A Control Panel is a web-based interface using which you can handle different aspects of your presence online. For instance, you could set up or modify website files, set up and check email messages, handle databases, check visitor stats etc. Those things are performed using buttons and menus in a browser and the CP may also be called ‘back office’, i.e. the admin area associated with your web hosting account. Most Control Panels these days will allow you to manage all hosting-related matters, but you will commonly require a different system to deal with payments or to get a new domain when the company offers domain registrations. Based on the platform they employ, you may be able to use the billing account to open a support ticket to ask a question or to diagnose an issue too, or you may need to employ a third system.