As I said, the TERM “reseller” is a holdover from the 90’s, and people tend to react the same way you did. It simply means you get access to the “Web Host Manager” that lets you create multiple cPanel accounts. What you do with them is entirely up to you.
The biggest advantage to having a “reseller” type account is that you can quickly and easily set up a full hosting account for a new domain in about 30 seconds. The account is protected from other accounts on the same computer, and if it gets hacked then the hackers cannot exceed the resources allocated to that account — assuming you don’t just use a default Package that sets everything to “unlimited’, which a lot of people unfortunately do.
If you’re looking at “cheap hosting” then you’re taking about “shared” hosting. Someone who does that expects to put 2k-3k single accounts on a modern server today, depending how many resources they offer. A lot of plans are billed as “unlimited” which is nonsense — anybody who even gets close to using 1% of ANY of the server’s resources is going to get shut down.
However, when you get a typical “reseller” account — meaning you have the ability to set up 15-50 or more standalone cPanel accounts, they host them on a separate server and only allocate one-tenth as many, assuming the average account adds ten of its own accounts.
A lot of cheap hosting accounts you’ll find are exactly that — someone got a reseller account along with WHMCS or some other billing package, and set it up to resell several different configurations for low monthly prices, although they mostly bill on an annual basis.
I’ve only gotten “reseller” type accounts for years, and only once did I sell one to someone (a friend) who actually used it. That was a huge mistake and I’ve never done it since.
Again, if you’re actually going to SELL individual cPanel hosting accounts, you’ll NEED some kind of billing platform, like WHMCS, which costs extra. All a “reseller” type account offers is the ability to create multiple independent cPanel accounts. That’s it.
If it was up to me, I would not call this “reseller” hosting but “multi-user” hosting. In Linux, I think there’s an “adduser” function somewhere that lets you add additional logins, right? They get their own home directory, FTP login, mailbox, and so forth.
Suppose they called that some kind of “reseller” package? It’s the same thing that WHM offers (but you get a lot more from cPanel) — it lets you set up separate accounts. That’s all. You can charge or not, but there are plenty of reasons to have it where you only use it for your own needs.
If you have your own server, you can license an entire cPanel system and install it on the server. You still don’t get WHMCS or any sort of billing system, but at that point your server would be no different than folks who sell “reseller” and “shared” hosting plans.
However, I’m confused … first you say “I do not want to become a reseller” then you say, “the hosting will be for others, not me”. Well, are you planning to give these “others" all the exact same logins and have them share the same hosting account? If not, then you NEED a “reseller” type account! THAT is exactly what you need to use to allow you to create independent hosting accounts on a shared host. You cannot do it from a single cPanel account.
The thing is, WHM lets you set up cPanel hosting on a dedicated domain. Maybe you had in mind to use subdomains? That might well be possible with WHM, but mainly it’s to create hosting for dedicated domains.
I can’t tell if you are wanting to use Linux or Windows, but WHM/cPanel is mainly used in Linux while a similar thing called Plesk is more popular on Windows. Plesk itself was bought by SWSoft, which also owned Parallels. They eventually changed their corporate name to Parallels, and were acquired by Oakley Capital in 2017.
As far as VSC goes, I did a quick search on Google and found this:
VSCode-SFTP enables you to add, edit or delete files within a local directory and have it sync to a remote server directory using different transfer protocols like FTP or SSH.
https://pantheon.io/ <
https://pantheon.io/>
As an aside, there’s also Docker to consider. I’ve never actually used it yet, but it gets you something that’s sort of between a separate cPanel account and a full virtual machine. It isolates resources but lets you load up multiple instances on the same hosting account that are protected from each other. I’m sure there are people here who can chime in and tell you a lot more. it might fit your needs better.
-David Schwartz
> On Apr 7, 2023, at 7:39 AM, techlists@phpcoderusa.com wrote:
>
> Hi David,
>
> Thank you so much for your feedback. It is a jungle out there.
>
> After posting this email I realized I absolutely need SSH so I can use Visual Studio Code to edit remotely. Visual Studio Code (VSC) opens another can of worms for me because I do not understand permissions and users to the degree I need to to be able to fully use VSC remotely. I'll address this in another post. So SSH is a must... or so I think. Maybe I can develop local and maybe VSC can ftp...
>
> I do not want to become a reseller, it does not fit into my plan. Maybe I should have been more transparent... I am close to starting my YouTube channel. It is PHP oriented. The hosting will be for others not me. I'm of the opinion that if one wants to learn how to program using PHP they should also develop some LAMP skills. I am not a fan of those hosting emulators that can be loaded onto Windows and I assume MAC. Ideally I would like to see PHP developers get to the point where they are using VirtualBox or Proxmox for their development. Another learning curve for the new developer. AND maybe that should be the starting point.
