I’m currently working on porting some custom plugins I’ve previously developed for Plesk and cPanel to CyberPanel, and I’m running into some issues I hope you can help me with.

When installing my custom plugins, the installation usually completes without problems. However, when accessing the plugin from the CyberPanel interface, I frequently encounter 500 Internal Server Errors or generic “Internal Error” messages in the browser. These errors make debugging difficult, as there is no visible traceback or specific error message.

As a developer, I’d like to know the following:

1. How can I enable full debugging mode in CyberPanel (especially for Django-based plugins)?
2. Where exactly are the error logs stored when developing a custom plugin?
3. Is there a way to see full Django error tracebacks or logs in real time while testing a plugin?
4. Are there any recommended best practices when developing and testing plugins (like environment variables, dev mode, or CLI commands)?
5. Can I configure CyberPanel to show debug messages on the frontend (temporarily) during development?

Any documentation links or guidance from the CyberPanel team or experienced developers would be greatly appreciated. I believe having this setup would greatly help not only me, but other developers interested in contributing to the CyberPanel ecosystem with custom plugins.

Thanks in advance!

@usmannasir

Welcome to CyberPanel plugin development! Here’s a detailed guide to enable debugging and troubleshoot your plugins effectively.

1. Enable Debug Mode

Create a debug flag file to enable detailed logging:
touch /usr/local/CyberCP/debug

This activates debug logging throughout CyberPanel, including detailed request/response logging.

2. Django Debug Configuration

Edit /usr/local/CyberCP/CyberCP/settings.py:

Change DEBUG from False to True

DEBUG = True

Add your development domain to ALLOWED_HOSTS

ALLOWED_HOSTS = [‘*’] # For development only!

Important: Remember to set DEBUG = False in production!

3. Error Log Locations

CyberPanel logs are stored in multiple locations:

Main CyberPanel log

/home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt

Django/LSCPD logs

/usr/local/lscp/logs/error.log
/usr/local/lscp/logs/stderr.log

Custom plugin logs (if using CyberCPLogFileWriter)

/home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt

4. Real-time Log Monitoring

Monitor logs in real-time while testing:

Watch all relevant logs simultaneously

tail -f /home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt /usr/local/lscp/logs/error.log

5. Plugin Development Best Practices

A. Logging in Your Plugin

Use CyberPanel’s logging system:
from plogical.CyberCPLogFileWriter import CyberCPLogFileWriter as logging

In your plugin code

logging.writeToFile(“Debug: Entering my_function”)
logging.writeToFile(f"Variable value: {my_variable}")

B. Exception Handling

Always wrap your code with proper exception handling:
try:
# Your plugin logic here
result = perform_operation()
logging.writeToFile(f"Operation successful: {result}“)
except Exception as e:
# Log the full traceback
import traceback
error_msg = str(traceback.format_exc())
logging.writeToFile(f"Plugin Error: {error_msg}”)

  # Return proper error response
  return HttpResponse(json.dumps({
      'status': 0,
      'error_message': str(e)
  }))

C. Debug-Specific Code

Add debug-only code blocks:
from plogical.processUtilities import ProcessUtilities
import os

if os.path.exists(ProcessUtilities.debugPath):
logging.writeToFile(“=== DEBUG MODE ACTIVE ===”)
logging.writeToFile(f"Request method: {request.method}“)
logging.writeToFile(f"Request body: {request.body}”)
logging.writeToFile(f"Request path: {request.path}")

6. Common 500 Error Causes & Solutions

A. Import Errors

Always use absolute imports

from websiteFunctions.models import Websites # Good
from models import Websites # Bad - may cause import errors

B. Permission Issues

Ensure your plugin files have correct permissions:
chown -R cyberpanel:cyberpanel /usr/local/CyberCP/your_plugin/
chmod -R 755 /usr/local/CyberCP/your_plugin/

C. URL Pattern Issues

Register your URLs properly in your plugin’s urls.py:
from django.urls import path
from . import views

urlpatterns = [
path(‘your_endpoint/’, views.your_view, name=‘your_view_name’),
]

7. Development Workflow

8. Enable debugging:
   touch /usr/local/CyberCP/debug
   systemctl restart lscpd

9. Make changes to your plugin

10. Restart CyberPanel:
    systemctl restart lscpd

11. Test and monitor logs:
    tail -f /home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt

12. Check browser console for JavaScript errors (F12)

13. Advanced Debugging Techniques

A. Print SQL Queries

from django.db import connection
print(connection.queries) # Shows all SQL queries

B. Interactive Debugging

Use Django shell for testing:
cd /usr/local/CyberCP
python manage.py shell

Then test your models and functions:
from your_plugin.models import YourModel
YourModel.objects.all()

C. Custom Middleware Debugging

If your plugin uses middleware, ensure it doesn’t interfere with secMiddleware.py.

9. Frontend Debugging

For AngularJS-based interfaces:
// Add to your controller
console.log(‘Debug: Controller loaded’);
console.log(‘Response:’, response.data);

// Use $scope for debugging
$scope.debugMode = true; // Show debug info in template

10. Testing Checklist

Before deploying:

• Remove all print() statements
• Set DEBUG = False
• Test with debug mode OFF
• Check all error handling
• Verify logging works correctly
• Test on fresh CyberPanel installation

Quick Debug Commands Reference

Enable debug mode

touch /usr/local/CyberCP/debug

Disable debug mode

rm -f /usr/local/CyberCP/debug

Restart CyberPanel

systemctl restart lscpd

View recent errors

tail -n 100 /home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt

Clear log file (for testing)

/home/cyberpanel/error-logs.txt

Pro Tips:

1. Use ACL Manager for permission checks in your views
2. Follow CyberPanel’s coding patterns - study existing plugins
3. Test with different user roles (admin, reseller, user)
4. Use CyberPanel’s built-in utilities (ProcessUtilities, ACLManager, etc.)
5. Always validate and sanitize input - check secMiddleware.py for examples

Good luck with your plugin development! The CyberPanel community is here to help if you encounter specific issues.