OpenDesk as a Managed Service

A workplace that belongs to you: email, office, chat, video and more in one suite.
RiKuWe operates OpenDesk for your organization, with no dependence on US corporations and no per-user license fees.

What is OpenDesk and who is it for?​

OpenDesk is an integrated workplace built from open-source applications under one shared interface. It is developed by the Centre for Digital Sovereignty (ZenDiS) on behalf of the German federal government, originally for public administration.

It is aimed at organizations that want to collaborate productively while deciding for themselves where their data lives:

• Authorities, municipalities and public institutions
• Companies with high demands on data protection and compliance
• Organizations that want to move away from Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace

Why OpenDesk?​

Replacing Microsoft 365 does not mean picking and wiring up every tool yourself. OpenDesk delivers the building blocks already matched to each other, with a single sign-on.

• Sovereignty: You decide on location and operation. The source code is open and auditable.
• No per-user license costs, no dependence on a single vendor.
• Open standards make data takeover and switching easier.
• Operation in Austria or the EU, GDPR-compliant.

Public institutions show that this works at scale. BWI signed a framework agreement with ZenDiS to provide OpenDesk to the Bundeswehr. The Robert Koch Institute uses OpenDesk for Agora, the platform of the public health service. According to the same source, the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency and the Federal IT Cooperation (FITKO) also use OpenDesk.

What is included?​

OpenDesk bundles proven open-source projects. You can find the current scope on the OpenDesk homepage.

• Files: Nextcloud for file storage, sharing and collaboration. We also operate Nextcloud as a standalone service.
• Diagrams and whiteboards: CryptPad with diagrams.net, end-to-end encrypted. Also available from us as a standalone service.
• Video conferencing: Jitsi for meetings without third parties. Also bookable on its own.
• Office: Collabora Online for documents, spreadsheets and presentations together in the browser.
• Email, calendar, contacts and tasks: Open-Xchange as the groupware core.
• Chat: Element based on the Matrix protocol for teams and direct messages.
• Projects: OpenProject for planning, tasks and timelines.
• Knowledge: XWiki as wiki and knowledge base.
• Notes: a note-taking tool for quick, shared records.
• Portal and identity: Nubus for central sign-in and user management. If you manage users elsewhere, we also connect Keycloak.

What We Offer​

We operate your OpenDesk instance, either:

• On your own infrastructure (on-prem, private cloud, KubernetesKubernetes is a system for managing containerized applications – automated, scalable, and fault-tolerant. Learn more →)
• On our infrastructure (e.g. hosted in Austria)

As part of that, we handle:

• Installation and configuration of all components
• Integration with your domains, directory and authentication
• Migration of existing mailboxes, calendars and files from Microsoft 365, Google Workspace or other systems
• Updates along the OpenDesk releases, monitoringMonitoring spots problems before they escalate – active oversight, not just reacting. Learn more → and backupsBackups are the life insurance of digital systems. Learn more →

Licensing​

OpenDesk is open source. The included applications are released under their own open-source licenses, so no per-user license fees apply. Some vendors optionally offer commercial support or extended editions. If you need that, we advise on the right licensing option; we do not handle license procurement itself.

Frequently Asked Questions​

OpenDesk – Professionally Operated by RiKuWe​

A sovereign workplace is only as good as its operation. We make sure ten open-source projects become one suite that simply works every morning. You do the work, we take care of the rest.

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