Cockpit is a great and easy graphical panel for a VPS server. It allows you to connect to your server via a web browser and manage the server in a very user-friendly way. The software gives an ability to see resource usage, log files, active services - manage them (start, stop, restart) via a graphical interface. It also has terminal, so its not just a monitoring tool, it actually allows you to do everything.
This is a great tool for fresh and less experienced Linux users, who has a harder transition to Linux environment because Cockpit gives you a visual look to manage the basics, and learn work via command line at the same time.
Cockpit Installation
AlmaLinux 9 / Rocky Linux 9
dnf install cockpit -y
systemctl enable --now cockpit.socket
Ubuntu 22.04 & 24.04 / Debian 11 & 12
apt update
apt install cockpit -y
systemctl enable --now cockpit.socket
Basic Cockpit functions
Once you have installed Cockpit, you can access it on any web browser:
Login details are exactly the same as your "root" user details. Enter username, password and your server IP:
The main menu looks like below, it is very intuitive and clear:
Overview - displays key system metrics at a glance: CPU usage, memory, disk I/O, network activity, and system health. Ideal for quick diagnostics.
Logs - Accesses system journal logs - helps you troubleshoot by showing warnings, errors, and service messages in real time or by filter.
Storage - manages disks and partitions. Lets you inspect disk usage, mount points, and configure RAID, LVM, or filesystems.
Networking - this menu displays Sending/Receiving information, network interfaces, and network logs.
Accounts - manages local user accounts. Create, edit, disable, or delete users and control SSH access.
Services - it displays all the installed services on your server, both enabled and disabled ones. You can enable/disable them; start, stop, restart, check status. All the basics information and actions are available.
Applications - this menu displays all the applications installed on the server, check their status, perform basic actions.
Software Updates - checks for and installs system updates. Essential for security patches and keeping software current.
Terminal - an integrated SSH terminal that you can use to perform all the other changes or configuration on your server.
Adding more servers to the Cockpit
This software allows you to add more than one server into a single panel and just overlook them all in one place. In order to add another server, you need to go to "Dashboard" (from the top menu or left pane) and click “+ Add new host”.
Next, enter these details:
Hostname or IP address of the remote server
User name (use
rootor a user with sudo)
Then, cockpit will prompt you to accept the SSH host key of the remote server (first-time connection). Click Accept and connect.
With multi-server support, Cockpit scales easily, allowing centralized control across your infrastructure. Whether you're managing a single VPS or a fleet of servers, Cockpit saves time and reduces friction without sacrificing control.