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How to Preview Your Website in Plesk

This guide shows you how to look at your website in Plesk before your domain points to the server. Nobody else will see the change.

Domains and DNS2 min read11 steps1 screenshots

Why preview?

When you build a new site, your domain may still point to an old host. You want to check the new site first. A preview is like a rehearsal before opening night. You see your work, and the public sees nothing.

What is Plesk?

Plesk is a control panel. A control panel is a web page where you manage your hosting with buttons. Plesk has a built-in preview tool.

Method 1: Website Preview

  1. Log in to Plesk. Your login details are in your welcome email.
  2. Click Websites & Domains in the left menu.
  3. Find your domain.
  4. Click Preview Website. It sits under the domain name.
    Screenshot: Click Preview Website . It sits under the domain name.
  5. A new tab opens. It shows your site as it is on this server.

Some pages may look broken. The preview uses a temporary address, so some links may point to your real domain.

Method 2: Edit your hosts file

The hosts file is a small file on your own computer. It tells your computer where to find a domain, before it asks DNS. DNS is the internet's phone book. With this trick, only your computer sees the new server.

  1. Find your server's IP address. It is in your welcome email or in Plesk.
  2. Open Notepad as Administrator on Windows. On Mac or Linux, open Terminal.
  3. Open the hosts file. On Windows it is C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts. On Mac and Linux it is /etc/hosts.
  4. Add a line at the bottom with the IP, then the domain.
203.0.113.10 yourdomain.com www.yourdomain.com

This sends your own computer to the new server. Replace the example IP with your real one.

  1. Save the file.
  2. Open your domain in a browser.
Warning: Remove the line when you finish. If you forget, your computer keeps going to that server, even after you move.

If the preview shows an error

  • Check that your files are in the domain's document root. That is the folder where the site's files live.
  • Check that you have an index.html or index.php file.

Open a support ticket if you need help.

Quick recap

  • A preview lets you see your site before going live.
  • In Plesk, click Preview Website under your domain.
  • Or edit your hosts file to test the real domain name.
  • Remove hosts file lines when finished.