If you your cPanel password you forgot or want to change for security reasons, you can set a new password for your main hosting account directly in the CURIAWEB customer center.
You will still need access to your CURIAWEB customer account for this. The change affects the cPanel main account and with it also the main FTP access of your hosting package. Passwords for individual email accounts or additionally set up FTP users will not be changed by this.
Briefly explained: The password for your CURIAWEB customer center and the password for your cPanel main account are two different sets of login credentials. With this guide, you can change the password of your main hosting account.
When should you change the cPanel password? #
A change can make sense in various situations:
- You have forgotten your previous cPanel password.
- Direct login to cPanel no longer works with the known credentials.
- For security reasons, you would like to use a new password.
- You suspect that your previous password has become known to another person.
- You want to secure access after working with an external service provider.
Since important technical functions of your hosting can be accessed via cPanel, you should use a strong and unique password for this access.
Important: This guide assumes that you are still able to log in to the CURIAWEB customer center. If you also no longer have access to your customer account, you must first restore this access.
How to change the cPanel password in the client area #
The password change is done directly via your hosting product.
Procedure:
- Log in to CURIAWEB Customer Center a.
- Open „Services“ and subsequently „My Services“.
- Select the hosting package whose password you want to change.
- Open the function in product management „Change password“.
- Enter your new password.
- Confirm the password according to the display in the customer center.
- Save the change.
After a successful change, the new password applies to your main cPanel account. You can then test the direct cPanel login with the new credentials.
What is the main cPanel account? #
The cPanel main account is the central technical user of your hosting package. It is not identical to your CURIAWEB customer account.
The two areas fulfill different tasks:
| CURIAWEB Customer Center | cPanel |
|---|---|
| Manage customer account | manage hosting technically |
| Services and products | Files and databases |
| Invoices and Payments | Email accounts |
| Manage domains | FTP accounts |
| Support Tickets | PHP and further hosting features |
The password you change via product management affects the main cPanel account of your selected hosting package.
Does this also change the FTP password? #
The cPanel main account password is also used for the Main FTP access of the hosting package. If you change this password, you must therefore also update the new password in programs that connect to this main access.
This may apply, for example, to the following applications:
- FileZilla
- Cyberduck
- other FTP or SFTP programs
- Development environments
- Deployment Tools
- automated processes that use the main access
Important: If an FTP program suddenly cannot connect after a password change, first check whether the old password is still saved there.
Email passwords are not being changed #
Changing the main cPanel password changes not the passwords of your individual email accounts.
A mailbox like:
info@deine-domain.chhas its own password. If only this email account is affected, you should not change the main cPanel password, but instead specifically reset the password of the affected mailbox in cPanel.
The same applies to other separately configured email addresses within your hosting package.
Additional FTP users keep their own passwords #
If you have set up additional FTP users in addition to the main access, they have their own login credentials.
Changing the main cPanel password does not replace the passwords of these additional FTP accounts. If only a single additional FTP user is affected, you should change their password directly in cPanel.
Note: Change the main cPanel password only if the main access is actually affected. There are separate passwords for individual email accounts or additional FTP users.
What is a good cPanel password? #
A hosting password should be long, unique, and not easy to guess. In particular, do not use a password that you already use for other websites or services.
A good password should:
- be sufficiently long,
- not based on names, company names, or domains,
- not be used multiple times for different services,
- preferably generated and stored with a password manager.
Using a password manager is especially convenient because you don't have to remember long, random passwords.
Open cPanel without entering a password #
If you are already logged into the CURIAWEB customer center, you can also open cPanel directly via the Single Sign-On available there. This means you don't have to enter your cPanel password manually every time.
We explain how this direct access works in the manual Single Sign-On (SSO): Open cPanel directly from the CURIAWEB customer center.
However, the SSO login does not completely replace your cPanel password. For example, the password remains relevant for a direct cPanel login or the main FTP access.
Update saved login credentials after a password change #
If the previous password was saved in programs or tools, you must replace it there with the new password.
Check in particular:
- FTP programs
- automated upload or deployment processes
- development tools
- other applications that use the main hosting access
If you repeatedly receive login errors after the change, a background program may still be trying to log in with the old password.
What to do in case of suspected unauthorized access? #
If you change the password because you suspect unauthorized access, you should not just replace the password.
Check additionally, among other things:
- website files for unusual changes
- unknown FTP users
- newly created or modified email accounts
- Forwards and other mail settings
- WordPress or CMS user accounts
- unusual changes to databases or configurations
If necessary, change any other access credentials that may also be affected.
Safety: If you suspect compromised hosting access and cannot clearly determine the cause, you should not just change the password and consider the problem solved.
Protect your CURIAWEB customer account too #
Since you can get direct access to your hosting through your customer center, among other things, this account should also be protected accordingly.
Enable two-factor authentication in particular. We explain the setup at Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) in the customer portal.
If other people need access to your hosting, you should also not simply share your personal customer password. If possible, use separate user accounts for this.
What to do if the cPanel login still doesn't work? #
If you have successfully changed your password but still cannot log in directly to cPanel, first check:
- Have you chosen the right hosting package?
- Are you using the correct cPanel username?
- Are you actually entering the new password?
- Did a space get copied as well, perhaps?
- Does single sign-on work via the customer center?
We also explain how you can generally log in to cPanel in the guide How do I log in to cPanel?.
If access still does not work, you can a Create a support ticket in the CURIAWEB customer center. Please state the affected hosting package or the associated domain there and describe the displayed error message as precisely as possible.
