A Control Panel is a tool employed to control the content of a hosting account. This includes, but is not limited to, files, email messages, databases, statistics and various operations carried out with them. The CP provides a web-based interface to manage all these things and everything else associated with the web hosting service through different sections where you can access features through menus and/or buttons. The easier to use a CP is, the easier it shall be for you to manage your presence online in general. In the common scenario, the Control Panel is the web hosting account’s back office, while a separate billing account is used to manage payments and domain registrations - if the company offers this particular service. Trouble tickets could be managed via the billing account or via a separate system.