Hey everyone,
I’m part of an internal working group at a healthcare provider with around 9,000 employees (roughly 500 of them in non-medical administration), and we’re currently having some pretty serious discussions about whether we could replace Microsoft 365 entirely with Nextcloud.
More specifically, we’re looking at:
Nextcloud Talk instead of Teams
Collabora or OnlyOffice instead of Word/Excel/PowerPoint
possibly Nextcloud Mail for internal communication instead of Outlook/Exchange
The main driver is honestly cost. The M365 licenses alone for our administrative staff add up to a significant amount every year. On top of that, GDPR and general data protection concerns are a major factor — especially in healthcare, where US-based cloud services tend to be viewed much more critically.
I’d really be interested to hear if anyone here has gone through a similar transition and could share some real-world experience.
Especially:
Has anyone actually replaced M365 completely with Nextcloud? How did it go?
Is Nextcloud Talk realistically usable as a day-to-day Teams replacement, or do you run into limitations quickly?
How well do Collabora or OnlyOffice work as substitutes for Word/Excel in practice? Where are the real pain points?
How did you handle user adoption? Telling people “we’re taking away Teams and Outlook” usually doesn’t go over particularly well 😅
Are there any healthcare-specific pitfalls we should be aware of? For example integrations with clinical systems, scheduling/on-call tools, and similar things?
We’re still very much in the early discussion phase, so honest opinions — including “don’t do it” experiences — are absolutely welcome.
Thanks in advance!

I know the discussion of ownCloud vs NextCloud is as old as time but most of those discussions focus on the photo and file syncing features. I wanna know if ownCloud or NextCloud would be better for office and collaborative work. Stuff like hosting and running Collabora, CalDAV, CardDAV, file sharing.

Hello guys, do you know about some alternative to OneDrive and NextCloud? I'm using NextCloud for photos sync between my phone and PC and I love it, but for the documents I'm not so happy with it.

For example when I open a Excel document in my phone that is on OneDrive and I make some changes then the changes are just there.

But when I do it from NextCloud file the file is downloaded to my phone and I have to upload it again after makes some changes.

Is there any alternative to work better than this?

I really want to give it another go to replace Microsoft 365 and be data sovereign. I'm technical enough to self-host and support via the team. What I'm not good at is finding best practice guides. For example;

- user lifecycle management? Where is that handled such that our users only have one set of credentials? Nextcloud?, Mailserver?, Keycloak or alternatives?
- email server? I'm familiar with Mailcow and how to host without spam, but how does that integrate, and again during user provisioning? And what about shared mailboxes, groups, delegations, aliases etc...I mean it says they have Nexcloud Groupware, but what is the server behind it then? What is best practice?
- Likewise with NextCloud Talk and NextCloud Office

Perhaps I am overthinking this, but to me it seems that the mail server is super important to glue things together and help with communication, but that is the part that isn't included. And pointers towards best practice?

I want to start moving away from all subscription based things for personal and family use. Want to protect files from AI data scraping etc. as well.

However, my understanding of critical software like Office is that its able to work due to exclusive and well-supported OneDrive infrastructure for seamless sync, multi-user working, etc. Would I still be able to use office with the same functionality but with my own NAS as the OneDrive alternative?

Or would I have to switch entirely to things like Nextcloud or Synology Office? Would things like extensions for Word still work and be stable? If a full switch, whats the best and most stable? If Synology, then can I use that on a DIY NAS or a U-g-r-e-e-n NAS?

Thank you!

EDIT: Also, why is mention of U-g-r-e-e-n not allowed? This is a re-submission post now. Are there issues with the product? Thanks

i would like to use it to dectralise and de google my contacts so they can be used on all devices across multiple OS but it's seeming quite a technical task just for that.

but if it provides other benefits i don't yet understand it could be worth doing.

currently on a journey of coming out of a heavy apple ecosystem and de googling also.

haven't quite figured what next cloud is though. it seems like a framework, to use... in the cloud.. instead of on a local ssd... but not an OS... but it's like an OS almost... yet it's not...

We're seeing more requirements for people to be able to get to their data wherever and whenever they need it.

