A Control Panel is a web-based interface through which you can manage various aspects of your presence online. As an example, you may create or edit site files, set up and check emails, control databases, check visitor stats and so on. Those things are carried out via buttons and menus within a browser and the CP can also be called ‘back office’, i.e. the admin area associated with your web hosting account. Most of the Control Panels out there will enable you to manage all hosting-related matters, but you will often require a different system to manage payments or to get a new domain name in case the company offers domain registrations. Based on the platform they use, you could be able to use the billing account to open a support ticket to ask a question or to troubleshoot and fix an issue also, or you might have to use a 3rd system.