API vs PCAdmin vs PCUser vs PCCLI
Choose the correct PanelConfig surface for human operations, customer access, local automation, and remote integration.
This guide helps operators choose between API, PCAdmin, PCUser, and PCCLI. Choosing the correct surface reduces risk: humans use UI screens for review, local automation uses PCCLI, and external systems use the API for controlled JSON access.
Decision Table
| Task | Recommended surface | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Review an account before suspension | PCAdmin | A human should inspect context and audit history. |
| Customer adds a mailbox | PCUser | The customer should remain scoped to their own account. |
| Nightly health collector | API | Remote monitoring systems need JSON output. |
| Local scheduled backup check | PCCLI | Cron on the server can run commands without remote exposure. |
| Billing platform reads account state | API | The billing system can reconcile subscriptions against panel records. |
Safety Rule
Rule: Use the API only for workflows that the source currently exposes. Do not design production automation around a planned write endpoint until the route exists and is tested.
Related
- PCAdmin: API Tokens, Audit Logs, Server Health, Security Center.
- PCUser: Dashboard, Domains, Websites, Email, Databases, Backups.
- PCCLI:
pc help,pc health,pc jobs:list.