The Calendar and Contacts Server (CCS) Plugin

CCS is the abbreviation for Calendar and Contacts Server. It is a plugin which enables your cPanel users to manage their accounts related to calendar (CalDAV) and contacts (CardDAV) from your cPanel & WHM server.

CCS becomes the main tool with regard to calendar and contacts when this plugin is installed. The information is kept available in Horde by your server. The users of cPanel and Webmail won’t be able to connect to the Horde address book or calendar anymore.

Now, what is Horde? The Horde Groupware Webmail Edition is a browser-based, free, communication suite that can be expanded with the Horde Project’s standards compliant components. This enterprise ready webmail not only enables users to read, organize and send email messages but also lets them share and manage calendars, contacts, notes, files, bookmarks, and tasks.

Let us touch upon what a webmail is, for the benefit of the uninitiated.

Webmail

Web-based email or webmail is an email service or system that can be accessed through a standard web browser. It enables a user to access emails through the browser of any Internet connected computer or device. Webmail software such as Horde, Roundcube, SquirrelMail, etc. enable webmail access by being installed and run on email server. Webmail lets you receive as well as send email anywhere from a web browser. This is its main benefit. Webmail is included in the Internet service packages of many Internet service providers, as well as in the hosting packages of some hosting service providers. This hosting service is provided by web hosting companies.

A web hosting company, which is also referred to as a web host, provides the service of web hosting which is meant to render websites accessible over the Internet. In web hosting, server space is provided to host the files of websites. It also provides all the necessary technology and services that aid in transferring the web content stored on the servers to the clients (Internet-connected devices) that had requested for the web content. Web hosting can be of many types, such as shared, reseller, VPS, dedicated, cloud, WordPress, etc. Terms such as the “Best Website Hosting Company”, the “Best Windows Hosting Company”, the “Best Cloud Hosting Company” etc. are used for such web hosting service providers that are renowned for providing the best quality of service at affordable prices, such as HTS Hosting.

Now let us return to our main topic and elaborate on the Calendar and Contacts Server (CCS) plugin.

The CCS Plugin

The Calendar and Contacts Server (CCS) plugin is compatible with CentOS 7 and 8, AlmaLinux 8, CloudLinux 7 and 8, and with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. It is not compatible with CentOS 6, CloudLinux 6, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, and with Amazon Linux. The shared address book of Horde isn’t supported by this plugin either.

Installation of the Calendar and Contacts Server (CCS) Plugin

You need to carry out the following steps in order to install the CCS plugin:

• Navigate to the Manage Plugins interface of WHM.

          WHM >> Home >> cPanel >> Manage Plugins

• Click Install “Calendar and Contacts Server”. Once the installation process gets completed, you will get a message regarding its successful completion.

Now your cPanel users can connect CCS to Horde, Roundcube, or other applications. You need to enter port 2079 or 2080 while you are setting up the server name and port.

It needs to be noted that as a system administrator, you are able to access CCS data directly through ports 2079 and 2080. It is also possible for you to manage CCS data through Horde, Roundcube, or through the other applications.

The Uninstallation of the Calendar and Contacts Server (CCS) Plugin

You need to carry out the following steps in order to uninstall the CCS plugin:

• Navigate to the Manage Plugins interface of WHM.

          WHM >> Home >> cPanel >> Manage Plugins

• Click Uninstall “Calendar and Contacts Server”. Once the uninstallation process gets completed, you will get a message regarding its successful completion.

You need to be warned here that the entire CCS data is erased by the system when you uninstall the CCS plugin.

The Z-Push - ActiveSync Support

You must remain aware of the following facts:

• Z-Push - ActiveSync Support is experimental.

• The requirements of this plugin include a minimum of 7 GB of RAM and 4 CPU cores.

• Calendar Delegation isn’t supported by this plugin.

EAS (Exchange ActiveSync) support is offered for CCS through the bundled Z-Push - ActiveSync Support plugin. Z-Push is a FOSS (Free and open-source software) implementation of the EAS protocol. It enables the synchronization of personal contacts, calendars, email and other items between a central server and a mobile device. Z-Push lets any PHP-based groupware package to sync fully with any device that is compliant with ActiveSync.

This additional plugin gets installed automatically when the CCS plugin is installed. This plugin gets seen only when CCS has been installed. Once this plugin has been installed, it becomes possible for your cPanel users to set up their contacts, calendars, and email on their mobile devices using EAS.

The logs for the Z-Push - ActiveSync Support plugin rotate regularly, once they become excessively large. You need to uninstall Z-Push, while letting CCS remain installed, if you do not require ActiveSync support for CCS.

Uninstallation of the Z-Push - ActiveSync Support Plugin

You need to carry out the following steps in order to uninstall the Z-Push - ActiveSync Support plugin:

• Navigate to the Manage Plugins interface of WHM.

           WHM >> Home >> cPanel >> Manage Plugins

• Click Uninstall “Z-Push - ActiveSync Support”. Once the uninstallation process gets completed, you will get a message regarding its successful completion.

Source:https://www.htshosting.org/knowledge-base/server/212/the-calendar-and-contacts-server-ccs-plugin