WHM is "Web Host Manager". You will be doing most of the server configuration in WHM.

WHM is used to manage the server as a whole as well as all accounts on the server. cPanel is the customer control panel that is used to setup and configure individual sites, e-mail addresses and various other day-to-day aspects of a running website.

To access WHM for the first time you will need to locate the IP address of your VPS listed in your welcome e-mail, then open a web browser and type the following:

https://yourIPaddress:2087 or http://yourIPaddress:2086 or http://yourIPaddress/whm

Example: http://174.34.253.1:2086

IMPORTANT: If you receive a message about the license not being active or "Invalid License File" please see update cpanel license key at the end of this document. Otherwise, continue.

You will be presented with a login box asking for a username and password.

Enter "root" (without quotes) as the user-name and the password that is provided in your welcome e-mail. Initially this is set to the same password you used to login to the VPS control panel in the first step.

Upon successful login you will be see the following:

Step 1 out of 6

You must agree to the End-User License Agreement to proceed to the next step.

Please click to "I agree" button.

Step 2 out of 6 "Setup Networking":

The main window will then change to the "Setup Networking" screen. Step 2 "Setup Networking" will be highlighted in the upper-left corner of your browser. You can reference this sidebar to see what step you are currently working on.

The most important one for you to fill in is the very first one labeled "Server Contact E-mail address". In this blank put the e-mail address you wish to be notified when events occur on your server. The other contact fields are optional (AIM, ICQ). If you wish to use them click the checkbox, then enter the requested information.

WARNING: The "Server Contact E-mail Address" will get quite a bit of e-mail so you may want to set up a separate address for these notifications. You can create this address at a later time in your cPanel account if you wish -- it does not have to exist yet.

The next box is entitled "Hostname". This should match the hostname we set in the first section of this document. If it does not match please update it to match the one you set previously. The entry below is just an example, please do not use.

Required fields are marked by the red asterisk *.

Server Contact Email Address *: Your@Email.com

This Server's Hostname *: srv.YouServerName.com

Resolvers section

In the box entitled "Resolvers" verify they are correctly set to the following:

If you see IPs at primary and secondary resolvers sections, please keep them untouched. If there is empty, please use these IPs:

Primary Resolver *: 208.67.222.222

Secondary Resolver *: 208.67.220.220

Third Resolver: 8.8.8.8

Changing these values to anything else will cause your server to not function properly. DO NOT CHANGE THESE VALUES!!!!

In the final box on the screen "Main Ethernet/Network Device" it should be set to "eth0" by default, which is the correct setting.

Once you have verified this information click "Save & Go to Step 3"

Step 3 out of 6

Just click to "Skip This Step and Use Default Settings"

Step 4 out of 6

Nameservers

Step 4 Involves setting up your nameservers. Please pay special attention to this section. Your domain name will not resolve properly if this section is not completed properly.

The first section is to select the nameserver software you want to use. Unless you are an experienced user and have a specific reason for using BIND, we highly recommend selecting NSD on your VPS. The advantages/disadvantages are listed next to each selection.

The next box in Step 4 is where you chose your nameserver URL's. Please use the primary domain you intend to use with your account.

Choose Bind and type your new Nameserver at the box below:

In the final box in Step 4 we need to enter the IP addresses you wrote down in the first section of this document.

Check the boxes for both "Add 'A Entries' for all Nameservers" and "Add 'A Entries" for hostname. The primary IP goes in the text field next to "Nameserver 1" and the secondary goes in the text field next to "Nameserver 2". In the last box put the primary IP address.

Note: ns1.yourdomain.com and ns2.yourdomain.com should have your IP (IPs) on update.

Example:

DO NOT use the IP address listed above. They will not work and are only provided as examples.

Click "Save & Go to Step 5"

Step 5 out of 6

The services section allows you to select the FTP and Mail program you would like to use on your server. On a VPS we recommend using:

FTP – Pure-FTPD
Mail – Dovecot
cPHulk – Enabled

You are free to select the programs you are more comfortable with but the above selections will use the least amount of memory and ensure better performance on your VPS.

Once you have selected your choices click "Save & Go to Step 6". The screen will change and you should see a box that says, "Setting Up Services" This will remain on the screen for 30 seconds or more depending on the options chosen.

Services

Configure cPHulk (more info)

Brute force is an attack (hacking) method that involves using an automated system to guess the password to your web server or services. cPHulk provides protection against brute force attacks.

Save and go to step 6

Step 6 out of 6

Quotas

If you wish to track the disk space used by your users/sites, you will need to mount your files system with quota support.

Finish Setup Wizard.

That's it for Initial Setup in WHM. We have a few minor details to work out with your nameservers which we will cover in the Section 2. After that you can begin setting up for first site in Section 3.