SmartTech Hosting Panel

1. System Requirements

Minimum Requirements (up to 500 clients)

Production Requirements (1000+ clients)

Supported Operating Systems

• Ubuntu 22.04 LTS (recommended — most tested)
• Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (recommended)
• Debian 12 (Bookworm)
• AlmaLinux 9 (cPanel compatible)
• Rocky Linux 9 (cPanel compatible)
• CentOS Stream 9

Software Stack

2. Installation on VPS (Ubuntu/Debian)

Step 1: Connect to your VPS

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

Step 2: Update system & install dependencies

# Update system packages
apt update && apt upgrade -y

# Install essential packages
apt install -y curl git nginx ufw

# Install Node.js 20 LTS
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | bash -
apt install -y nodejs

# Install Bun (package manager)
curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash
source ~/.bashrc

# Install PM2 (process manager)
npm install -g pm2

Step 3: Install PostgreSQL

# Install PostgreSQL
apt install -y postgresql postgresql-contrib

# Start and enable PostgreSQL
systemctl enable postgresql
systemctl start postgresql

# Create database and user
su - postgres
psql
CREATE DATABASE smarttech;
CREATE USER smarttech_user WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'YourStrongPassword123';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE smarttech TO smarttech_user;
ALTER USER smarttech_user WITH SUPERUSER;
\q
exit

Step 4: Upload the application

# Create directory
mkdir -p /var/www/smarttech
cd /var/www/smarttech

# Option A: Upload the zip file from your computer
scp smarttech-hosting-panel.zip root@YOUR_SERVER_IP:/var/www/smarttech/
unzip smarttech-hosting-panel.zip
mv smarttech-package/* .
rm -rf smarttech-package smarttech-hosting-panel.zip

# Option B: Clone from Git (if you have a repo)
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/smarttech-hosting.git .

# Install dependencies
bun install

Step 5: Configure environment

# Copy example env file
cp .env.example .env

# Edit the .env file
nano .env

Update these values in .env:

# Database — PostgreSQL connection
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://smarttech_user:YourStrongPassword123@localhost:5432/smarttech?schema=public"

# Security secrets (generate with: openssl rand -hex 32)
SESSION_SECRET="your-generated-secret-here"
NEXTAUTH_SECRET="your-generated-secret-here"
NEXTAUTH_URL="https://yourdomain.com"

# Email (optional — for notifications)
SMTP_HOST="smtp.gmail.com"
SMTP_PORT="587"
SMTP_USER="your-email@gmail.com"
SMTP_PASS="your-app-password"
FROM_EMAIL="noreply@yourdomain.com"

# Monitoring cron secret
CRON_SECRET="your-cron-secret"

Step 6: Update Prisma schema for PostgreSQL

# Edit the schema
nano prisma/schema.prisma

Change the datasource provider from sqlite to postgresql:

datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"   // Change from "sqlite"
  url      = env("DATABASE_URL")
}

Step 7: Initialize database

# Push schema to PostgreSQL
bun run db:push

# Run all seed scripts
bun run scripts/seed.ts
bun run scripts/seed-integrations.ts
bun run scripts/seed-settings-payments.ts
bun run scripts/seed-content-monitors.ts
bun run scripts/seed-admin.ts
bun run scripts/seed-licenses.ts
bun run scripts/seed-domain-tlds.ts

Step 8: Build & start the application

# Build for production
bun run build

# Start with PM2
pm2 start "bun run start" --name smarttech

# Save PM2 config (auto-restart on reboot)
pm2 save
pm2 startup
# Follow the instructions PM2 prints

Step 9: Configure Nginx reverse proxy

nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/smarttech

Paste this configuration:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com www.yourdomain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }

    location /_next/static/ {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        expires 365d;
        add_header Cache-Control "public, immutable";
    }

    client_max_body_size 10M;
}

# Enable the site
ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/smarttech /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
rm -f /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/default

# Test config
nginx -t

# Restart Nginx
systemctl restart nginx

Step 10: Set up SSL (free Let's Encrypt)

