Administrator knowledge base

Step-by-step answers for the admin menu in VTA Panel. Screenshots use placeholder hostnames and addresses (panel.example.com, 203.0.113.10) — never copy real IPs, license keys or passwords from your server into docs.

Related guides: Administrator manual · FAQ · Installation · End-user manual.

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Finding your way around

How do I open each admin area?

1. Sign in as admin (or a staff user with the right permissions).
2. Click the Menu (☰) control in the top bar.
3. Choose a section under Core services, Operations, Infrastructure or Admin.

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Overview

How do I check server health quickly?

1. Open Overview.
2. Read the status chips (license, sites that need attention, services).
3. Check Capacity (load, memory, disk).
4. Use Services to restart, stop or disable a managed service if something is down.
5. Click Refresh after a change.

How do I change the server time zone?

1. On Overview, open Operating system lifecycle.
2. Under Time zone, choose a Region, then a City.
3. Confirm the Server clock line shows the expected zone.
4. Click Save time zone (enabled only when the selection differs from the current zone).

How do I install OS security updates?

1. Stay on Operating system lifecycle.
2. Click Check now to refresh pending counts.
3. Prefer Install security updates for routine patches.
4. Use Install all updates only when you accept non-security package upgrades.
5. If a reboot is required, use Reboot and confirm by typing reboot.

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Sites

How do I create a new site?

1. Open Sites → New site.
2. Enter the domain (without www.).
3. Leave Also answer on www. checked if you want both hostnames.
4. Choose type: WordPress, PHP, static or Node.js.
5. Pick the account (or Administrator) and confirm.
6. Watch Activity for the create job; save any one-time password from the secrets modal.

How do I filter sites that need attention?

1. Open Sites.
2. Click Needs a look (or use Overview → attention).
3. Open a site and fix the flagged item (often No HTTPS, malware, or error status).

How do I issue free HTTPS for a site?

1. Open the site.
2. Confirm DNS A/AAAA for the domain (and www if enabled) point at this server.
3. Use Check DNS, then Issue free certificate.
4. Select the names to cover (apex / www as offered).
5. Wait for the SSL job; the site should show HTTPS when done.

How do I set a preferred domain (www or apex)?

Like Plesk’s “Preferred domain” (301 redirect):

1. Site must have been created with www enabled.
2. Open the site → Configuration.
3. On the web server card, set Preferred domain:
   • None — serve both hosts
   • example.com — 301 from www → apex
   • www.example.com — 301 from apex → www
4. Click Apply. The panel rewrites the active web stack (Nginx, Apache, Nginx+Apache, OpenResty, Caddy, OpenLiteSpeed).

How do I repair a broken site config?

1. Open the site → Configuration (admin), or Server Settings → Repair for every site.
2. Tick the pieces you need (web, SSL, webmail, permissions, DNS, mail, FTP, cron).
3. Confirm Repair.
4. Check Activity for the job log. Site files are not deleted.

How do I change PHP version or PHP settings?

1. Open the site → Configuration.
2. Use the PHP version control on the site (if the version is installed under Server software).
3. Under PHP settings, adjust limits (admins) or display_errors (site owners).
4. Click Apply / Save.

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Accounts

How do I create a customer account?

1. Open Accounts → New account.
2. Enter username, email and plan.
3. Confirm; copy the one-time password from the credentials modal.
4. Optionally Login as to verify the customer view.

How do I create or convert a reseller?

1. New reseller, or open a customer → Make reseller.
2. Assign a wholesale plan and resource pool.
3. Use Plans, Usage and Audit tabs under Accounts for reseller operations.

How do I suspend or delete an account?

1. Open Accounts.
2. On the row: Suspend (keeps data, blocks access) or Delete (removes the account after confirmation).
3. Prefer suspend when you may restore access later.

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Databases

How do I create a shared database?

1. Open Databases → New database (or create from a site’s Database tab).
2. Choose engine: MariaDB, PostgreSQL or MongoDB (must be installed).
3. Enter a short name and owner account/site.
4. Save the password shown once in job secrets.

How do I rotate a database password?

1. Open the database.
2. Click New password.
3. Copy the secret from the job modal; update the application config.

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DNS

How do I set name servers for this panel?

1. Open DNS.
2. Set Public IPv4 (and IPv6 if used).
3. Set primary / secondary name server hostnames (for example ns1.example.com).
4. Click Save, then Register name server records when the parent zone is managed here.
5. At each domain’s registrar, point NS to those names.

How do I add a DNS zone?

1. DNS → Add domain (or Import zone).
2. The default DNS template seeds A/www and related records.
3. Edit records as needed; changes publish to BIND (or Cloudflare when connected).

How do I connect Cloudflare?

