Plesk continues to evolve from a basic and feature-based control panel to a powerful and innovative platform. Managing servers, applications, websites and hosting businesses at a professional level. Today we proudly present the preview of our next major release: Plesk Obsidian.
Why the new Plesk Obsidian release?
The hosting world is in transition – How we manage servers, applications and websites is transforming as we leverage them into the cloud. We’re in a time where hybrid IT — a mix of legacy systems and cloud delivery — is the new normal. The technology pillars of IaaS, PaaS and SaaS provide the basic cloud building blocks, but the technology itself is no longer good enough. Even at core infrastructure level, web professionals need help to design and manage hybrid IT environments and embrace DevOps.
Digital natives in nearly every market are driving this shift – because they want to be more agile, and more efficient. They want to deliver great customer experiences and take advantage of new technologies to cut costs. And – they want to increase productivity and value – while making the digital experience a human one.
What’s new in Plesk Obsidian?
Let us quickly guide you through the shifts in the new version. From Modern Web Stack and Project Lifecycle to Managed WordPress and User Experience. Here’s what’s new and why we did it. For a full view, check out the Obsidian release page.
#1: Modern Web Stack: To swiftly develop apps & sites
What’s the most important thing to consider when you’re developing top-notch web applications? No doubt, it’s the technology stack your app is based on. The choice of a relevant tech stack is particularly challenging for small businesses and startups. This is because they usually have limited budgets. So, they need a technology stack that provides the most bang for their buck and raises projects off the ground.
Plesk Obsidian delivers an optimized stack “out-of-the-box” and ready-to-code platform with MongoDB support. Also, new Docker integration, Domain Connect support, Composer support, .htaccess support for NGINX and all the other tools and languages you need. In addition, SNI support will be available in both Postfix and MailEnable, to make sure no one listens in on your conversations.
#2: Web Project Lifecycle: Streamlined to increase productivity
Over the past two years, we’ve surveyed more than 25,000 Web Professionals worldwide to better understand best practices for their web project lifecycle. Plesk Obsidian will step in to make life considerably easier for developers, system administrators and other web pros, as well as for agencies and hosting resellers.
We improved the already successful Plesk Advisor extension with a variety of new and innovative features. Thus, making server, app, and website management easy for everyone. Security is, as usual, also on our map: Mod Security and Fail2ban become active as soon as you install.
#3: Website Management: A Simplified Experience
The customers of 2020 will have more control over the experience they demand. Immediate resolution will not be fast enough as customers will expect companies to proactively address their current and future needs. Plesk Obsidian proposes a brand new and compelling UX which makes website management as easy as pie. Plus, it fully aligns with how web professionals build, secure and run servers and applications that scale in the cloud.
This is an important step towards securing future revenues. Because customers will stop buying products that can’t resolve challenges quickly and in an intuitive and user-friendly way. Plesk Obsidian will thus provide a true competitive advantage and deliver a superior user experience.
Finally, we also tweaked the web installer, search and file manager functions, while adding more control via the new Restricted Access mode.
#4: Managed Services: To Ease Customers’ Minds
Managed services are becoming increasingly popular with businesses around the world. They take complexity off customers’ shoulders, while guaranteeing that “it simply works”. According to Reuters, the global managed service market is expected to grow from USD 180.5 billion (2018) to USD 282.0 billion by 2023, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.3%.
Adding the Plesk management layer to hosting services or managed WordPress offering helps grow beyond unmanaged services. Finally letting one tap into servicing business-critical applications. Furthermore, Plesk hosting providers can offer customers a valuable turnkey WordPress environment or managed WordPress offer in minutes. How? Through our constantly improving WordPress Toolkit.
Try Plesk Obsidian Preview before anyone else
Want to know what’s next? Just request access to the preview and test the new Plesk Obsidian Preview now. All we ask is that you give us your feedback in return. This will help us identify improvements, bugs, and make Plesk Obsidian even better.
But this is just a scratch on the surface – More great things are coming soon! Registered users will automatically receive updates on the latest preview version with even more features and enhancements.