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MyWeb Tutorials: File Manager & HTML page

In this tutorial, we will create a simple HTML page and navigate through the website's files.

Accessing the File Manager
  • Log in to MyWeb (DirectAdmin)
  • From the main dashboard, click File Manager

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  • You will see a directory tree showing files and folders associated with your account

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Understanding the File Structure

Your account contains several folders. The most important ones are:

πŸ“ public_html (Most Important)

This is where your website files go

πŸ“ public_ftp

  • Used for FTP access
  • Typically not used unless you connect using an FTP client
  • Does not automatically publish files to the web

πŸ“ Other folders you may see

  • logs – Website access/error logs
  • domains – Used when multiple domains/subdomains exist
  • System folders – Should not be modified

Do not delete folders unless instructed

Creating or Uploading Files

Inside public_html, you can:

  • Upload files (HTML, PHP, images, CSS, JS)
  • Create new files
  • Create subfolders (e.g., images, css, js)

Example structure:

public_html/
β”œβ”€β”€ index.html
β”œβ”€β”€ about.html
β”œβ”€β”€ css/
β”‚   └── style.css
β”œβ”€β”€ images/
β”‚   └── logo.png
Website Entry (Starting) Files

When someone visits your website, the web server looks for default index files.

Common starting files:

  • index.html
  • index.php

If both index.html and index.php exist, index.html will win and load first

When to Use HTML vs PHP

Use HTML (.html) when:

  • Your site is static
  • No database or server logic is needed
  • You are learning basic web structure

Use PHP (.php) when:

  • You need server-side logic
  • You connect to a database
  • You process forms or user input
Quick Tips & Common Mistakes

βœ” Always place website files in public_html
βœ” File names are case-sensitive (Index.html β‰  index.html)
βœ” One index file per folder is enough
❌ Don’t delete system folders
❌ Don’t expect files outside public_html to be public

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Create Your first HTML page

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  • From "File Manager", go to "public_html"
  • Optional: backup your current index.html file (rename it to index.html-backup)

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  • Create a new file index.html

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  • Right-click on the newly created index.html file and select "Edit"


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  • In the new page, place your code, or optionally, copy the following code:
    <!DOCTYPE html>
    <html lang="en">
    <head>
        <meta charset="UTF-8">
        <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
        <title>Your Name - Personal Site</title>
        <!-- You can add CSS styling here or link an external CSS file -->
        <style>
            body {
                font-family: sans-serif;
                margin: 40px;
                line-height: 1.6;
            }
            h1 {
                color: #333;
            }
            p {
                color: #666;
            }
        </style>
    </head>
    <body>
        <h1>Hello, I'm [Your Name]</h1>
        <p>Welcome to my personal website!</p>
        <p>I am a student at School of Computer Science at the University of Windsor, and you can learn more about me on this page.</p>
        
        <h2>Interests</h2>
        <ul>
            <li>Coding</li>
            <li>Design</li>
            <li>[Your Other Interest]</li>
        </ul>
    
        <h2>Contact</h2>
        <p>You can reach me via email at [your email address].</p>
    </body>
    </html>
    

  • Then "Save" the page and your refresh your website at https://yourusername.myweb.cs.uwindsor.caΒ 

Congratulations! You created your first website :)

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