Latest from the blog
Product updates, tutorials, and news from the ShadowPanel team.
Best cPanel alternatives in 2026 — free and paid
cPanel still works, but its per-account pricing and dated feel have pushed a lot of people to look elsewhere. Here's an honest landscape of the eight alternatives worth knowing in 2026 — free open-source, paid commercial, and developer-focused — with a recommendation by profile.
How to host multiple client websites on one VPS — without per-account fees
One decent VPS can host a dozen client sites. The hard part was never the hardware — it was isolating each site safely and not paying a per-account tax to do it. Here's how multi-site hosting actually works, and how to get the isolation right.
White-label hosting for agencies: resell hosting under your own brand
Hosting is one of the stickiest, highest-margin services an agency can sell — if you own the stack instead of renting per-account SaaS. Here's how white-label hosting works, and how to set it up with ShadowPanel Agency.
Self-hosted Laravel Forge alternative — Git deploy, multi-PHP, no monthly fee
Laravel Forge is great — but it's a monthly subscription and a layer on top of your servers. Here's how to get Git-push deploys, multi-PHP and staging on a server you fully own, with ShadowPanel.
Website backups that actually save you: 7 rules for encrypted, off-site backups
Most "backups" fail exactly when you need them: same server, never tested, no encryption. Here are seven rules for backups that survive a real disaster — and how to stop doing them by hand.
Docker for your websites: 7 practical tips for running containers on your own server
A Redis cache, a queue worker, a small internal API next to your site — Docker makes it clean on your own VPS. Here are seven habits that separate a tidy container setup from a fragile one.
How to install a web hosting panel on a Hetzner VPS in 10 minutes
A step-by-step guide: spin up a Hetzner Cloud server, install ShadowPanel with one command, create your first site with automatic Let's Encrypt SSL, and point your domain.
ShadowPanel vs HestiaCP vs CloudPanel vs CyberPanel — an honest comparison (2026)
Four self-hosted hosting control panels, none with per-server fees, very different trade-offs. A developer's-eye comparison — including where ShadowPanel is not the right pick.
Self-hosted cPanel alternative: why we built ShadowPanel
cPanel raised its prices in 2019 and never looked back. Here's why we built a self-hosted alternative — and what it means for developers and agencies paying per account.