A fully open source alternative to Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, hosted privately and run by an organisation that shares your values.
Every month, most organisations send money to Microsoft or Google for tools they could run privately, sustainably, and on their own terms. That money leaves the local economy and goes towards products built to keep you locked in, not to serve you.
The Ethical Computing Package is our answer: a complete, open source IT stack that covers everything a typical Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace subscription does, built entirely on software that is free to inspect, free to move, and free to leave.
You can run it yourself. We would rather you didn’t have to.
What it replaces
| What you need | The proprietary version | The Ethical Computing Package |
|---|---|---|
| Login and identity | Microsoft Entra ID / Google Workspace | Univention Corporate Server |
| Files, sync and version history | OneDrive / Google Drive | Nextcloud |
| Documents, spreadsheets and slides | Word, Excel, PowerPoint | LibreOffice on the desktop, OnlyOffice in the browser |
| Outlook / Gmail | Any IMAP mailbox you choose, including Proton | |
| Meetings and chat | Teams / Google Meet | Nextcloud Talk |
| Tasks and projects | Planner / Google Tasks | Nextcloud Deck |
| Notes | OneNote / Google Keep | Nextcloud Notes |
| Forms and surveys | Microsoft Forms / Google Forms | Nextcloud Forms |
| Whiteboarding | Microsoft Whiteboard / Jamboard | Nextcloud Whiteboard |
| Passwords | Usually nothing, or a paid extra | A Mozilla account, or Bitwarden if you want more |
| Malware and intrusion protection | Microsoft Defender | ClamAV as standard, Sandfly for a deeper level of protection |
How it works
Login and identity
Univention Corporate Server handles who you are and what you can access, in the same way Entra ID or Google Workspace does today. It works with Linux, Windows, MacOS and mobile devices. Windows machines join the domain using the tools already built into Windows, no extra software required.
Files
Nextcloud keeps your files synced, backed up, and available everywhere. Every file has version history, and anything deleted goes to a recovery area first rather than disappearing. Files sync automatically once a device is set up, with no ongoing effort from the user.
Documents
Open a file locally in LibreOffice for full editing power, or work on it directly in a browser with OnlyOffice, including real-time editing with other people at the same time. You are not tied to one or the other.
We do not force you onto one email provider. If you already use IMAP, Proton, or even Microsoft 365 while you plan a move away from it, Thunderbird will connect. Email signatures are deployed automatically, so nobody needs to set theirs up by hand.
Meetings and chat
Nextcloud Talk covers video calls and messaging, running on infrastructure you control rather than a third party’s servers.
Tasks, notes, forms and whiteboarding
Nextcloud Deck gives you kanban-style boards for tasks and projects. Notes covers quick capture. Forms replaces Microsoft Forms or Google Forms for surveys and feedback. Whiteboard covers visual planning and brainstorming. All of it lives in the same place as your files, with nothing to log into separately.
Passwords
A Mozilla account covers the basics for anyone using Firefox. For organisations who want a dedicated password manager, we offer Bitwarden as a paid option, as an authorised reseller.
Security
Every deployment includes ClamAV as standard. For organisations who want a deeper level of protection, Sandfly monitors for intrusions and compromised systems without installing anything permanent on your machines.
Proven, not theoretical
We have tested this stack ourselves before offering it to anyone else.
- Linux desktops join the domain and sync files automatically
- Windows machines and iMacs join the domain using the standard Windows tools, first time, no workarounds
- The Nextcloud mobile app works as expected for files, calendar and contacts
- Real-time co-editing in the browser works, including with multiple people in the same document
- Email signatures deploy automatically across Thunderbird users
- The whole stack runs on a private cloud server, with daily backups and easy recovery
Moving away from Microsoft or Google
Migrating mailboxes and files is something we already know how to do, including DNS and MX record changes, and migration tools such as MigrationWiz where they help. Some proprietary file formats do not move cleanly between systems. That is rarely a limitation of open source software. It is usually a deliberate choice by the vendor whose format it is.
Two ways to use this
Supported
We build it, host it, and run it for you. Pricing is based on the server specification you need plus a per-user fee, with the option to rent desktops and laptops rather than buy them outright.
Open
Every part of this stack is open source. Nothing here depends on us specifically. We are documenting how we build and run it, and we will publish that documentation as it matures, so that anyone can deploy it themselves if that is what they would rather do.
Roadmap
This stack is under active development. We are working on a number of extras to add on top of what is already here, and we will update this page as they become available.
Get involved
If this sounds like what your organisation needs, get in touch or find out more about getting involved with the wider project.