Your account type comes with an anhanced web browser based control panel called cPanel.cPanel is a fully-featured web-based control panel that allows you to manage your domain through a web interface. This transfers much of the control and responsibility of managing your web site directly to you. You have the ability to manage all aspects of email, files, backup, FTP, CGI scripts, and web site statistics.
Important: Please note that in the tutorials that follow, screen shots may be slightly different than your actual control panel. Colors, icons and text may be different based on the version of your cPanel, however, what the functions do are identical. Also, some features described may not be available based on your account type. Contact our staff if you have any questions.
Logging On: (screen shots)
Enter the address of your cPanel in your web browser. The address needs to be in the form of http://www.yourdomain.com:2082
so if your domain is googles.net you would use http://www.googles.net:2082
The interface will ask you for your master username and password.You should now be delivered into the cPanel interface. It is divided into several subsections called Mail, Ftp, Server, Scripts Library, Statistics and Services which a vast number of functions below each. We will go through just some of the major functions below.
Control panel feature instructions:
Mailing Lists, Mailman:
- Managing Files
- Managing Email
- Accessing web mail
- Adding email accounts
- Removing email accounts
- Changing your default email address
- Creating email autoresponses
- Filtering your email
- Forwarders, forwarding
- Mailing Lists
- Password changes
- Spam Assassin, spam controls
- MX records
- Configuring your email retrieval program
- Password Control
- Webpage Functions
- Apache handlers
- Cron jobs (cron tabs)
- Adding a cron job in standard mode
- Adding a cron job in advanced mode
- Deleting a cron job in standard mode
- Deleting a cron job in advanced mode
- Custom Error Pages
- Mime Types
- Frontpage, into
- Installing frontpage extensions
- Cleaning up old frontpage extensions
- Reinstalling frontpage extensions
- Uninstalling frontpage extensions
- Ftp, FTP login
- Adding FTP accounts
- Removing FTP accounts
- Controlling FTP sessions
- Anonymous FTP access
- Setting your anonymous FTP message
- Subdomain control
- MySQL Database Functions
- MySQL, intro
- Adding MySQL access hosts
- Creating a MySQL database
- Creating a MySQL user
- Grant a user's permissions to a MySQL database
- phpMyAdmin
- Removing a MySQL database
- Removing a MySQL user
- Shopping Cart Control
- Spam control
- Blocking spam | Filtering spam
- Hotlink protection
- Spam assassin
- Spam limiting techniques
- Statistics and Logs
Your server contains powerful mailing list software that runs on the "mailman" set of protocols. Mailman allows you to set up a mailing list with a large number of configurable options, such as who is on the list, where mailing lists messages are sent, and whether you include welcoming messages to new subscribers. You can provide your users with (1) an open mailing list in which users are able to email everyone on the list interactively (2) a closed list, in which you as the administrator have to approve posts, (3) or as a newsletter type system in which you can send out email to your users in bulk but users can't reply. Be advised that all email and email traffic does count toward your account quotas.
Please note that we do maintain a zero tolerance policy toward spam so if you are using mailing lists they must be carefully monitored and double opt-in (users must confirm that they want to be on the list). All list email must include specific instructions on how to get off of the list. Mailing lists may not be used for blind bulk mailing. Internet user complaints may result in account termination. Thus, please use lists wisely. We thank you in advance.
Mailman has its own administration panel (which is seperate from cPanel) for user control and its options. As such, its documentation is built into the mailman interface itself. Please refer there for further information. The instructions below deal only with how to initially set up, modify, and delete a Mailman mailing list from your cPanel.
Once created, you can access the Mailing List Manager (Xcommand) by going to (yourdomainname.com/menu). This allows you to:
Show a List of Subscribers
Show a List Log
Wipe a List Log
Search la ist of subscribers for a near match
Directly a subscribe/unsubscribe a userYou can get to the Mailing List Manager by selecting the list from under 'Edit List' in the Mail Manager, then selecting 'Mailing List Manager'. You will need to know the Maintainer email and password to administer the list. The results of the commands will be sent to the list maintainer's email address. The Mailman homepage is at the following address for more information: http://www.gnu.org/software/mailman/mailman.html
Troubleshooting:
Mailing list public name will not change even though I updated it: This is a known bug in mailman. Some settings are more concrete than others even though there appears to be an option to change them. To change a lists name you have to fully delete and then recreate the list, so make sure to choose list names wisely.
