Dedicated cPanel Advanced

Installing cPanel/WHM on a dedicated server

Install cPanel and WHM on an AlmaLinux dedicated server. Requirements, the installation command, license activation, and post-install configuration steps.

UnderHost NOC Network Operations

8 min read Updated June 2026

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Requirements
Install cPanel
License activation
Post-install setup

cPanel/WHM is the industry-standard hosting control panel. Installing it on a dedicated server gives you (and your reseller clients if needed) a familiar, feature-rich hosting management interface. Note that cPanel requires a separate license-ask UnderHost support about cPanel licensing options.

Requirements

Requirement	Details
OS	AlmaLinux 8 or 9 (recommended), CloudLinux, Rocky Linux
RAM	Minimum 1 GB; 2+ GB recommended
Disk	Minimum 20 GB free
Root access	Required
Fresh OS install	cPanel must be installed on a clean OS-do not install on a server already running Apache, PHP, or MySQL
Hostname	Must be a valid FQDN (e.g., server1.yourdomain.com)
cPanel license	Required-monthly subscription from cPanel or a licensed provider

Install cPanel

Set the server hostname: hostnamectl set-hostname server1.yourdomain.com
Verify hostname resolves: the A record for server1.yourdomain.com should point to the server IP
Run the cPanel installer:

cd /home
curl -o latest -L https://securedownloads.cpanel.net/latest
sh latest

The installation takes 30–60 minutes. It installs Apache, MySQL, Exim mail, and all cPanel components. The server should not be used during this time. You can monitor progress in the terminal output.

License activation

cPanel checks the server's IP address against the cPanel license server. If a license is active for your server IP, WHM activates automatically after installation. To verify:

/usr/local/cpanel/cpkeyclt

Contact UnderHost support if you need assistance with license provisioning for your dedicated server.

Post-install setup

Log in to WHM at https://your-server-ip:2087 with root credentials
Complete the WHM setup wizard-configure nameservers, contact email, and basic settings
Run Initial Setup Wizard in WHM to configure network, mail, and backup settings
Set up custom nameservers if needed
Configure Backup Configuration in WHM to enable automated backups
Enable AutoSSL server-wide under WHM → Manage AutoSSL