Currently we're pretty traditional Windows servers + VPN to get to them.

OwnCloud/NextCloud is one solution but all staff have 365 E3 plans so another option is just give them a OneDrive for Business as this is mainly documents that are theirs rather than their group.

Being able to backup something on-site looks like the only thing going for the on-site solution?

I have noticed an increasing number of articles in the news that the EU needs to become less dependent on American big tech. EU companies and governments rely heavily on Google Workspace and Microsoft 365. These are American companies that the US can directly influence, which is becoming increasingly risky with current geopolitical tensions.

The US has intervened before, so it's not unrealistic. Examples:

• International Court of Justice in The Hague – In February 2025, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on court employees. This had direct consequences for European institutions and underscored how politically sensitive data in American cloud environments pose a risk.

• Amsterdam Trade Bank – The bank was hit by American sanctions in 2022 due to its Russian connections. Microsoft withdrew its cloud services, preventing the bank from operating and eventually leading to bankruptcy.

I read this Dutch article today discussing that Nextcloud (a German open-source solution) is currently the best potential alternative to Google/Microsoft, but there are still many areas for improvement such as problems with large-scale use, outdated user experience, no ready-made enterprise cloud solution, etc.

It seems important to me that the EU takes a stand and seriously invests in European cloud solutions.

I'm curious if other people/entrepreneurs in the tech sector are also working on this:

• Do you use alternatives to Microsoft 365/Google Workspace?

• What are your experiences with Nextcloud or other European solutions?

• How realistic is it to switch to a European alternative in the short term?

• What do you think needs to happen to create a truly competitive ecosystem?

Curious about your opinions/findings.

Do MSPs use NextCloud? If so, why? Privacy? If not, why not?

It seems like the ideal alternative for Microsoft 365 (maybe not an MSP-wide alternative, but more for privacy-aware customers).

I’ve recently started my Homelab journey (using an old pc) and I would like to make my own fully private google drive alternative. Unfortunately, Im in a bit of a dilemma when it comes to choosing between nextcloud and opencloud. What are the pros/cons of each platform? Which one is objectively better for absolute beginners? Any help on this topic would be greatly appreciated!

I have family and friends who use LibreOffice and sometimes we want to share documents with each other and work together on them. I decided to give Collabora a try on ownCloud. Although I haven't had any really bad experiences, I've had better. I like most of the functionality but I noticed that ownCloud permissions are lackluster and are absolutely limiting when you need some directories to not inherit ALL of the permissions of the parent directory. Another issue is, lag / delay. When inside of a Collabora document, or spreadsheet, I do notice some delay or lag (almost as if I'm using the software over an AnyDesk connection). Nontheless, it's pretty stable and I'm not having to bad of an experience. But I want to know if NextCloud has these issues / if Collabora is just as 'delayed' as it is in ownCloud.

I don't know what tag to use, I assume either media serving or business tools?
Please correct me if I got it wrong.

I am using seafile but lacking Online view for Docx / Xlsx in free version. Nexcloud looks heavy and bloated all i want is sync/upload files , share them like saefile easily , and able to preview.Is there anything lightweight like seafile and support viewing of docs like owncloud/nextcloud that is opensource ? Preferably written in Go/C/C++/Rust , not in PHP.

I'm reading more and more in the news about the EU needing to be less reliant on American big tech. Pretty much every company and government in the Netherlands uses Google Workspace and Microsoft 365. These are US companies, and the US can directly influence them, which is getting riskier with all the current geopolitical tension.

The US has interfered before, so it's not unrealistic. For example:

• International Court of Justice in The Hague –In February 2025the Trump administration imposed sanctions on court employees. This directly impacted European institutions and highlighted how politically sensitive data in American cloud environments is a risk.

• Amsterdam Trade Bank – The bank wasin 2022hit by US sanctions because of its Russian ties. Microsoft pulled its cloud services, crippling the bank, leading to its bankruptcy.

I read this article today discussing how Nextcloud (a German open-source solution) is currently the best potential alternative to Google/Microsoft, but it still has a lot of room for improvement, like issues with large-scale use, an outdated user experience, no ready-made enterprise cloud solution, etc.

