Admin Panel Overview

Introduction to the Pterodactyl Panel administration area

The Pterodactyl Panel administration area provides comprehensive tools for managing your entire game server hosting platform. As an administrator, you have full control over users, servers, nodes, and system configuration.

Accessing the Admin Panel

Administrators can access the admin panel by:

1. Logging in with an account that has root_admin permissions
2. Clicking on the admin menu in the top navigation bar
3. Navigating directly to /admin on your Panel installation

Only users with the root_admin flag set to true can access the admin panel. This is stored in the users table.

Admin Dashboard

The admin dashboard provides an overview of your entire Pterodactyl installation:

• System Statistics: Total servers, users, nodes, and resource allocation
• Recent Activity: Latest server creations and user registrations
• Node Status: Health and resource usage across all nodes
• Version Information: Current Panel and Wings versions

Key Admin Sections

Users

Manage user accounts, permissions, and access levels

Servers

Create, configure, and manage game servers

Nodes

Add and configure physical/virtual nodes

Locations

Organize nodes by geographic location

Nests & Eggs

Configure game types and server configurations

Mounts

Manage shared directories across servers

Database Hosts

Configure MySQL/MariaDB database servers

Settings

System-wide configuration and settings

User Levels

Pterodactyl has two user levels defined in the User model:

• Regular User (USER_LEVEL_USER = 0): Standard user with access to their servers
• Administrator (USER_LEVEL_ADMIN = 1): Full administrative access

public const USER_LEVEL_USER = 0;
public const USER_LEVEL_ADMIN = 1;

Common Admin Tasks

Setting Up a New Installation

1. Create a Location

   Locations help organize your nodes geographically

2. Add a Node

   Configure at least one node to host servers

3. Configure Allocations

   Assign IP addresses and ports to the node

4. Import Nests & Eggs

   Install game configuration templates

5. Create Users

   Add user accounts for server owners

6. Deploy Servers

   Create servers for users on your nodes

Administrative Permissions

The admin panel operates with a simple permission model:

• Root Admin: Full access to all admin functions
• Regular User: No admin panel access

There is no granular permission system for administrators. Any user with root_admin = true has complete control over the Panel.

Best Practices

1. Limit Admin Access: Only grant root_admin to trusted individuals
2. Use 2FA: Enable two-factor authentication for all admin accounts
3. Regular Backups: Maintain backups of your Panel database
4. Monitor Activity: Review the activity log regularly for unauthorized changes
5. Update Regularly: Keep Panel and Wings updated to the latest versions

Activity Logging

All administrative actions are logged to the activity_log table, including:

• User creation and modification
• Server deployment and configuration changes
• Node updates
• Settings modifications

You can review activity logs to track changes and troubleshoot issues.

Next Steps

User Management

Learn how to create and manage user accounts

Node Setup

Configure your first node for hosting servers