Spam Assasin is an enhanced software package built into your account for spam control. It uses a database of known variables and spam offenders to block out certain spam emails from your boxes. Please note that this system is very powerful and should only be used as a last resort to spam control. For instance, if you are operating a business you may not want this option enabled because every now and then the spam assassin may discard a client or vendor thinking they are spam (because they match certain criteria). Thus, it is best to use standard spam techniques and tools such as address blocking and filtering before moving onto more powerful software.
Enabling | Disabling
How it works: Basically, it tags all items it thinks are spams with special markers and works up a general score on how likely a message is to be a spam. It tires to be as accurate as possible but it is not always right. It is up to the user to see if these tags are correct or not.
Filtering with Email programs: Eudora and Outlook can easily be configured to work hand in hand with this system, pushing detected spams to a temp folder or deleting them entirely. For a tutorial on how to set this up visit this link. For Outlook try this link.
Enabling the spam box: You can also set Spam Assassin to send all flagged emails it think are spams to a seperate email folder. This technique seperates your mail automatically on the server-side, allowing you quicker access to your email. If you activate this feature several spam folders will automatically be created in your account. These spam folders may only be access via an IMAP email reader (or you may use the built in HORDE email reader which is including in your control panel system. If you use HORDE, first logon to the box in question using HORDE. Once you are logged on you will see a list of folders in the upper right corner of the screen in the form of a pull down menu. Using this menu you can access and view your spam. Note well: if you enable this option you need to check and delete your spam folder every now and then. Allowing it to build up will eventually cripple your email account.
Spam Assassin labels good mail as spam: S.A. uses a set of rules to determine spams. It is not always entirely accurate. For instance, if the sender includes a lot of links, a lot of HTML it may report it as a possible spam. Also, if the subject line is all capital letters or oddly formed, that usually results in a possible spam tag as well. For frequent sender syou know to be good, try adding them to the white_list which is available in the Spam Assassin settings panel.
Flagging specific domains ass good or bad: If you want to tell spam assassin to either not check emails coming in from a specific address or domain (or do the opposite, always delete emails from a specific address or domain), first activate spam assassin on your system. Then after its activated return to the spam assassin interface and select ADVANED OPTIONS. You should see whitelist and blacklist fields. Here you can specify addresses that you always consider good or bad. Wildcards also work. For instance *@bunny.com would indicate all addressed from the domain bunny.com. An exmple: it is usually a good idea to whitelist all mail from *@webcs.com because you do not want to loose updates from our staff.
MX (mail exchange) records are special server settings that control which internet service provider has control of routing your email. Of course by default we control your email flow (including email box delivery, alias manipulation, forwarding, mailing lists, ets). If you want to route your email to another service provider or service than you may alter your MC records, however, be strongly advised that once you alter your MX record none of your email functions here will work. They will be directed to a third party. This means that if you have boxes, fowards, lists, etc., they will not be configurable here and we will not be able to offer you technical support to troubleshoot them since they are no longer under our control. If you have any doubt, leave your MX records alone. Most internet users will never touch them.
Note: some users do not have direct access to their MX controls. If you can't access them please contact us for assistance.
MX Record Alterations | Setting MX Records
To change your primary cpanel password or your FTP password, logon to your control panel and click on the password icon. You will need to know your old password to do this. Please note, your FTP, SSH and control panel password are all linked, so changing one changes them all.
To change the password of any email box, logon to your control panel, click on the big MAIL icon. Then click on ADD/MANAGE accounts. Next to each box name is a change password link.
Reporting an email bug, error or suggestion:
The control panel is an evolving system. If you have suggestions or bug reports please let us know at http://www.webcs.com/email.