It seems important that the EU steps up and seriously invests in European cloud solutions.

I'm curious if other people/entrepreneurs in the Dutch tech sector are working on this too:

• Are you using alternatives to Microsoft 365/Google Workspace?

• What are your experiences with Nextcloud or other European solutions?

• How realistic is it to switch to a European alternative in the short term?

• What do you think needs to happen to create a truly competitive ecosystem?

Looking forward to your thoughts/findings.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently using OneDrive (O365 Family) for 6 people, where each person has Office and 1TB of OneDrive. The issue is that two people are reaching the 1TB limit, so I’d like to find an alternative since it’s mostly used to store vacation/sports videos and photos.

Let me try to explain what I’ve tested so far and what my main requirements are, so maybe someone can suggest a good solution.

At the moment, I have a PC running Truenas Scale with Nextcloud (just for testing). The problem is that when I changed folder permissions to try and make some directories visible on PLEX, I basically broke the DB permissions, so I gave up — “too complicated.” Another issue with Nextcloud is that if I move files via SMB, they don’t get indexed.

So I’m looking for a solution where, ideally with just one app, I can manage documents for multiple people across devices. Something like OneDrive, Synology Drive, … would be perfect.

What I need from this app:

1. I’d like to manage users and folders easily, and especially be able to create shared folders (e.g., for vacation photos).

2. It must have both a desktop app and a mobile app (iPhone and Android) where I can sync camera rolls and also access other available files.

3. It needs to be easy to set up and maintain.

4. I need to be able to back it up externally.

5. Costs should be contained (low power consumption).

6. If possible, I’d like to access the files via SMB as well, and if I make changes, they should be visible.

I was already thinking about building a project with a NAS (something like AOOSTAR WTR PRO) or building one myself (I can assemble hardware and was considering motherboards with Ryzen 7 5825u). At work, I manage a Synology, but it’s mainly used just for data (mostly Synology Drive). The downside of Synology is the proprietary disks.

Does something like this exist?

Thanks

I'm currently running NextCloud through Snap, but it's a bit too bloated for my use case and E2EE it offers is lacking at best so I'm looking to experiment a bit.

I'm looking for an alternative that ideally has:

• good E2EE

• native apps for Linux, Windows and iOS

• runs in Docker

• documents can be opened in mobile app

What are your favourites for cloud storage?

Thanks for all advice!

With the announcement that OwnCloud will be dropping virtual file support with no replacement in place yet, I need an alternative that meets the following requirements:

1. Files on the server are stored as actual files, no storing as a different file structure or some form of block level or blob level abstraction.

2. Mobile client for Android and iOS that implements the native cloud storage interfaces.

3. Desktop clients for Linux and Windows that implement virtual file support (so files can be stored offline or as placeholders as needed) - This is the one OwnCloud are planning on violating.

4. Fully self-hosted.

5. Fully open source

6. Just focuses on file storage (this is not a HARD rule, but I'm discounting things that do things like calendars or document editing)

Ones I've discounted:

• OCIS (OwnCloud Infinite Scale) - Breaks #1, I know you can kind of work around it with external storage but that feels like a hack not a solution.

• NextCloud - Deeply breaks #6 to the point where I barely consider it a file management app.

• SeaFile - Breaks #1 and #3 Virtual file support acts more like a network drive, I need offline access for some files, but not for most, and I would like to be able to toggle that behavior on a file or directory level.

Any suggestions?

We use Outlook and Office365 (mostly just word and excel, occasionally power point) and Ms Teams. About 20 staff members. We have lots of NAS available, as well as server power. I'm thinking Nextcloud?

Any tips? Anecdotes? Suggestions?

Update: I've been asked the same few questions more than once, I should clarify I actually don't mind Office365, what I can't fucking stand is Windows, and as far as I'm aware, only Ms Teams has a native linux binary. So that's why the questions about switching to Office365 alternatives. Doesn't even have to be cloud based document editing, could just be Libre native tools with clever network sync or something.