Your Control Panel — Complete Guide

Every Daedalus Design hosting package comes with a Control Panel. Think of it as the dashboard for your website — a single place where you can manage everything from email accounts to backups, without needing to touch a line of code.

This guide walks you through what the Control Panel can do, how to access it, and which features matter most for your business.

What the Control Panel actually is

The Control Panel is a web-based dashboard that gives you direct access to your hosting account. You open it in your browser, just like any other website, and from there you can manage every aspect of your hosting without needing technical knowledge.

Under the bonnet, it runs on CyberPanel — an open-source hosting management platform trusted by millions of websites worldwide. We've customised it for Daedalus Design customers, removing the clutter and keeping only what you need.

You don't need to use the Control Panel for day-to-day tasks — that's what your AI assistant handles. But for the things that need a human decision (like creating a new email address or restoring a backup), the Control Panel is where you go.

How to access your Control Panel

When your hosting account was set up, you received an email with your login details. If you can't find it, here's how to get in:

1. Go to https://yourdomain.co.uk:8090 (replace yourdomain.co.uk with your actual domain name)
2. Enter the email address and password from your welcome email
3. Click Sign In

If you've forgotten your password, contact us and we'll reset it for you. We can also set up two-factor authentication for extra security — just ask.

Tip: Bookmark the login page so you don't have to remember the port number. The address is always your domain followed by :8090.

Managing your website

The Control Panel gives you direct access to the files that make up your website. This is useful if you need to upload images, edit a configuration file, or check that everything is in the right place.

File Manager

The File Manager works like Windows Explorer or macOS Finder, but in your browser. You can:

• Upload files — drag and drop images, documents, or code files directly into your website
• Edit files — make quick changes to text files without downloading them first
• Create folders — organise your files into logical directories
• Compress and extract — zip up folders for backup, or extract uploaded archives
• Set permissions — control who can read, write, or execute files (rarely needed, but there if you need it)

Domain Management

If you own multiple domain names, you can manage them all from the same Control Panel. Add new domains, set up subdomains (like shop.yourdomain.co.uk), or redirect one domain to another.

WordPress management

If your website runs on WordPress, the Control Panel includes a dedicated WordPress Manager. This is where you handle the tasks that keep your WordPress site running smoothly.

The WordPress Manager also installs the LiteSpeed Cache plugin automatically. This speeds up your site by storing frequently-accessed pages in memory, so they load faster for visitors.

Email accounts and forwarding

Your hosting package includes email hosting. That means you can create professional email addresses that match your domain — like info@yourbusiness.co.uk instead of yourbusiness@gmail.com.

From the Control Panel, you can:

• Create email accounts — set up new addresses for yourself or your team
• Set up forwarding — automatically send copies of incoming email to another address
• Configure spam protection — SpamAssassin filters out junk mail before it reaches your inbox
• Set email limits — control how many emails can be sent per hour (prevents abuse if an account is compromised)
• Manage DKIM and SPF — technical settings that help your emails avoid the spam folder

If you use an email client like Outlook or Apple Mail, the Control Panel provides the server settings you need to configure it. We can also set this up for you during onboarding.

SSL certificates (the padlock icon)

An SSL certificate is what puts the padlock icon in your browser's address bar. It encrypts the connection between your website and your visitors, which is essential for:

• Customer trust (people notice when the padlock is missing)
• Search engine rankings (Google penalises sites without SSL)
• Form submissions and payments (data is encrypted in transit)

Every Daedalus Design hosting package includes a free SSL certificate via Let's Encrypt. The Control Panel manages this automatically:

1. The certificate is issued when your site goes live
2. It renews itself before it expires (you don't need to do anything)
3. If you add a new domain or subdomain, a certificate is generated for that too

You can also issue or renew certificates manually from the SSL Manager section if you prefer to handle it yourself.

Backups and restores

Backups are your safety net. If something goes wrong — a plugin update breaks your site, a file gets deleted by accident, or you just want to undo a recent change — a backup lets you roll back to a working version.

The Control Panel offers several backup options:

We recommend keeping at least 7 days of backups. If you need help setting up a backup schedule, just ask — we'll configure it for you.

Security and firewall

Your website is under constant threat from automated bots and hackers. The Control Panel includes several security tools that work together to protect your site.

Firewall

The built-in firewall blocks suspicious traffic before it reaches your website. You can also create custom rules to block specific IP addresses or countries if needed.

ModSecurity

ModSecurity is a web application firewall that watches for common attack patterns — things like SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and file inclusion attacks. It's enabled by default and blocks threats automatically.

SSH Access

If you're comfortable with command-line tools, the SSH Manager lets you create and manage SSH keys for secure server access. This is optional — most customers manage everything through the Control Panel interface.

Two-Factor Authentication

For extra security, you can enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on your Control Panel account. This means logging in requires both your password and a code from your phone. We recommend enabling this if you access the Control Panel regularly.

DNS and domain settings

DNS (Domain Name System) is what connects your domain name to your website. When someone types yourdomain.co.uk into their browser, DNS tells the browser where to find your website's files.

The Control Panel's DNS Manager lets you:

• Add or edit DNS records — point your domain to different services (email, website, third-party tools)
• Set up subdomains — create shop.yourdomain.co.uk or blog.yourdomain.co.uk
• Configure email records — set up MX records so email reaches the right server
• Integrate with Cloudflare — if you use Cloudflare for extra speed or security, the Control Panel can sync DNS records automatically

If you're not sure what DNS records you need, we can help. Most customers only need to change DNS when setting up a new service or switching email providers.

Databases

If your website uses WordPress, WooCommerce, or any other dynamic platform, it stores data in a database. The Control Panel's Database Manager lets you:

• Create new databases — for new WordPress installs or applications
• Manage existing databases — view tables, run queries, or import/export data
• Create database users — control who can access each database
• Back up databases — export a copy of your data for safekeeping

Most customers never need to touch the database directly. But if you're migrating a site, troubleshooting a plugin issue, or building something custom, the Database Manager gives you full access.

Advanced features

The Control Panel includes several features for more technical users. You don't need to know about these to run your website, but they're available if you need them.

FTP Accounts

FTP (File Transfer Protocol) lets you upload and download files using a dedicated FTP client like FileZilla. This is useful for large file transfers or if you prefer working with a desktop application instead of the web-based File Manager.

Cron Jobs

Cron jobs are scheduled tasks that run automatically at set intervals. For example, WordPress uses cron jobs to check for updates, and WooCommerce uses them to process orders. You can create custom cron jobs from the Control Panel if you need to automate a specific task.

Docker and n8n Manager

If you're on an AI Hosting package, the Control Panel includes Docker and n8n management tools. Docker lets you run applications in isolated containers, and n8n is an automation platform that connects different services together. These are advanced tools — we handle the setup for most customers, but you have full access if you want to experiment.

Frequently asked questions