Hey everyone! I need help finding a good open source document editing solution that I can run on my own server. The main issue with Google Docs is that you can’t install it locally on your machine. I want something similar but with the ability to host it myself.
Basically I’m looking for:
Web-based document editing
Collaborative features would be nice
Can be installed on my own hardware
Completely free and open source
Has anyone here set up something like this before? I’d really appreciate any suggestions you might have. Thanks in advance for your help!
I’ve been running OnlyOffice Document Server for two years now - pretty solid for my small team. The interface feels familiar if you’re coming from Microsoft Office, and collaborative editing works smoothly without lag. Docker installation was straightforward, but make sure you have enough RAM since it gets resource-heavy with multiple users. The community edition is free, but some features like version history are limited compared to the paid version. For basic documents and real-time collaboration though, it handles everything we need. Mobile support through browsers works well too - handy for quick edits on the go.
I’ve been using Nextcloud Office for a year now and it’s been great. You get document editing and cloud storage together since it plugs right into Nextcloud’s file system. Setup’s pretty straightforward through the app store once Nextcloud’s running. What I really like is you can pick your backend - either Collabora Online or OnlyOffice works. It runs fine on basic hardware, though I’d grab at least 4GB RAM to keep things smooth. Real-time collaboration works well, and since it’s all local, your data stays completely private.
CryptPad’s worth a look - way more privacy-focused than the others. Runs much lighter than OnlyOffice and collaboration works well. I’ve been running it on a Pi 4 for months with zero problems. Interface is weird at first, but it’s fast once you get the hang of it.