openDesk Deployment Automation

Overview

openDesk is a Kubernetes-based, open-source and cloud-native digital workplace suite provided by the Zentrum für Digitale Souveränität der Öffentlichen Verwaltung (ZenDiS) GmbH.

For production use, the openDesk Enterprise Edition is recommended.

openDesk currently features the following functional main components:

Function	Functional component	License	Component version	Upstream documentation
Chat & collaboration	Element ft. Nordeck widgets	AGPL-3.0-or-later (Element Web), AGPL-3.0-only (Synapse), Apache-2.0 (Nordeck widgets)	1.12.6	For the most recent release
Collaborative notes	Notes (aka Docs)	MIT	4.4.0	Online documentation/welcome document available in installed application
Diagram editor	CryptPad ft. diagrams.net	AGPL-3.0-only	2025.9.0	For the most recent release
File management	Nextcloud	AGPL-3.0-or-later	31.0.7	Nextcloud 31
Groupware	OX App Suite	GPL-2.0-only (backend), AGPL-3.0-or-later (frontend)	8.45	Online documentation available from within the installed application; Additional resources
Knowledge management	XWiki	LGPL-2.1-or-later	17.4.8	For the most recent release
Portal & IAM	Nubus	AGPL-3.0-or-later	1.16.0	Univention’s documentation website
Project management	OpenProject	GPL-3.0-only	16.6.5	For the most recent release
Videoconferencing	Jitsi	Apache-2.0	2.0.10590	For the most recent release
Weboffice	Collabora	MPL-2.0	25.04.7	Online documentation available from within the installed application; Additional resources

While not all components are perfectly designed for the execution inside containers, one of the project’s objectives is to align the applications with best practices regarding container design and operations.

This documentation aims to give you all that is needed to set up your own instance of the openDesk.

Basic knowledge of Kubernetes and DevOps processes is required though.

Upgrades

You want to upgrade an existing openDesk installation?

⟶ Visit our detailed documentation about Updates & Upgrades.

Requirements

You want to understand what is required to install openDesk yourself?

⟶ Visit our Requirements overview.

Getting started

You would like to install openDesk in your own infrastructure?

⟶ Visit our detailed Getting started guide.

Advanced customization

Architecture

More information on openDesk’s architecture can be found in our architecture documentation.

Testing

openDesk is continuously tested to ensure it meets high quality standards. Read how we test in openDesk in our testing concept.

Permissions

Find out more about the permission system in the roles & permissions concept

Releases

openDesk implements a defined release and patch management process to ensure stability and security.

All technical releases are created using Semantic Versioning.

Gitlab provides an overview on the releases of this project.

Please find a list of the artifacts related to the release either in the source code archive attached to the release or in the files from the release’s git-tag:

./helmfile/environments/default/images.yaml.gotmpl
./helmfile/environments/default/charts.yaml.gotmpl

Find more information in our Workflow documentation.

Data storage

More information about different data storages used within openDesk are described in the Data Storage documentation.

Feedback

We love to get feedback from you!

For feedback related to the deployment / contents of this repository, please use the issues within this project.

If you want to address other topics, please check the section “Rückmeldungen und Beteiligung” in the OVERVIEW.md of the openDesk Info Repository.

Development

If you want to join or contribute to the development of openDesk please read the Development guide.

License

This project uses the following license: Apache-2.0

openDesk Hilfe