Graphical User Breakdowns |
| DNS Features | ||
| Services | BIND | BIND |
| Other Features | Clustering, Hands-off automatic configuration | Remote DNS, Load Balancing Support, Master/Slave Management, Automated File Matching, DNS Recursion, SOA Settings |
Database Support/Features |
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| Services | MySQL, PostgreSQL | MySQL, MSSQL, PostgreSQL |
| Admin Panels | phpMyAdmin, phpPgAdmin | phpMyAdmin, phpPgMyAdmin, Secure Setup, Multi-user/Multi-DB |
| Mail Features | ||
| Services | Exim, Courier-IMAP, Courier-POP | Qmail |
| Mail List | Mailman | Mailman Aliasing, Auto- responses, Groups, User Access |
| Webmail | Horde, Squirrelmail | Horde IMP |
| Anti-Spam | SpamAssassin, BoxTrapper, Spam Box | SpamAssassin |
| Anti-Virus | ClamAV | DrWeb, Kaspersky |
Account Types/Levels |
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| Admin Panel | cPanel for website management and WHM for server administration. | Same Logins for end-users and server administration |
| Reseller Login | Yes, with WHM 11 | Yes |
| Domain Owner Login | Yes | Yes |
| Mail User Login | Yes | Yes |
Most Significant Differences between cPanel and Plesk
User interface
Even though both are easy to browse, their user interfaces are vastly different. A standard comparison is made between Plesk and the popular content management WordPress because the functionality is conveniently organized into categories.
cPanel is a little busier, with all of its features available on a single page and divided into categories practically in list form. When it comes to resellers, the dashboard can be customized, which means that you can emphasize particular elements to make it simpler for users to locate what they are searching for.
It is a matter of personal taste as to which of the two is preferable in this situation.
Operating System Compatibility
The most significant distinction between cPanel and Plesk is that Plesk is meant to work with Linux and Windows operating systems.
In contrast, cPanel is built to work with only a Linux operating system. Before examining each control panel’s capabilities in greater detail, you must determine which version of windows you will be using on your server before proceeding.
Security
You must be sure that it is secure no matter which controls panel you use. Plesk and cPanel are both completely secure. However, they approach the issue is somewhat different ways and provide slightly different security features.
While cPanel provides automatic SSL certificate installation and brute force protection, Plesk delivers fail2ban intrusion prevention and one-click SSL security, among a slew of other security features.
Overall, both control panels provide users with a simple, straightforward interface and a comprehensive set of capabilities for website and server administration. As for whose is the finest, it is entirely a matter of personal preference.
Conclusion
When it comes to web hosting control panels, both cPanel and Plesk are excellent options to consider. Both panels have established themselves as safe, dependable, and cost-effective solutions in the marketplace. When comparing Plesk vs cPanel, we believe that cPanel is more widely used.
As a result, it may be easier to find support workers and developers familiar with the panel. On the other hand, Plesk outperforms cPanel in terms of operating system compatibility. Plesk is compatible with a wide range of Linux operating systems, but cPanel is only compatible with the CentOS operating system.