How do I manage my domains in cPanel?

Introduction

A Domain name is simply a way to translate a computer's IP address into an understandable and easy-to-remember string. Each domain name is associated with a website, which is usually displayed when the domain is accessed in your web browser. The process of linking a Domain name with a website is usually the task of the web service of the web hosting server. The actual tool, which is the Domain configuration of the web server is the cPanel Control Panel. In the next lines of this tutorial we will discuss the "Domains" feature of cPanel and show you how easy it is to manage all your domains with the available tools.

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The domain function in cPanel

A mandatory requirement for setting up a cPanel account for the first time is that at least one domain name is linked to the account. This domain is called "Primary domain" and always opens the website that is saved in the "public_html" ("www") folder of your web hosting account. The "Primary Domain" of your web hosting account cannot be changed, at least not by you. To change a "Primary Domain", you must submit a technical support ticket so that our technical team can assist you with the change.

As we all know, cPanel supports multiple domains. To provide this functionality, cPanel defines different types of domains depending on how they relate to your Web hosting account can be added. These can be:

Subdomain

A subdomain is an actual domain name that is part of another domain name. Example: store.domain.com, development.domain.com, etc. Each subdomain can be configured to work with a separate folder inside the "public_html" folder, which means that different subdomains can open different websites.

Addon domains

An addon domain is a completely separate, standalone domain name that is added in addition to the primary domain name. Each addon domain can be configured to work with a separate folder stored somewhere on the web hosting account. This means that each addon domain opens a different website.

Aliases

An alias domain is a separate domain name that is added in addition to the primary domain. Alias domains cannot be configured to open other websites, i.e. they always open the website of your "primary domain name".

Now that you are familiar with the different types of domain names, let's take a look at the tools and features that cPanel offers for managing your domain names. Let's start with how to access the cPanel service. If you don't know how to access your cPanel service, please refer to our guide "How do I sign up for cPanel?"

Log in to the cPanel. After you have logged in to the cPanel service, look for the function group on the cPanel main page. "domains".

When you have found the "Domains" function, please click on it. You will then be redirected to a new page titled "Domains" where you will find the Management of your domains can continue.

Add a new domain in cPanel

You are now on the right page and can create a new domain. To create a new domain, please click on the button "Create new domain", which is located on the right side of the page.

This button will take you to a new page where you will need to configure a single section called "Create New Domain" to create the new domain. Before proceeding, you need to know what type of domain you want to add. As we have already explained, the three types of Domainsthat you can add in cPanel, addon domains, subdomains or aliases. For each of these types, the configurations on this page are different.

Video tutorial how to add a domain

Addon Domains

To create a new addon domain, please enter the addon domain itself in the "Domain" field. Next please uncheck the "Share document root" checkbox. This will make two new configuration fields visible. The first field appears just below the Share document root checkbox and is used to specify the path to the folder where the website for this addon domain is managed. In other words, with this configuration you tell cPanel that the Addon Domain should open a website from the configured folder. Please note that the folder you configure here is relative to the "public_html" folder.

The second field you need to configure is called }, "subdomain". This sounds confusing because you are adding a new addon domain. Why do you need to configure a new subdomain as well? The answer is simple, but hard to understand if you don't know how cPanel works. This is simply the rule that cPanel follows when it creates addon domains. cPanel must create a single subdomain for each addon domain, so that the addon domain is a true Alias of the subdomain is. Of course, you don't need to remember or understand this rule. The only thing you need to do here is simply define the subdomain. The cPanel has already filled it in for you. If you want to change it, you can do that, but we recommend leaving them as they are.

Finally, please click "Submit" to have your new addon domain added.

You will then be redirected to the main page "Domains". Your new domain will be displayed in the table with all domains connected to your web hosting account.

Subdomain

To create a new subdomain please click the "Create new domain" button again. This time please enter your new subdomain in the "Domain" field. Please remember that you need to enter the entire subdomain, including the actual subdomain part and the domain it belongs to.

Another rule you should keep in mind is that your subdomain should be associated with a domain you have already created. Of course, you can add a subdomain that has nothing to do with your already created domains. However, you need to make sure that the DNS configuration for this subdomain is correctly set in the DNS zone of the domain to which this subdomain is connected.

When you are done entering your subdomain, cPanel automatically detects it and unchecks the Share document root checkbox. If you have created a separate Website for your subdomain you should not enable this option. However, if for some reason you want your subdomain to open the same website as your main domain, you can select this option.