# Install Certbot
apt install -y certbot python3-certbot-nginx

# Generate SSL certificate
certbot --nginx -d yourdomain.com -d www.yourdomain.com

# Follow the prompts — it auto-configures Nginx for HTTPS

Step 11: Configure firewall

ufw allow OpenSSH
ufw allow 'Nginx Full'
ufw allow 5432/tcp  # PostgreSQL (only if remote access needed)
ufw enable

Step 12: Set up cron jobs

crontab -e

Add these lines:

# Server monitoring — check every minute
* * * * * curl -s "https://yourdomain.com/api/monitors/cron?key=your-cron-secret" > /dev/null

# Email notifications — daily at 9 AM
0 9 * * * curl -s -X POST "https://yourdomain.com/api/notifications" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"trigger":"domain-expiry"}' > /dev/null
0 9 * * * curl -s -X POST "https://yourdomain.com/api/notifications" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"trigger":"invoice-reminders"}' > /dev/null

# Database backup — daily at 2 AM
0 2 * * * pg_dump -U smarttech_user smarttech > /var/backups/smarttech_$(date +\%Y\%m\%d).sql

3. Installation on cPanel

Prerequisites

• cPanel VPS or Dedicated server with root WHM access
• Node.js Selector plugin installed (available in cPanel 102+)
• PostgreSQL or MySQL database (MySQL is more common on cPanel)
• Terminal/SSH access enabled for your cPanel account

Step 1: Create a cPanel account

1. Log into WHM as root
2. Go to Account Functions → Create a New Account
3. Enter the domain (e.g., smarttech.yourdomain.com)
4. Set a strong password and note it
5. Click Create

Step 2: Enable SSH & Terminal access

1. In WHM, go to Account Functions → Manage Shell Access
2. Select your account and enable SSH Access (or "Jailed Shell")
3. Save changes

Step 3: Create a MySQL database

1. Log into cPanel for your account
2. Go to Databases → MySQL Database Wizard
3. Create database: smarttech
4. Create user: smarttech_user with a strong password
5. Grant ALL PRIVILEGES to the user
6. Note the full database name (usually username_smarttech) and user name (username_smarttech_user)

Step 4: Upload the application files

1. Log into cPanel → Files → File Manager
2. Navigate to your home directory (not public_html)
3. Create a folder named smarttech
4. Upload the smarttech-hosting-panel.zip file
5. Extract the zip into the smarttech folder

Step 5: Install dependencies via Terminal

1. In cPanel, go to Advanced → Terminal
2. Run the following commands:

cd ~/smarttech

# Install Node.js dependencies
npm install

# If npm is not available, use the Node.js Selector:
# 1. Go to cPanel → Software → Setup Node.js App
# 2. Click "Create Application"
# 3. Set Node.js version to 20.x
# 4. Set Application Mode to "Production"
# 5. Set Application Root to /smarttech
# 6. Set Application URL to your domain
# 7. Click Create

Step 6: Configure environment

# Create .env file
cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Set these values:

# MySQL connection (cPanel format: username_dbname)
DATABASE_URL="mysql://username_smarttech_user:YourPassword@localhost:3306/username_smarttech"

# Update prisma/schema.prisma to use mysql:
# datasource db {
#   provider = "mysql"
#   url      = env("DATABASE_URL")
# }

SESSION_SECRET="generate-with-openssl-rand-hex-32"
NEXTAUTH_SECRET="generate-another-one"
NEXTAUTH_URL="https://yourdomain.com"

CRON_SECRET="your-cron-secret"

Step 7: Initialize database

# Update Prisma schema to MySQL
sed -i 's/provider = "sqlite"/provider = "mysql"/' prisma/schema.prisma

# Push schema
npx prisma db push

# Run seed scripts
node scripts/seed.js
node scripts/seed-integrations.js
node scripts/seed-settings-payments.js
node scripts/seed-content-monitors.js
node scripts/seed-admin.js
node scripts/seed-licenses.js
node scripts/seed-domain-tlds.js

Step 8: Build the application

# Build for production
npm run build

Step 9: Configure the Node.js app in cPanel

1. Go to cPanel → Software → Setup Node.js App
2. Edit your application (or create one if not done in Step 5)
3. Set:
   • Application Mode: Production
   • Application URL: your domain
   • Application Root: smarttech
   • Application Startup File: server.js (or .next/standalone/server.js)
4. In the Run the script field, add: npm run start
5. Click Run to start the application

Step 10: Set up SSL

1. In cPanel, go to Security → SSL/TLS Status
2. Click Run AutoSSL to generate free SSL certificates
3. Wait 5-10 minutes for certificates to be issued

4. Database Setup

Why not SQLite for production?

