The latest articles on DEV Community by Sara Miller (@sara_miller). https://dev.to/sara_miller https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4237482%2F7f308e81-b404-4dea-82ac-f99572137ace.jpg https://dev.to/sara_miller en Sara Miller Tue, 10 Nov 2026 17:45:33 +0000 https://dev.to/sara_miller/vps-control-panels-in-2026-a-quick-look-at-lightweight-options-1ebb https://dev.to/sara_miller/vps-control-panels-in-2026-a-quick-look-at-lightweight-options-1ebb <p>If you’re managing your own VPS or handling client setups, finding a smooth control panel can save a lot of headaches. Over the last few months, I’ve been trying out a few open-source and lightweight tools to see how they manage server setups, databases, and deployment without eating up all the server RAM.</p> <p>​Here’s my quick takeaway on three options:</p> <p>1.Coolify: Super handy if you rely on Docker containers and want a self-hosted platform similar to Heroku. It has great Git integration, though you’ll need to be comfortable working with containerized setups.<br> 2.aaPanel: A classic, visual server manager. It lets you spin up a full LAMP or LNMP stack quickly with an app store style dashboard, making it very straightforward for standard web hosting.<br> 3.Vexlyx: A minimalist option that keeps things simple for managing web apps, databases, and general server maintenance without adding unnecessary bloat or resource overhead.</p> <p>Which control panel or stack are you running on your servers right now? Always looking to hear what’s working best for others!</p> webdev devops linux opensource