How to Use the cPanel File Manager

File Manager lets you work with your website files without an FTP client. You can upload, edit, rename, and set permissions all from your browser.

Opening File Manager

1. In cPanel, open File Manager under the Files section.
2. The folder list appears on the left. Your website files live in public_html.
3. Double-click any folder to open it.

Files placed in public_html are served at your main domain. Files for an addon domain live in that domain's own folder.

Uploading and Editing

• Upload: click Upload in the toolbar, then drag files into the page or browse for them.
• Edit: select a file and click Edit or Code Editor to change it in the browser.
• New file or folder: use the +File and +Folder buttons in the top left.
• Extract: right-click a .zip and choose Extract to unzip it on the server.

Uploading a zip and extracting it is much faster than uploading hundreds of small files one by one.

Showing Hidden Files

Configuration files such as .htaccess start with a dot and are hidden by default.

1. Click Settings in the top right of File Manager.
2. Tick Show Hidden Files (dotfiles).
3. Click Save.

File Permissions

Right-click a file and choose Change Permissions to set its mode. Typical values are:

• Files: 644
• Folders: 755

Avoid setting anything to 777, as it is a security risk on shared hosting. If a script reports a permission error, check that the folder is 755 and the file is 644 first.