SQLite is a file-based database that only allows one write operation at a time. With 1000+ clients, you'll experience:

• Write lock contention (slow performance)
• Database file corruption risk under heavy load
• No concurrent write support
• No network access (must be on same server)

PostgreSQL (Recommended)

Install on Ubuntu/Debian

apt install -y postgresql postgresql-contrib
systemctl enable postgresql
systemctl start postgresql

Create database & user

su - postgres
psql

CREATE DATABASE smarttech;
CREATE USER smarttech_user WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'YourStrongPassword123';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE smarttech TO smarttech_user;
ALTER USER smarttech_user WITH SUPERUSER;

\q
exit

Update Prisma schema

// prisma/schema.prisma
datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"
  url      = env("DATABASE_URL")
}

Connection string format

DATABASE_URL="postgresql://username:password@localhost:5432/databasename?schema=public"

MySQL (Alternative)

Install on Ubuntu/Debian

apt install -y mysql-server
systemctl enable mysql
systemctl start mysql

# Secure installation
mysql_secure_installation

Create database & user

mysql -u root -p

CREATE DATABASE smarttech CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
CREATE USER 'smarttech_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'YourStrongPassword123';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON smarttech.* TO 'smarttech_user'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

EXIT;

Update Prisma schema

// prisma/schema.prisma
datasource db {
  provider = "mysql"
  url      = env("DATABASE_URL")
}

Connection string format

DATABASE_URL="mysql://username:password@localhost:3306/databasename"

5. All Modules & Features

The SmartTech Hosting Panel includes 14 admin modules and a full client portal:

Client Portal

6. Integration Setup

cPanel / WHM Integration

20i Reseller Integration

Namecheap Domain Registrar

Spaceship Domain Registrar

7. Payment Gateway Setup

Easypaisa Payment Gateway

JazzCash Payment Gateway

Pakistani Bank Transfer

Stripe (International)

PayPal (International)

8. License Management

The licensing system lets you resell the SmartTech Hosting Panel to other hosting companies.

How Reselling Works

1. You (SmartTech owner) generate license keys in Admin → Licenses
2. Sell a key to another hosting company (e.g., 1-year reseller key for ₨50,000)
3. They deploy the app on their own server
4. They log in using the license key at theirdomain.com/?admin=true
5. The key expires after the duration — they must renew to keep access
6. You can revoke any key at any time if a customer doesn't pay

License Types

Duration Options

License Key Format

All keys follow the format: ST-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX (ST = SmartTech)

Example: ST-ZFX8-AWWY-H0N0-7LO6

Default Admin Keys (pre-seeded)

9. Server Monitoring

How Monitoring Works

The monitoring system checks your servers at regular intervals and logs uptime/downtime data.

Setting Up Monitors

1. Go to Admin → Servers
2. Scroll to the Server Monitoring section
3. Click Add Monitor
4. Enter:
   • Label: Friendly name (e.g., "Web Server 01")
   • Target: IP address or hostname
   • Port: Port to check (80, 443, 22, 2087, etc.)
   • Check Type: TCP, HTTP, or Ping
   • Interval: How often to check (60 seconds default)
5. Click Add Monitor

Monitoring Data Displayed

• Current status: Up (green) or Down (red, pulsing)
• Uptime %: 7-day uptime percentage
• Incidents: Number of downtime events in 7 days
• Total downtime: Cumulative downtime duration
• Average response time: In milliseconds
• Downtime incidents log: Start time, end time, duration for each outage
• Recent checks: Last 20 checks with status and response time

Setting Up the Cron Job

The monitoring cron job runs the actual checks. Set it up on your server:

# Edit crontab
crontab -e

# Add this line (runs every minute):
* * * * * curl -s "https://yourdomain.com/api/monitors/cron?key=YOUR_CRON_SECRET" > /dev/null

Replace YOUR_CRON_SECRET with the value from your .env file's CRON_SECRET setting.

