I am asking this question here because I am getting conflicting answers from 2 different AI search engines and I want a link to point the incorrect one to.
Source1: In the GPL version of Virtualmin, there is no separate tab for Webmin; instead, Virtualmin operates as a module within Webmin, meaning you manage everything through the Webmin interface. You can access Virtualmin features from the Webmin dashboard without needing a distinct tab for each.
Source2: Yes, the Virtualmin GPL interface features separate navigation tabs at the top of the left-hand menu to switch between Webmin and Virtualmin. [1]
I know the following to be a fact: I told the installer to install both. I have most of the functions of virtualmin. I do not have a separate tab. I am also sure that I read that somewhere here that there were no longer separate tabs.
If this is an error to update an old page that source2, please do not think I am being critical I am just reporting a confusing issue. With over a 1000 pages of documentation online it is very hard to update everything.
Virtualmin virtual-server is a Webmin module, so it cannot run without Webmin. Plugins such as Virtualmin WP Workbench, Virtualmin Podman, and Virtualmin Nginx are technically Webmin modules as well.
This is the same in both GPL and Pro. The overall UI layout and tabs are the same. Pro simply includes additional features and plugins that aren’t available in GPL.
What changes the menu layout is the login type. The docs page is up-to-date. Confusion here is about the different login types rather than outdated documentation.
The master administrator login, essentially Webmin root, sees two switches at the top of the left-hand menu: Webmin and Virtualmin.
Lastly, I wouldn’t recommend installing Virtualmin manually. The best way is to use the official Virtualmin installation script on a fresh, supported OS. And, I think I indirectly answered your question in my previous response, where I also explained how to install Virtualmin on Ubuntu 26.04:
I thought I did install it. I don’t have two tabs when logging in as root so perhaps I did not.
No real sites there yet. I did create one virtual server in addition to the default server that has the same name and points to the default location. Should I delete that?
Is it safe to do the automated install as you posted in the other thread?
I can always wipe it all and start again if I need to do so.
If you’re not sure, just start over. Spin up a clean new Ubuntu 26.04 TLS server, then run the installation command I linked in my previous post, and that’s it.
It’s not only safe but also the only recommended way to install it.
However, Ubuntu 26.04 is not yet fully supported in the stable repos, but support is coming soon.
To make experience more smooth, you could add the --branch unstable flag to the installation command to install the latest development version, and then downgrade the repos to stable using virtualmin setup-repos --branch stable right after.
It will work fine for now. When the next Virtualmin version is released, it will replace the development version. With Virtualmin 8.1.0 this is the way to go for Ubuntu 26.04.
And you could always use Ubuntu 24.04 for the time being if you want a more stable experience.
I was about to ask a similar question because for some reason my webmin tab had dissapeared and I only had a virtualmin tab and a dahsboard tab. I simply looged out and then logged back in and it was back to normal, not sure why it did that.