Next, you need to configure the document root for your new subdomain. This has already been done for you by cPanel. By default, cPanel creates a new folder for each subdomain directly in the "public_html" folder. The name of the new folder will be set to the subdomain you entered, so that we strongly recommendto keep the name of the folder. If you want to assign a new name, you can of course do so.

Finally, please click the "Submit" button so that your new subdomain is created.

Once your domain name is created, you will be redirected back to the main "Domains" page, where you will see the subdomain in the table with all domains associated with your web hosting account.

Alias(Parked Domain)

To create a new Alias in cPanel you need to click the "Create new domain" button again on the main "Domains" page. Now you will see the already familiar section where you need to enter the new alias. As we have already explained, an alias domain is used when you additional domains which should open the website of your primary domain. In other words, these domains are aliases of your primary domain. All you need to do here is enter the new domain name in the "Domain" field and click the "Submit" button to save the change.

You will then be redirected to the main "Domains" page, where your new domain alias will be displayed in the table with all domains associated with your web hosting account.

Manage existing domains in cPanel

Now that you know how to create new domains in cPanel, let's take a look at what actions you can perform with your existing domains. When you access the Domains feature, cPanel loads a full table for you with all your domain names and all the administrative actions you can perform with them.

The structure of the table is quite simple, but let's consider the columns it contains.

Domains

In this column you can see all the domains that are associated with your web hosting. The domains can be clicked and when you click on a domain name, the corresponding website will be opened in your browser.

Document Root

In this folder you will find the folder for which this domain is configured. When you click on the folder, the cPanel function opens "File Manager", which allows you to manage the folder completely.

Redirection to

In this column, cPanel displays all redirects configured for your domain using cPanel's Redirects feature.

Force HTTPS forwarding

In this column you can force a forwarding to the https:// protocol for a domain.

Actions

In this column you can see the available actions you can perform with your domain.

Now that you have familiarized yourself with the general administration options, let's take a look at how you can specifically administer an individual domain. To do this, click on the Manage" button for one of the domains listed in the table. You will then be redirected to a new page dedicated to the selected domain name. The configuration options available on the new page may vary depending on the selected domain type. For example, if you choose to manage an addon domain or a subdomain, you can configure the "Document Root" for that addon domain or subdomain. However, if you choose to manage an alias, you can only delete it.

To manage your domain, you can perform the following actions:

Update domain

In this section you will find a single field called "New Document Master". Here you can specify a new folder for the domain you want to work with. Please note that if you have placed a website in the old folder, it will remain there. cPanel will not rename the folderbut create a new folder. Therefore, you should move your files after you have saved the change.

To save the change, please click on the button "UPDATE", which is located at the bottom of the area.

Remove a domain

If you want to remove a domain from your web hosting account, please use the next section located right below the "UPDATE DOMAIN" section. This one is called "REMOVE DOMAIN". In this area there is a single button with the name "DELETE DOMAIN", which will ask you to confirm the deletion of the domain after clicking it.

Once the domain is removed, you will be redirected back to the main "Domains" page, where you can again see the table with your existing domains.

Domain information

This is a purely informative area that contains information about the various configurations of your domains. In this area you will find the following fields:

• Domain - The actual domain name that you manage.

• Related subdomain - This field will not be displayed until you click on the link "Show additional details" click. It contains information about all associated subdomains. Please note that this field is not displayed if you manage an alias or a subdomain, because these types of domains have no associated domain name.

• Redirects to - Here you can find information about all configured redirects for the domain.

• Document Root - The document root of the domain or subdomain is displayed here. The document root can be clicked on. When clicked, cPanel will redirect you to the file manager, selecting the folder for that domain, so that you can fully manage the files for that domain.

Additional resources

In this section you will find useful links that will help you manage the features supported by cPanel for these domains. The links available here are as follows:

CREATE EMAIL ADDRESS - This link will take you to the function eMail accounts so that you can manage the accounts for the domains you manage.

CHANGE ZONES - This link will take you to the function DNS Zones Editor which allows you to change the DNS zone of the domain you manage.

CHANGE REDIRECTION - This link will take you to the cPanel function redirects, which allows you to manage the various redirects for the domain name you manage.

That's it! You now know how to manage the domains associated with your web hosting account. Please note that depending on your web hosting package, you may or may not be able to add additional addon domains. We strive to improve our web hosting packages with all possible features, but sometimes it is necessary to make some restrictions. If you encounter any difficulties or errors while managing your domains, please don't hesitate to contact our technical support so that they can help you achieve your goal.