>
> Maybe using VSC with cheep hosting in the fashion I am attempting might not work. Maybe editing local and then FTP is the best it gets. To edit remotely I see user and permission issues.
>
> Thanks!!
> Keith
>
>
> On 2023-04-06 20:59, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote:
>> I don’t know how helpful this is, but … the best time to buy
>> hosting is Black Friday.
>> For points (1) and (3), this might help.
>> First, if I’m understanding (3) correctly, I think you want to be
>> looking at a “Reseller” type of account. By itself, cPanel is for
>> ONE account/domain. They have a thing called a “Reseller” panel,
>> WHM (Web Hosting Manager), that lets you set up some number of
>> independent cPanel accounts. Ignore the name, it’s just a way to
>> manage multiple cPanel accounts if you need them. If you want to build
>> and manage multiple sites for yourself and/or clients, this is the way
>> to go.
>> If you want to actually BE a hosting “reseller”, then you’ll
>> also need WHMCS or something like that to handle your billing. Some
>> places include it with WHM, most offer it as an option. If you don’t
>> need billing, save your money and don’t get it.
>> Sometimes some places offer big discounts, but the only thing
>> consistent with most of them is they offer SOME discount BUT … it
>> only applies to your FIRST INVOICE. Meaning that if you have a monthly
>> plan, it only applies to the first month’s bill. But if you get a
>> 3-year plan, it’s for the whole 3-year term.
>> On Black Friday, they’ll usually offer a plan upgrade for free PLUS
>> the discount. So you’d get a 30-50 site reseller plan for the price
>> of a 15-25 site plan. Or on a single account, they’d offer the next
>> step up, like Silver instead of Bronze for the Bronze price.
>> I personally prefer cPanel and WHM, mostly b/c I’ve been using them
>> for a very long time and am used to how they work.
>> However, there are tweaks that hosting providers can make that are
>> often done to reduce their support overhead rather than help customers
>> get our jobs done better. One case i point is NameCheap — I love
>> them for domain registrations, but their hosting SUCKS! They have so
>> many weird restrictions compared to other cPanel/WHM providers that
>> it’s silly. When I’d ask, their canned reply was “for security
>> reasons”. I’m sorry, but disabling the ability to click on the
>> little cPanel icon in a row in WHM to open cPanel for that account
>> does not strike me as security related. Doing so is quick and easy,
>> but it restricts what you can do to a certain extent on the target
>> account, because you’re not logged-in as the account holder — and
>> I suspect your average user doesn’t understand that. As a result, it
>> probably increaes their support tickets, so they disabled it. Several
>> cPanel features are limited or blocked as well for the same excuse.
>> I’ve never encountered this anywhere else.
>> I was at one place for a while, Eleven2, and they were pretty good,
>> but on Sept 2nd of last year, they suddenly switched-out cPanel/WHM
>> for a totally different control panel! It was totally unannounced,
>> with no advance warning, no way to go back, and I had problems for
>> over a month. I paid for one year of cPanel/WHM hosting, and they just
>> took it away and replaced it with something else. No apologies, no
>> discussion, no warnings. Just “poof” and here ya go.
>> Come Black Friday, I found a great deal on hosting from
>> WebHostingWorld.net <http://webhostingworld.net/> [2] and paid for a year of SSD-based Reseller
>> (cPanel/WHM) access with 50 sites for a 50% discount — it worked out
>> to about $12/mo. Screaming deal.
>> Most cPanel/WHM hosts have raised their prices to reflect what cPanel
>> has done. So a 15-user WHM account works out to $20/mo or so.
>> The nice thing about cPanel is that if you want to change hosts, the
>> new ones can move your old account over in about 30 seconds — it’s
>> built into the Admin side of the platform. The only shortcoming is
>> that it messes up whatever Packages you have defined. Most of the
>> support folks don’t even really know what this means, but you’ll
>> find out the first time you try adding another account in WHM and the
>> only Package options you have are the defaults that WHM offers —
>> yours got lost in the move, but they still show up on the old
>> accounts.
>> I was with HostGator for quite a while, but after they got bought by
>> the “Borg” company buying up so many other hosting providers,
>> their support went to crap. Many others as well. Stay away from the
>> whole bunch of them.
>> As for (2), most will NOT give you SSH access. PERIOD. I did ask my
>> current guys and they said they’d hook me up with a restricted shell
>> on a per-account basis.
>> That said, you really only need it if you’re going to install some
>> kind of script that requires you go do it from a command shell.
