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Setting up WebHost Manager for the First Time

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Last Updated: March 31, 2008 9:01 AM

This procedure explains how to log in to cPanel’s WebHost Manager for the first time and includes some post-installation steps. You only need to perform these steps once.

To Set Up Your WebHost Manager for the First Time

  1. Open a Web browser and go to:
    2. https://[[ipaddress]]:2087/

    Where [[ipaddress]] is the IP address for your dedicated server.

  2. When the WebHost Manager login prompt displays, enter root as your user name. Enter the password you defined when you set up your dedicated server account. Click OK.
  3. When you log in for the first time, WebHost Manager walks you through a wizard to help you set up your server. Under the Welcome to Web Host Manager section on the left, click Next.
  4. The End-User License Agreement for cPanel displays on the right. Review the license agreement and click I Agree.
  5. The Edit Setup page displays. In the Server Contact E-Mail Address section, enter an administrative email address for this server.
  6. In the Main Shared Virtual Host IP section, enter the default IP address for your server. Typically, this is the same IP you used to connect to your WebHost Manager.
  7. In the Hostname section, enter the primary domain name for your server. This needs to be a fully qualified domain name that you own. For example, “coolexample.com.”
  8. Under the Primary Namserver and Secondary Namserver sections, type ns1.yourdomainnamehere.com and ns2.yourdomainnamehere.com, where "yourdomainnamehere.com" is the primary domain for your server. For example, ns1.coolexample.com and ns2.coolexample.com.
  9. NOTE: This is just the preliminary step to setting up nameservers on your server. For more complete information on setting up DNS for your server, see What name servers do I use with my dedicated/virtual dedicated server?.
  10. Keep the other default settings that WebHost Manager created for you, and click Save at the bottom of the page.
    NOTE: There are a lot of other settings that you can configure on the Edit Setup page. To find out more about the other features that we do not cover in this guide, please visit the cPanel Web site at:
    http://www.cpanel.net
  11. Under the Step 2: Setup Server Information section on the left, click Next Step.
  12. Under the Step 3: Setup Quotas section on the left, click Next Step. You do not have to wait for the quota setup to finish.
  13. Under the Enable Nameserver section on the right, click OK. If you plan on using a third-party nameserver for domains hosted on your server, you can skip this step.
  14. Under the Step 4: Setup Nameserver section on the left, click Next Step.
  15. Under the Step 5: Setup Resolver Config section on the left, click Next Step.
  16. In the MySQL Root Password section, enter a root (admin) password for MySQL on your server and click Change Password.
  17. Under the Step 6: Set Mysql Root Password section on the left, click Finish.
  18. Click Continue.

The main page in cPanel’s WebHost Manager is the main dashboard that you use to manage and monitor your dedicated server. From here you can add domains to your server, create new email accounts, manage IP addresses, and start and stop services on your server.