External Cron Services

If you don't have server access for cron, use an external service:

• cron-job.org (free)
• EasyCron (free tier)
• UptimeRobot (free tier)

Set the URL to: https://yourdomain.com/api/monitors/cron?key=YOUR_CRON_SECRET

10. Email Notifications

Email Templates

The system sends these automated emails:

SMTP Configuration

Configure SMTP in your .env file:

SMTP_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
SMTP_PORT=587
SMTP_USER=your-email@gmail.com
SMTP_PASS=your-gmail-app-password
FROM_EMAIL=noreply@yourdomain.com

Gmail App Password Setup

1. Enable 2-Factor Authentication on your Gmail account
2. Go to Google App Passwords
3. Generate a new app password for "Mail"
4. Use that 16-character password as SMTP_PASS

Other SMTP Providers

Setting Up Notification Cron Jobs

# Daily at 9 AM — check domain expiry warnings
0 9 * * * curl -s -X POST "https://yourdomain.com/api/notifications" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"trigger":"domain-expiry"}' > /dev/null

# Daily at 9 AM — send invoice due reminders
0 9 * * * curl -s -X POST "https://yourdomain.com/api/notifications" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"trigger":"invoice-reminders"}' > /dev/null

11. Backup & Recovery

Database Backup (PostgreSQL)

# Manual backup
pg_dump -U smarttech_user smarttech > backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

# Restore from backup
psql -U smarttech_user smarttech < backup_20260710.sql

Automated Daily Backups

# Create backup script
cat > /var/backups/pg-backup.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/postgresql"
mkdir -p $BACKUP_DIR
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
pg_dump -U smarttech_user smarttech > $BACKUP_DIR/smarttech_$DATE.sql
# Keep only last 7 days
find $BACKUP_DIR -name "smarttech_*.sql" -mtime +7 -delete
EOF

chmod +x /var/backups/pg-backup.sh

# Schedule daily backup at 2 AM
crontab -e
# Add:
0 2 * * * /var/backups/pg-backup.sh

Database Backup (MySQL)

# Manual backup
mysqldump -u smarttech_user -p smarttech > backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

# Restore from backup
mysql -u smarttech_user -p smarttech < backup_20260710.sql

File Backup

# Backup the entire application directory
tar -czf /var/backups/smarttech_files_$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /var/www/smarttech

# Backup the .env file separately (contains secrets)
cp /var/www/smarttech/.env /var/backups/.env.backup

Full Backup Script

#!/bin/bash
# /var/backups/full-backup.sh

DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/smarttech"
mkdir -p $BACKUP_DIR

# Database backup
pg_dump -U smarttech_user smarttech > $BACKUP_DIR/db_$DATE.sql

# Files backup
tar -czf $BACKUP_DIR/files_$DATE.tar.gz /var/www/smarttech --exclude=node_modules --exclude=.next

# Keep only last 7 days
find $BACKUP_DIR -name "*.sql" -mtime +7 -delete
find $BACKUP_DIR -name "*.tar.gz" -mtime +7 -delete

echo "Backup completed: $DATE"

12. Troubleshooting

Common Issues

# Find the process
lsof -i :3000

# Kill it
kill -9 PID

# Or change the port in package.json:
# "dev": "next dev -p 3001"

bun run db:generate
# or
npx prisma generate

Useful Commands

# Check app status
pm2 status
pm2 logs smarttech

# Restart app
pm2 restart smarttech

# Check Nginx status
systemctl status nginx
nginx -t

# Check PostgreSQL status
systemctl status postgresql

# Check disk space
df -h

# Check memory usage
free -h

# Check running processes
htop

# View app logs
pm2 logs smarttech --lines 100

# Clear Next.js cache
rm -rf .next
bun run build

# Reset database (DESTRUCTIVE!)
bun run db:push --force-reset

Getting Support