A control panel is a web-based graphic interface which allows you to manage various features of your hosting service. Examples of the things that you will be able to do using this type of a software tool are file and e-mail management, DNS records editing, URL forwarding, etcetera. Since you'll find different control panel brands, the services that you can manage are also different and can also depend on the characteristics that the web hosting company provides. For example, you may have a certain option in one control panel and not in another, or it could take additional steps to perform a specific task. Such a tool offers you the option to use a point-and-click interface rather than typing commands with complex syntax inside a command line. Despite the fact that some users would prefer the latter option, the majority of users welcome the easier level of administration that a control panel offers.