Manage every Plesk server from one screen
Your customers sit on several Plesk Obsidian servers, and each one has its own login on port 8443. ctapanel connects to each with an admin key and lists subscriptions, resellers, mail queues, Fail2Ban jails and firewall rules side by side. You find a customer by domain, fix the problem and move on. The Plesk interface keeps working, and a change made here shows up there too.
Why run Plesk management from one place
One Plesk server is easy to look after. Five are not. Each has its own login, its own subscription list and its own Fail2Ban jails, and every support call starts with the same question: which server is that domain on? ctapanel answers it before you ask. Every subscription across your Plesk servers sits in one list, searchable by domain or username. Suspended and over-quota accounts get their own tabs with counts, so the ones that need you are one click away.
What changes is where the work starts. A stuck message in the mail queue shows its reason: greylisting, a DNS failure, a full mailbox or a spam hold. A locked-out customer gets unblocked from the Fail2Ban screen, and their IP goes onto the allow list in the same step. A .NET request gets answered from a list that shows which servers have the .NET Toolkit and which runtimes are installed. Each screen keeps Plesk’s own terms, so a subscription stays a subscription.
ctapanel doesn’t replace Plesk. It works on top of the panel you already run, through Plesk’s own API on port 8443, and your Plesk licence stays yours. Some limits are worth knowing up front. The WAF screen reports whether Atomic Basic is running, but rule editing and manual malware scans are still being built. Windows servers and IIS aren’t supported yet; today ctapanel manages Linux servers. Classic ASP.NET needs IIS, so it won’t run here; modern .NET on Linux will.
Connect a Plesk server in three steps
No root password and no developer ticket. You need the server’s address and a Plesk admin key.
- Step 1 / 3
Type the address, pick Plesk
Enter the server’s IP and choose Plesk Obsidian as the panel type. The same IP and port can’t be added twice, so a duplicate is refused before any record is created.
- Step 2 / 3
Paste the admin key
Plesk connects with an admin key on port 8443, over its REST and XML APIs. Test the connection before you save, so a wrong key never leaves a half-finished server behind. The key is stored encrypted and never shown again.
- Step 3 / 3
Wait for the first report
The server opens in maintenance with every counter at zero. Expected services are already set for Plesk: nginx, apache, postfix, mysql and sw-engine. Once the first report comes in, real numbers replace the zeros and the graphs fill in.
What you manage on Plesk
Every row in the capability table is managed from the panel on Plesk, from accounts and DNS to the terminal and audit log. A few rows work in a Plesk-specific way.
| Capability | On this panel | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Accounts | ||
| Account and package management | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Reseller management | yes | Plesk reseller accounts and reseller plans are both read, with usage counted from each reseller’s own accounts. |
| Account transfer and import | yes | Remote Plesk migrations connect on the panel’s own port, 8443, so the other host doesn’t have to open SSH. |
| Platform | ||
| DNS zone editor | yes | Managed from the panel |
| PHP version and settings | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Node.js and Python apps | yes | Managed from the panel |
| .NET apps | yes | Plesk is the only panel where .NET is managed from the panel, through the .NET Toolkit extension. |
| Database management | yes | Database names are free-form on Plesk, with no user prefix, but a name can’t be reused on one server. |
| Mail queue and mailboxes | yes | Managed from the panel |
| SPF, DKIM and DMARC checks | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Security | ||
| Firewall rules | yes | When plesk-firewall is in the service list, rules go through Plesk Firewall. You don’t pick the engine. |
| Login protection thresholds | yes | Login protection follows Fail2Ban, with retries, find time and ban time shown for each jail. |
| WAF (ModSecurity) state | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Root access and SSH keys | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Operations | ||
| Service control (start/stop) | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Backup plans | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Terminal and command assistant | yes | Managed from the panel |
| Audit log | yes | Managed from the panel |
Managed from the panel Works over SSH, without panel integration Not possible on that panelCompare all panels
Six screens for Plesk servers
- 01Details
Plesk subscriptions in one list
Every subscription on every Plesk server sits in one searchable list. Look a customer up by domain or username instead of remembering which server they live on. Suspended and over-quota accounts get their own tabs with counts. - 02Details
Plesk resellers and reseller plans
See the disk, traffic and number of accounts each Plesk reseller uses. The figures are counted from the reseller’s own accounts, not a separate counter that drifts. What each reseller can do is a set of switches you control. - 03Details
Plesk .NET apps on Linux
The Plesk row shows the .NET Toolkit extension, the installed runtimes such as 6.0 and 8.0, and the apps running on them. When a customer asks for .NET, you answer from this list. - 04Details
Plesk Fail2Ban jails and blocks
Each Fail2Ban jail shows its retries, find time and ban time. Attempts on plesk-panel, postfix, dovecot and proftpd are listed. Unblock a customer’s IP and add it to the allow list in the same step. - 05Details
Plesk Firewall rules
When plesk-firewall runs on the server, ctapanel works through Plesk Firewall. Open a port or a range, allow or deny an IP with an expiry, and every value is checked before anything is saved. - 06Details
Migrations from a remote Plesk
Move accounts off another host’s Plesk over port 8443 without asking them to open SSH. Progress, speed and time left update live. If a transfer stops, the log shows the step and you start it again.
Questions about Plesk management
Q.01How do I manage multiple Plesk servers from one place?
Connect each server to ctapanel with its address and a Plesk admin key. Subscriptions, resellers, databases, mail queues, Fail2Ban jails and firewall rules from every Plesk server then sit in shared lists. You search a customer by domain and work on them without logging in to each Plesk separately.
Q.02Does ctapanel need the root password of my Plesk server?
No. A Plesk server connects with an admin key on port 8443, and a root password is never asked for or stored. The key is stored encrypted and isn’t shown again after you save it. You test the connection before saving, so a wrong key leaves nothing half-finished.
Q.03Do I have to replace Plesk or change my licence?
No. ctapanel works on top of Plesk instead of replacing it, and your Plesk licence stays yours with no margin added. The Plesk interface keeps working, and a change you make in ctapanel shows up there too. ctapanel is an independent product, not affiliated with or endorsed by Plesk.
Q.04Can I manage .NET apps on Plesk for Linux?
Yes. On Plesk, .NET is managed through the .NET Toolkit extension, and the screen lists installed versions such as 6.0 and 8.0 with the apps running on them. Classic ASP.NET needs IIS and won’t run on Linux, and ctapanel doesn’t support Windows servers yet.
Q.05Does it work with Plesk Fail2Ban and Plesk Firewall?
Yes. Login protection on Plesk follows Fail2Ban: each jail shows its retries, find time and ban time, and you block or unblock IPs on the same page. Firewall rules go through Plesk Firewall when plesk-firewall is in the server’s service list.
Running another panel too?
Most fleets mix panels. Each one connects in its own way and supports a slightly different set of screens.
cPanel management
Manage multiple cPanel servers from one screen. Connect each WHM with an API token on port 2087, then run accounts, resellers, PHP, mail and security.
Read the pageDirectAdmin management
DirectAdmin management for multiple servers in one panel: users, resellers, DNS, mail queues, Brute Force Monitor and migrations over port 2222.
Read the pagePanel-less server management
Manage a VPS without cPanel. Connect bare Linux servers with an SSH key on port 22 and run systemd services, firewalld or ufw, PHP and SSH keys in one list.
Read the page
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