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Virtualmin in 2026: Still the Fastest Path to a Self-Hosted LAMP Stack

Docker Compose gets the headlines but Virtualmin is still the fastest way to run multiple WordPress, Drupal, or PHP apps on one Linux box in 2026. Here’s the install, the Cloudflare config, and when not to use it.

// published 2025-02-18 · by Adrián Sanabria-Díaz
Simplifying Server Management with Virtualmin

Virtualmin is one of those tools that’s been around so long people forget it exists. It’s the open-source web hosting control panel that sits on top of Webmin, and it lets you run a multi-tenant LAMP stack on a single Linux server with a UI for managing virtual hosts, databases, mailboxes, and one-click app installs. Think cPanel but free.

For a solo operator hosting 5–20 small client sites on one Droplet, it’s still the fastest path I know. Docker Compose works too; it just takes longer to set up and is less friendly to whoever takes over the server next.

Install on Ubuntu LTS

Provision a Droplet (or AWS / Hetzner box). 2 GB RAM is the comfortable minimum because Virtualmin runs MySQL, Postfix, Dovecot, Apache, and a few other things by default. SSH in as root:

apt update && apt upgrade -y
wget https://software.virtualmin.com/gpl/scripts/install.sh
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh

The installer takes 10–15 minutes and asks you a few questions (hostname, whether to use a bundled MariaDB or external MySQL, etc.). Defaults are fine.

When it finishes, open https://your-server-ip:10000 in a browser and log in as root. The first-run wizard tunes memory settings. Let it.

Point a domain at it via Cloudflare

  1. In Cloudflare, add an A record for the apex (and a CNAME for www) pointing at the server’s public IP. Orange-cloud it for CDN + DDoS protection.
  2. Set Cloudflare SSL mode to Full (strict).
  3. In Virtualmin, create a new Virtual Server for the domain. Virtualmin sets up the Apache vhost, the database, and the file system.
  4. Issue a Let’s Encrypt cert from inside Virtualmin: Server Configuration → SSL Certificate → Let’s Encrypt → Request. You may need to temporarily grey-cloud the domain on Cloudflare for the HTTP-01 challenge; alternatively, use Cloudflare’s Origin Certificate and skip Let’s Encrypt on the origin entirely.

Install apps with one click

Inside each virtual server, Install Scripts gives you a maintained catalog: WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, NextCloud, Discourse, phpMyAdmin, and a few dozen others. Pick one, fill in the database name, click Install. Virtualmin handles the download, unzip, DB creation, and config file writes.

This is the killer feature. Spinning up a new WordPress site for a new client is “create virtual server, install WP script, done”. 5 minutes total.

When Virtualmin is the right call

  • You’re hosting 5–20 small PHP-based sites on one server and want a UI for managing them.
  • You want a hand-off-friendly server. The next person can log into Virtualmin and figure out what’s deployed without reading Docker compose files.
  • You’re running mail (or used to) and want Postfix + Dovecot set up correctly without doing it manually.

When to use something else

  • Single-app deployments. If you have one site on one server, Virtualmin is overkill. Plain nginx + the app is simpler.
  • Node / Python / Go apps. Virtualmin’s sweet spot is PHP + MySQL. It can run other stacks, but it’s fighting you the whole way.
  • You want strict isolation between sites. Virtualmin shares MySQL/Apache between virtual hosts. If a client’s vulnerable WP install gets compromised, the blast radius is the whole server. Docker per-container is more contained.
  • You don’t want to update a control panel. Virtualmin is more software you have to keep patched.

If you want help setting one up

I run Virtualmin across a couple of Tiempo client deployments. If you want one set up or want to migrate a few WordPress sites onto one, drop me a line.

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