A control panel helps to manage websites easily. There are many panel options in Linux hosting.

But, do we have good control panel options in Windows hosting ?

Fortunately, there comes WebsitePanel Hosting that works well on the Windows platform.

At Bobcares, we often receive requests regarding choice of control panels as part of our Infrastructure Management Services.

Today, we’ll have a closer look at WebsitePanel Hosting and how our Dedicated Engineers help customers to take best out of it.

Quick view on WebsitePanel

Firstly, let’s have a quick look on the WebsitePanel as such.

Unlike Linux hosting, Windows hosting involves complex steps to configure a domain. For example, when setting up a website, we also need to modify the application pool settings. This may not be easier for a non technical person.

That’s where a control panel helps. It can easily take care of all such complex tasks. Here, the user just has to do few clicks from the panel.

WebsitePanel, earlier known as DotNetPanel allows you to fully control your application pools, websites, email accounts and many more.

Why choose WebsitePanel?

The choice of a control panel on your Windows servers depends on many factors. It includes the type of hosting, number of websites, data size, etc.

From our experience in managing Windows servers, our Support Engineers see many customers using WebsitePanel. Now, let’s see the top reasons that make them stick to the product.

[Need advice on choosing perfect Windows Control panel? Our experts can help you.]

1. Open Source

Firstly, WebsitePanel comes as open source product. It allows you to develop custom features for your business, use features created by others, etc. Also, there is always a chance to get help from WebsitePanel community.

On the whole, customization option makes it a popular Windows control panel.

2. Features in panel

Yet another reason for WebsitePanel’s popularity is its feature rich control panel. A user can do almost all tasks from the panel without any hassle. He do not have to bother about the operations that happen at the server level.

It provides an admin interface to view and manage all the domains on the Windows server. Similarly, it offers a simple interface for each website user too. For example, the user panel comes with options as shown below.

Fortunately, tasks like database creation, backup, etc. takes only few minutes.

WebsitePanel supports multi-server architecture and can support many software and platforms.  Additionally, it can integrate well with apps like Microsoft Web App Gallery, Web Platform Installer (WPI), etc.

3. Cost

Another deciding factor while choosing a control panel is its cost. Luckily, WebsitePanel comes Free.

It involves zero licensing fee. And, that makes it a cost-effective control panel solution. That’s why, our Support Engineers often recommend WebsitePanel to service providers who look for free Windows control panels.

Challenges in WebsitePanel and workaround

Till now, we saw the merits of WebsitePanel.

However, working with WebsitePanel has its own challenges too. Let’s take a look at them and how our Dedicated Engineers work to overcome them.

1. Scope of improvement

The scope of improvements will always be a concern for any control panel user. It really matters on how they evolve each day. This can be a challenge in the case of WebsitePanel.

The original WebsitePanel is not going to get any further updates. As a result, if there appears a bug in your WebsitePanel, the fix becomes a personal responsibility.

Luckily, due to wide community support, patches are still available for known issues. And, our Dedicated Engineers proactively apply these patches in WebsitePanel hosting servers.

Again, there are options to go ahead with improved versions of WebsitePanel like MSPControl or SolidCP.

MSPControl is not in open source code and do not allow modifications. But, it provides automatic services that works even in Windows cloud servers.

Fortunately, SolidCP still comes as open source and will be helpful for customers who like to customize.

2. Security features

Likewise, another challenge in WebsitePanel hosting can be the lack of top security features. Our Dedicated Engineers often see that it has limitations in anti spam or antivirus solutions.

Its a known fact that Plesk for Windows comes with additional security features. This can be helpful for customers in higher need for security.

However, for customers using WebsitePanel, we install additional security features for blocking spam mails and virus contents.

[Looking for a control panel for Windows hosting? Our experts can help you choose the best.]

Conclusion

In short, WebsitePanel hosting is a great option for customers looking for free Windows control panel. Today, we discussed on the reasons that makes it popular. We also saw how our Support Engineers overcome the challenges in using it.