Locate the Website Web Root Folder

Locate the Website Web Root Folder

Locate the public website folder that serves your store domain before placing KitConnect or another server-side file that must be reachable from the browser.

The correct web root is the public folder for the live store domain. It commonly contains index.php or index.html. On some platforms, the public web root is a subfolder such as public or pub rather than the top project folder.

Choose the matching use case

cPanel Check the Document Root for the domain, then open that folder in File Manager.

DirectAdmin Open the domain path under domains and continue into public_html.

Plesk Use the Document root shown under the domain settings.

aaPanel Open the website list and read the Root directory for the site.

CyberPanel Check the website management view for the Document Root path.

HestiaCP Open the web-domain settings and use the public_html path for that domain.

CloudPanel Read the site path under the site details, then open that directory.

SFTP or FTP access Check the common public-folder names and confirm the folder that contains the live site files.

Custom Nginx or Apache path Read the active web-server configuration and use the configured root path.

Verify the folder safely Create a temporary text file and load it from the browser to confirm the path.

Before you begin

Prepare the access method that applies to your hosting:

• a hosting control panel such as cPanel, DirectAdmin, Plesk, aaPanel, CyberPanel, HestiaCP, or CloudPanel; or
• SFTP or FTP access through a file-transfer tool such as FileZilla or WinSCP.

If you do not know which hosting setup you have, ask the hosting provider or site owner which control panel or file-access method is available for the store.

cPanel

Use cPanel when the site is hosted on shared hosting or on a server managed through cPanel.

1. Sign in to cPanel.
2. Open Domains.
3. Find the store domain and read the Document Root column.
4. Open File Manager.
5. Browse to that exact path.
6. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files, such as index.php or index.html.

Common cPanel paths:

public_html
public_html/example.com

If the store is the primary domain, the web root is often public_html. If the store is an addon domain, the web root can be a domain-specific subfolder.

DirectAdmin

1. Sign in to DirectAdmin.
2. Open File Manager.
3. Browse to the domain folder.
4. Open public_html inside that domain folder.
5. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.

Typical DirectAdmin path:

domains/example.com/public_html

Plesk

1. Sign in to Plesk.
2. Open Websites & Domains.
3. Select the store domain.
4. Read the Document root path shown for that domain.
5. Open File Manager and browse to that path.
6. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.

Typical Plesk path:

httpdocs

Some Plesk installations on Linux use a full path similar to the following:

/var/www/vhosts/example.com/httpdocs

aaPanel

1. Sign in to aaPanel.
2. Open Website.
3. Find the store domain.
4. Read the Root directory shown for that site.
5. Open that path in the panel file manager.
6. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.

Typical aaPanel path:

/www/wwwroot/example.com

CyberPanel

1. Sign in to CyberPanel.
2. Open Websites > List Websites.
3. Select Manage for the store domain.
4. Read the Document Root value.
5. Open the file manager or connect through SFTP to that path.
6. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.

Typical CyberPanel path:

/home/example.com/public_html

HestiaCP

1. Sign in to HestiaCP.
2. Open Web.
3. Select the store domain.
4. Review the website path for that domain.
5. Open the matching path through the file manager or SFTP.
6. Confirm that the public site files are in public_html for that domain.

Typical HestiaCP path:

/home/username/web/example.com/public_html

CloudPanel

1. Sign in to CloudPanel.
2. Open Sites.
3. Select the store domain.
4. Read the site path shown in the site details.
5. Open that path through the panel or SFTP.
6. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.

Typical CloudPanel path:

/home/username/htdocs/example.com

SFTP or FTP access

Use this path when you have file-access credentials but do not have a hosting panel or need to double-check the folder directly.

1. Connect with SFTP or FTP using a file-transfer tool such as FileZilla or WinSCP.
2. In the remote file pane, look for the folder that serves the public website.
3. Check the common public-folder names below.
4. Open the most likely folder.
5. Confirm that the folder contains the public site files.
6. If more than one possible folder exists, use the verification method in Verify the Folder Safely.

Common public-folder names:

public_html
httpdocs
www
htdocs
web
wwwroot

Common full paths:

/var/www/html
/var/www/example.com
/usr/share/nginx/html

Custom Nginx or Apache path

Use this section when the site owner or host says the domain uses a custom document root and the hosting environment lets you read the active configuration files through the file manager or through SFTP.

Nginx configuration

Open the active Nginx site configuration and find the root directive for the correct server_name.

Common configuration locations:

/etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
/etc/nginx/conf.d/
/etc/nginx/nginx.conf

Example:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example.com/public;
    index index.php index.html;
}

In this example, the public web root is:

/var/www/example.com/public

Apache configuration

Open the active Apache virtual-host configuration and find the DocumentRoot directive for the correct domain.

Common configuration locations:

/etc/apache2/sites-enabled/
/etc/apache2/sites-available/
/etc/httpd/conf.d/
/etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf

Example:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName example.com
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/example.com

    <Directory /var/www/html/example.com>
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

In this example, the public web root is:

/var/www/html/example.com

Framework subfolders

Some PHP applications use a public subfolder as the browser-facing root. Use the exact path configured in the web server. Typical examples include:

/var/www/example.com/public
/var/www/magento/pub

Do not upload KitConnect to the top project folder when the configured web root is a deeper public folder.

Verify the folder safely

Use this check when you want to confirm that the folder is truly the public web root.

1. In the suspected web-root folder, create a file named check-root.txt.
2. Put a short value in the file, for example 12345.
3. Save the file.
4. Open the browser and go to https://your-store-domain/check-root.txt.
5. If the browser shows the file content, the folder is the correct public web root.
6. Delete check-root.txt after the test.

Example file content:

12345

If the browser returns 404 Not Found, the file is not in the active public web root for that domain.

Common mistakes

• Using the top project folder when the public web root is a subfolder such as public or pub.
• Uploading to the wrong domain folder on multi-site hosting.
• Assuming the web root is always public_html without checking the actual domain path.
• Leaving the temporary verification file in place after the test.

Next Steps

Install KitConnect Continue when you need to place the KitConnect package in the correct public web root.

Use File Transfer Tools Continue when you need SFTP, FTP, or hosting File Manager steps for the upload itself.

Troubleshoot Connection Setup Continue when the file is uploaded but the public URL still does not work.