>> cPanel has a File Manager in it that lets you do pretty much anything
>> you can do in a Windows Explorer or Mac Finder window, including
>> editing .access files.
>> I also have a Windows VPN hosted at VirMach. They’re ok, and I got a
>> great price — I think it was a New Year’s sale.
>> A lot of hosting places are totally automating their support, which is
>> a PITA if you run into any real problems. They love to tout their
>> Support, but they’re ALL cutting back. If you want REAL support,
>> you’ll want to get a “Managed Hosting” account.
>> I can set you up with a managed Wordpress account and tons of premium
>> plugins for $50/mo. I don’t have a sales page for it yet, tho.
>> (It’s through WPMUDev.)
>> -David Schwartz
>>> On Apr 3, 2023, at 1:48 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss
>>> <plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> wrote:
>>> I am looking at cheap shared hosting providers.
>>> I found two so far... Bluehost and HostGator.
>>> I used Hostgator in the past and it was good and then really bad,
>>> and it has been a while. I eventually moved on. I have not used
>>> Bluehost and the reviews are mixed.
>>> I have three requirements:
>>> 1) must have a control panel.
>>> 2) must have ssh access. Not sure this is really necessary because,
>>> off the top of my head, all I need is to be able to edit the
>>> .htaccess file which I can do local and FTP up... or the control
>>> panel might have a built in editor. I probably need access to SSH
>>> so I can set file permissions.
>>> 3) must be highly discounted when buying in bulk.
>>> Any other cheap hosting providers you would recommend?
>>> Your thoughts?
>>> Thanks!!
>>> Keith
>>> ---------------------------------------------------
>>> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>
>>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings:
>>> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> [1]
>> Links:
>> ------
>> [1] https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=SJEG7TF39YLaAIMD0HhsfC6E-2FcJXOs2D1VhGcvn2YkObFLMBOC3gmante55BOqf2F-2ByuZjZxeWAcK3DSlXP4Xtp4dQImX1G2Oq-2BQoN6woQ4-3DRJlP_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GYll7-2F4OY29cGZk3ieWyXnEru7a4Qitt94Dr-2B7VMotkIhx9iu8rNwRnZNVAshLEsOljAm8BL9K8bcnX1WAdF4FtvioBhH-2FzyaLUaCkkq56LAYOJGFNLBjToBdiaRgyCYH8bHyUPIBnob3EEdyIuEtwGxPfwd4KkOSvTUmxrMDJOc-3D <https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=SJEG7TF39YLaAIMD0HhsfC6E-2FcJXOs2D1VhGcvn2YkObFLMBOC3gmante55BOqf2F-2ByuZjZxeWAcK3DSlXP4Xtp4dQImX1G2Oq-2BQoN6woQ4-3DRJlP_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GYll7-2F4OY29cGZk3ieWyXnEru7a4Qitt94Dr-2B7VMotkIhx9iu8rNwRnZNVAshLEsOljAm8BL9K8bcnX1WAdF4FtvioBhH-2FzyaLUaCkkq56LAYOJGFNLBjToBdiaRgyCYH8bHyUPIBnob3EEdyIuEtwGxPfwd4KkOSvTUmxrMDJOc-3D>
>> [2] https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=AcWaulsunJt9eG0Auu-2F5Np6-2F3oGGuYnwgxf6-2FaQRaGhad1yt-2BlGgs15kqV9t7B-2BXVgUR_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GYll7-2F4OY29cGZk3ieWyXnMO2gu0nMbeM2Kox3Nh-2BSK2X-2FmaTGPISJv2S4693eQXLPxbGUIf5KMircqHR5503Z5I0m7il8MXMTSeUwrlVLZjgb8mZhPuRdSz-2FazA60q4Ur8ggC8zkVSO0ljt5jgtoEHa9ArtiLbUMj-2BrV1xC2zgs-3D <https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=AcWaulsunJt9eG0Auu-2F5Np6-2F3oGGuYnwgxf6-2FaQRaGhad1yt-2BlGgs15kqV9t7B-2BXVgUR_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GYll7-2F4OY29cGZk3ieWyXnMO2gu0nMbeM2Kox3Nh-2BSK2X-2FmaTGPISJv2S4693eQXLPxbGUIf5KMircqHR5503Z5I0m7il8MXMTSeUwrlVLZjgb8mZhPuRdSz-2FazA60q4Ur8ggC8zkVSO0ljt5jgtoEHa9ArtiLbUMj-2BrV1xC2zgs-3D>
>> ---------------------------------------------------
>> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>
>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings:
>> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss>
---------------------------------------------------
PLUG-discuss mailing list:
PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings:
https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
(text/plain)