It can be an overwhelming task for a new website owner to understand the technical details of a website. But, if you choose a reliable web hosting company, they will assist you to set-up your website.
That said, you can’t entirely rely on the company for technicalities. The initial set-up may be simple, but you will eventually need to figure out site maintenance, website speed monitoring, and website security.
For this reason, it’s essential to choose the best control panel for your hosting needs. A control panel lets you take care of all aspects of hosting. cPanel and Plesk – both are the most popular control panels. The versatility offered by both is unmatched.
Below we have provided a brief explanation of the difference between the two, which will help you pick the right platform for VPS hosting.
What is the difference between cPanel and Plesk?
The primary difference between cPanel and Plesk is; cPanel is Linux-based, while Plesk is designed for both Linux and Windows. To manage and control websites, cPanel is an ideal option. Whereas, for managing and controlling multiple servers, use Plesk. When it comes to costs, both are economical. Also, both provide enhanced website security along with complete website backup.
Contents
A. cPanel and Plesk General Overview
1. cPanel General Overview
cPanel is a Linux-based control panel that helps you with website management and simplifies your hosting server.
- As the control panel is based on the graphical user interface (GUI), it is easy to use and navigate.
- It helps you manage hosting accounts and domains, create email accounts, publish sites, and streamline your web files.
- It features a help section where everything is intuitive. It also has a huge community that’s always willing to help.
- The cPanel dashboard provides daily stats, MySQL, data tracking, and various SEO features.
- As the cPanel is designed specifically for Linux, it makes a great combination for servers that work with the system.
In short, cPanel lets you perform user-friendly actions instead of running long commands to modify changes on the site. Also, it is compatible with different web browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
2. Plesk General Overview
Plesk is a web hosting control panel that allows you to manage all your hosting needs. You can automate many activities with Plesk – create email accounts, manage domains, manage web files, and create user accounts.
- The simple Plesk configuration allows the site owner to manage hundreds of hosts on a single server.
- It features a minimalistic design with an intuitive interface. In Plesk, a sidebar acts as a control centre.
- Plesk offers account and server management as standard features for regular use.
- You can use the help section if you’re stuck with an issue related to the control panel.
- The control panel is designed for both – Windows and Linux – which makes it more flexible.
- The one-click installation makes it easy to install a CMS system.
- The integrated search options in the control panel allow customers to search for add-ons.
Besides the integration options, it offers complete protection and safeguards your server from spam. With the drag and drop feature, you can create websites with additional functions. Plesk is designed for new users with no technical experience.
B. Key Differences Between cPanel and Plesk
1. Ease of Use
- cPanel: With the cPanel, the focus is more on features. It has an intuitive interface for easy navigation. Each section in the control panel is neatly labelled. This makes finding the section you are searching for simple. In the cPanel, you can go to the email option and select the domain you wish to assign a new email to.
- Plesk: Plesk follows a slightly different panel control feature. It organises features based on the number of sites in the set-up. Besides the display, the configuration of each site is different. In the Plesk control panel, you have to select the domain and then assign a new email, so the control is on the domain and sites.
2. Security
- cPanel: It offers many website security features, and supports config server security and firewall with different email spam filters. The auto SSL feature let you automatically install Let’s Encrypt certificates. CPH hulk brute-force protection offers complete safety. The panel provides SSL access along with an IP blocker and hotlink protection. Besides this, it provides ModSecurity with two-factor authentication.
- Plesk: This control panel has almost similar security features as cPanel. It offers a customised firewall option that you can configure according to your needs. It offers an auto SSL feature for automatic installation and renewal of SSL certificates. Besides this, it comes with the Fail2ban tool to scan the log files and ban all IP addresses that may be malicious. In addition, it offers imunifyAV (antivirus and monitoring tool), checks blacklist status, and offers one-click malware clean-up. The control panel also comes with email spam filters.
3. Supported Database and Mobile Apps
- cPanel supports MySQL or MsSQL as a supported-database option. In mobile apps, cPanel does not support mobile apps natively, but there are third-party apps available for the purpose.
- Plesk supports PHPMyAdmin for MySQL. It also supports mobile apps for both Android and iOS.
4. Operating System and Migration Support
- cPanel supports different operating systems like Amazon Linux, Enterprise Linux, Centos, Redhat, Cloud Linux, and other Linux Distros. Furthermore, cPanel supports website migration through WHM.
- Plesk supports Windows server O8, Centos, Linux Distros, and Debian. It supports migration through native Plesk Migrator.
5. Backup Support
- cPanel: cPanel lets you schedule daily, weekly and monthly backups. It comes with three different backups – compressed, incremental, and uncompressed.
Compressed backups take up less space, but they are slow compared to other backups. Uncompressed backups take up more space, but they are a tad faster. Incremental backups are created, keeping uncompressed backup at the start, and it modifies changes as you make changes to your website.
- Plesk: It comes with two backups – complete and incremental. The complete backup creates a whole copy of your website. Whereas, the incremental backup takes a complete backup from the start. Similar to cPanel, Plesk also lets you schedule different backups.
6. Price Factor
You can buy both control panels manually and install them on your web server. Or you have an option of signing up with a web hosting company that provides both cPanel and Plesk. Read this HostGator reviewto know what control panel does it offer.
In most cases, Plesk is more cost-effective than cPanel. The price of cPanel starts from $15, and the cost of Plesk starts from $8. However, for external hosting, cPanel is economical. If it’s for a web server, then go for Plesk.
cPanel Vs Plesk - Which One Should You Choose?
Both Plesk and cPanel have their positives and negatives. cPanel is designed for Linux, and a majority of web servers run on Linux. But if you are going for Windows hosting, then Plesk is an obvious choice.
Regardless of your choice for VPS hosting, you must choose your hosting plan from a renowned hosting provider that offers many features and the cPanel you want. Use HostGator Coupon Code to purchase hosting at a discount.
Most VPS hosting plans come with pre-installed cPanel, so you don’t have to worry about the installation part. Both cPanel and Plesk also have devoted communities to help you with any issue.
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