1. Server Settings → DNS: paste a server-wide API token with Zone DNS Edit, or
2. On a customer Account page, connect their own Cloudflare token.
3. On a zone, use Publish to Cloudflare / sync when offered.

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Server Settings

How do I activate or refresh the license?

1. Open Server Settings → License.
2. Paste the license key (starts with VTA-).
3. Click Activate or Refresh.
4. Confirm plan, expiry and seat counts.

How do I open Server software?

1. Server Settings → Server software → Open, or go to #/software.
2. Use tabs: Web server, PHP, Extensions, Databases, Node.js.

How do I repair every site on the server?

1. Server Settings → Repair.
2. Tick tasks (web, SSL, webmail, permissions, DNS, mail, FTP, cron).
3. Click Repair all sites.
4. Follow the job under Activity.

How do I set Redis authentication?

1. Server Settings → Redis.
2. Choose Require a password (recommended) or No password.
3. Leave the password blank to generate one, then Save authentication.
4. Site Redis cards show the shared password when Redis is on for that site.

How do I update the panel from the UI?

1. Server Settings → Panel updates.
2. Check now if needed.
3. When an update is available, use Update now (the panel restarts briefly).

How do I set notification SMTP?

1. Server Settings → Notification email (SMTP).
2. Enter host, port, security, username, password and From.
3. Send test, then Save.

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Server software

How do I install another PHP version?

1. Open Server software → PHP.
2. Click Install next to the version.
3. On each site, switch PHP under the site page / Configuration.

How do I enable an Apache module or change web performance?

1. Server software → Web server.
2. Under Modules, Enable / Disable optional modules (required ones stay on).
3. Under Performance, pick a preset (Balanced, Throughput, Low memory) or Custom, then Apply performance.

How do I install PostgreSQL or MongoDB after install?

1. Server software → Databases.
2. Install the missing engine.
3. Create databases under Databases or a site’s Database tab.

How do I manage Node.js app versions?

1. Server software → Node.js.
2. Add or remove major versions; set the container image if you use a mirror.
3. Site apps pick a version when created.

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Email server

How do I confirm mail is installed and working?

1. Open Email server.
2. Review Postfix / Dovecot / Rspamd status.
3. For a domain: site or Email → set up the mail domain, issue the mail certificate, publish DKIM/SPF/DMARC DNS.
4. Open webmail at https://webmail.<domain>/ when configured.

How do I recreate mail maps after a manual change?

1. Prefer Server Settings → Repair with Mail (and Webmail if needed).
2. Or change a mailbox setting in the UI so the panel rewrites tables.

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Security, malware and firewall

How do I turn on admin 2FA?

1. Open Security (#/account for the admin user).
2. Open the Sign-in tab.
3. Under Two-step verification, click Set up, scan the QR code, store recovery codes offline, then confirm.
4. If locked out as root: sudo vtapanel passwd --disable-2fa or sudo vtapanel login.

How do I scan for malware?

1. Open Malware for server-wide options, or a site → Security.
2. Run a scan; quarantine or restore from findings as needed.
3. Mark false positives as ignored when appropriate.

How do I allow a port on the firewall?

1. Open Security → Firewall (also Ports and Countries and lists).
2. Add the port or service the panel manages.
3. Do not close the panel port (usually 8443) or your current SSH port.

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Backups and disaster recovery

How do I restore a site backup?

1. Open Backups, or the site → Backups.
2. Choose a backup → Restore (confirm).
3. Watch Activity; a pre-restore copy is kept when the panel supports it.

How do I set off-server backups?

1. Open Disaster recovery (and related offsite settings).
2. Add an S3-compatible destination and encryption key as documented in the admin manual.
3. Run a test restore on a non-production copy when possible.

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Billing, support, reports and API

How do I change a customer’s plan?

1. Accounts → customer → Plan, or Billing plans.
2. Apply the plan; limits update via a job when required.

How do I create an API token?

1. Open API & webhooks.
2. Create a panel API key or personal token with the least scopes needed.
3. Store the secret once; it is not shown again.

How do I review tickets or reports?

1. Support for tickets.
2. Reports for usage summaries.
3. Activity for background jobs that apply changes.

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Servers & regions

How do I add another region or node?

1. Open Servers & regions (also linked from Overview when multi-server is on).
2. Add a node with the required roles (web, DB, …).
3. Assign sites or standby as documented under cluster / HA.

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Safe screenshot and support habits

• Prefer placeholder domains (example.com) and documentation IPs (203.0.113.0/24) in public docs.
• Never paste license keys, Redis passwords, DB passwords or API tokens into tickets or screenshots.
• After sharing a temporary admin password for documentation, change it under Security / vtapanel passwd.