A CloudPanel alternative for when you host for other people.
CloudPanel is a free panel for running sites and applications on a server. RespireCloud is for the step after that: customers, resellers, plans, mail and DNS, with every change shown before it happens. There is no CloudPanel importer, and RespireCloud is in early access.
What you get when you switch.
An import is a report, a test copy and a commit you can take back.
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A report before anything is created
The importer reads the backup and lists what converts as it is, what converts with a change and what is skipped, each with the reason. Nothing is dropped silently.
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A dry run you can test
The dry run builds the account and checks it: each site is fetched over HTTP and each mailbox is probed over SMTP. DNS and certificates are held back until you commit.
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A rollback that removes everything
After a commit, a rollback deletes what the import created: accounts, domains, zones, mail domains, databases, users, certificates and the home folder. A failure in the middle rolls back by itself.
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The archive is treated as hostile
It uploads in the wizard (resumable, with its checksum shown) and is unpacked by a hardened, fuzzed reader. Path tricks, links that leave the folder and decompression bombs are refused.
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The same business model
Administrators, resellers, customers and sub-users, with plans whose limits every module enforces, and modules for WHMCS, Blesta and HostBill.
What comes over from CloudPanel.
RespireCloud has no importer for CloudPanel, and CloudPanel is not one of the panels it recognises by name. A live transfer treats the server as a plain Linux source. That path is proven end to end from a plain Linux server, but not from a CloudPanel server.
Brought over
- Files, copied by rsync into the account's home
- Databases, reloaded from a fresh dump
- New mail, in the final pass
- A DNS checklist for each domain
Reported, not brought
- CloudPanel's own settings, users and sites are not read: create the accounts and sites in RespireCloud
- Files outside the account's home are reported, not copied
Without a backup file. The new server connects out over SSH, only reads, and pins the source's host key after you confirm it. A final pass brings what changed since the first copy, then gives a DNS checklist per domain. This is proven end to end from a plain Linux server.
What is different by design.
These are statements about RespireCloud, not about CloudPanel.
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The web panel cannot run commands
The panel runs as an unprivileged user. Work that needs root goes to a separate agent that accepts typed operations only, never a command line.
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Every change is shown before it happens
A change is a plan with the exact difference. You approve it, risky ones with a passkey, and it can be undone.
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Isolation is in the base product
Every hosting account is its own Linux user with its own systemd slice, its own PHP-FPM pool and quotas, in every edition.
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An assistant, and a guide for beginners
Ask in plain words and get a plan to approve. RespireSoft AI comes with every licence as a monthly allowance and turns itself on; or with your own key for a model provider, or a model on your own server. A guide walks new users through their first steps.
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Updates that go back by themselves
The panel updates itself from signed releases, keeps the previous release and a copy of its database, and goes back on its own if the new release does not start. Every server and Store module follows.
CloudPanel and RespireCloud, side by side.
Each line about CloudPanel was read on its own public page, linked beside it, and checked on 20 October 2026. Their page is the authority: if it has changed since, it is right and this is out of date.
What RespireCloud does not have yet.
Read this before you plan a move.
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A price of zero
CloudPanel is free. RespireCloud is licensed, and if free is a requirement it is not the right choice.
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Cloud servers from the panel
Creating servers at Hetzner, DigitalOcean and others from the panel comes in 1.1. Today you create the server at the provider and install RespireCloud on it.
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A public release
RespireCloud is in early access. There is no public download, the production signing keys are not made and prices are not set. One install has run on a real server; everything else ran in our lab.
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Proof on real backups
The importers have run end to end only on archives we built to match each format. A backup taken from a production server has not been imported yet, so expect differences.
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A second web server
Sites are served by nginx. Apache .htaccess rules, PHP ini overrides and redirects are not translated by the importer: a site that depends on them needs its rules rewritten.
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Recovery to a moment
A database restore goes back to the time of a scheduled dump. Recovery to a chosen moment between backups is not built. The database tool (Adminer) is built; it covers MariaDB, MySQL and PostgreSQL on the server itself.
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An independent security test
An external penetration test has not started.
Questions
- Can RespireCloud import from CloudPanel?
- No. There is no CloudPanel importer. You can copy accounts over SSH with the live transfer, which treats the server as a plain Linux source, and set up the sites in RespireCloud yourself.
- When should I stay on CloudPanel?
- If you run your own applications on one or a few servers and have no customers, a free panel for that is a good fit. RespireCloud adds the layers a hosting business needs, and that is only worth it if you need them.
- Does RespireCloud run Node.js and Python apps?
- Yes. Apps deploy from Git with 30 framework presets, runtimes installed per server, workers and cron jobs, rollback, and Dockerfile or Compose deploys.
- Does it work on Hetzner and DigitalOcean?
- Yes, as any Linux server: install it on the server you made there. Creating those servers from inside the panel comes in 1.1.
- Is RespireCloud affiliated with CloudPanel?
- No. CloudPanel is a name of its owner. RespireCloud is an independent product made by RespireSoft.
Planning a move from CloudPanel?
Tell us how many servers and accounts. We will say honestly whether RespireCloud is ready for them.
cPanel, WHM, Plesk, DirectAdmin, CyberPanel, HestiaCP, CloudPanel and LiteSpeed are trademarks or names of their respective owners. RespireCloud is made by RespireSoft and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any of them. Their names are used here only to say what RespireCloud can import from and how it differs.