Welcome to HF Panel
What HF Panel is, the panels and apps it gives each kind of user, who it is for, and how this documentation is organised.
HF Panel is web-hosting control panel software for Linux servers. You install it on a fresh Ubuntu, Debian, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux or CentOS Stream server with one command. It then runs everything a hosting business needs on that server: websites, email, DNS, databases, FTP and SFTP, SSL certificates, backups, billing and support tickets. Each person who uses the server gets their own panel, made for what they do.
The three panels
Every panel has its own address, its own sign-in and its own menu. Someone who opens the wrong panel is told where to go instead.
| Panel | Address | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|
| Server Admin | https://srv.yourdomain.com:8443 |
administrators and staff: the whole server, every account, settings, security and billing |
| Reseller Panel | https://rs.yourdomain.com:8443 |
resellers: their own customers' accounts, packages and brand |
| Control Panel | https://cp.yourdomain.com:8443 |
hosting customers and their team members: websites, domains, email, databases and files |
Important: the panels open only with the port
:8443. The same names without the port send visitors to your website.
The apps
| App | Address | What it does |
|---|---|---|
https://mail.yourdomain.com |
Mail for every mailbox on the server: mail, folders, filters, contacts and calendar | |
| Files | https://fm.yourdomain.com |
the File Manager: a customer's website files in the browser |
| DB Studio | https://dbs.yourdomain.com |
customers' MySQL, PostgreSQL and MongoDB databases in the browser |
| HF Cloud | https://cld.yourdomain.com |
VPSs: your KVM hosts, plans and every VPS; customers' own VPSs (same logins as the panels) |
| HF Deploy | https://dep.yourdomain.com |
apps built from Git on every push; its settings for administrators (same logins as the panels) |
| HF Local | on your own computer | the desktop app: local websites and servers on Windows, macOS and Linux |
| HF Tunnel | https://name.hostfog.io |
public links to websites running on someone's own computer, through HostFog Ltd's own server (HF Local's free links); HF Panel servers you install have no tunnel server |
Customers open Mail, Files and DB Studio straight from the Control Panel, already signed in.
Programs talk to the server through the API at https://api.yourdomain.com/v1. It is for billing systems,
scripts and the HF Local desktop app. A web browser that opens it gets "403 Forbidden".
Who HF Panel is for
- Hosting companies that sell shared hosting: packages, online orders, invoices, Stripe and PayPal payments, support tickets, resellers and a white label.
- Agencies and freelancers who host their clients' websites on their own server, with a Control Panel for each client.
- Developers and businesses who run their own sites, mail and apps (PHP, Node.js, Python, Ruby, Docker) on one server.
How this documentation is organised
| Section | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Getting started | this page, Concepts, the Quick start and the Glossary |
| Installation | from System requirements to Install, Licensing, Updating and Migrating |
| Tutorials | step-by-step guides that take one task from start to finish |
| Server Admin | every screen administrators use |
| Reseller Panel | every screen resellers use |
| Control Panel | every screen customers use |
| Files and Studio | Files and DB Studio |
| Desktop app | HF Local on your computer |
| Tunnel | HF Tunnel |
| Developers | the API and integrations |
| Community | getting help, feature requests, docs fixes, translations and the partner programme |
| Reference | Server layout, Ports, Logs, Settings, Server commands, Troubleshooting, FAQ and Release notes |
Pages that describe a screen start with Where: and the menu path, for example Where: Server Admin › Accounts › Packages. Button, field and menu names are written in bold, exactly as the panel shows them.
Next steps
- Read Concepts to learn how accounts, packages and panels fit together.
- Check the System requirements.
- Follow the Quick start to go from a fresh server to your first live website.