With a rich feature set comes a certain degree of complexity. That’s why good documentation matters, especially in the form of video tutorials that make it easier to learn and navigate OpenProject. In this article, we share our approach to high-quality documentation and video content, and ask our video production manager Dicle what makes a great OpenProject video.
High quality software documentation
When we ask our users what they love about OpenProject, we often hear great feedback about our documentation. This is encouraging because we believe in clear, well-structured, and complete documentation as the foundation for user success.
With monthly releases, we also update our documentation regularly. Of course, our product team strives to make OpenProject as intuitive as possible. But as the platform grows, some features require extra explanation. After all, software is only as good as users’ ability to make the most of it.
That’s why high-quality documentation — and especially helpful video content — is so important to us.
User documentation in English, German, Spanish and French
High-quality documentation starts with accessibility. That’s why key parts of our comprehensive documentation are available not only in English, our primary language, but also in German, Spanish, and French. This includes all user-focused guides designed to particularly support first-time users:
We will soon be providing user documentation in Portuguese as well. As our documentation expands each month, we take the time to ensure high-quality translations.
High quality video content: Tutorials, release overviews and more
To further enhance our documentation and website content, we welcomed a dedicated video producer to our team in January 2025, Dicle Naz Tohumcu. With her expertise in video content, she creates engaging tutorials, walkthroughs, and release overviews. Her videos help users quickly grasp OpenProject’s key features and workflows.
I’m from Ankara, Turkey, with a background in directing fashion, product, and commercial videos. Over time, my work has expanded into content production, with a focus on AI and digitalization.
What do you like about OpenProject?
The slogan “open source, open mind” perfectly captures its spirit, and that’s exactly what I love about OpenProject. The people here are open-minded and collaborative, and it’s exciting to contribute to a product that is constantly evolving.
What makes a good OpenProject video in your opinion?
The most important aspect is enhancing the user experience by clearly presenting new features and improvements. Our goal is to ensure users understand and benefit from updates while also highlighting team collaboration and workflow efficiency. I joined two months ago, and moving forward, one of my goals is to create a diverse range of videos that cover different aspects of OpenProject, using various formats and platforms to reach our audience in the best possible way.
We value user feedback
We’re always looking to improve our documentation and video content. Is there a tutorial you’d like to see, or a topic that needs more explanation? Let us know by commenting on our YouTube videos or joining the discussion in our Community forums.
Whether you’re moving from Docker to a package-based installation, changing databases, or upgrading an older setup, migrating your OpenProject installation can raise important questions. To help you navigate the process, we’ve compiled an overview of supported migration paths, key considerations, and links to detailed documentation. This article gives you the big picture. For in-depth instructions, please refer to our documentation.
OpenProject supports several installation methods: Docker, DEB/RPM packages, Helm Charts for Kubernetes, and manual installations. Depending on your infrastructure and technical requirements, one setup may suit you better than another.
For most users, we recommend the Docker-based installation. It’s the easiest to set up, requires minimal system configuration, and is simple to maintain — especially when updating to new OpenProject versions. This makes Docker the most future-proof option.
Important
We will not build packages for new Linux versions (such as Ubuntu 24.04). We will, however, keep releasing new package versions for the currently supported Linux versions until their EOL (end of life). Learn more in our packaged installation documentation.
Migration between Docker and packaged installations
It is possible to migrate between Docker and packaged (DEB/RPM) installations in both directions. In both cases, the process involves:
Exporting the PostgreSQL database,
Copying attachments and configuration files,
Re-importing the data in the new environment.
You might consider migrating to a packaged installation if your IT environment requires tight system-level integration, custom deployment configurations, or traditional OS-based monitoring tools. In this case, please follow this detailed guide in our documentation: Migrating your packaged OpenProject installation to another environment.
On the other hand, migrating from a packaged installation to Docker is a future-proof choice. It simplifies upgrades and deployments — especially since OpenProject will no longer release packages for newer OS versions such as Ubuntu 24.04, and recommends Docker-based installations for long-term use. To switch from packaged to Docker installation, please see this detailed guide in our documentation.
Migration to Kubernetes (Helm)
Migrating to Kubernetes using Helm charts is a powerful option for teams that need to scale OpenProject in dynamic environments or integrate it into an existing Kubernetes infrastructure. This setup is especially relevant for DevOps teams managing multiple services in containers.
Helm-based deployments are ideal for teams with Kubernetes experience. If you’re new to Kubernetes, consider evaluating Docker first — it provides a more accessible starting point with fewer moving parts.
OpenProject uses PostgreSQL as its database backend. If you’re upgrading PostgreSQL (for example, from version 10 to version 13), you’ll need to migrate the database using a controlled process to avoid data loss or compatibility issues.
We provide specific documentation depending on how OpenProject was installed:
Make sure to create a full backup before performing any PostgreSQL migration.
Tip
Instead of upgrading the database in place, we recommend doing a backup of OpenProject and restoring it on a newly installed database with the newer version where possible.
Migration from an old MySQL database
If you’re using a much older version of OpenProject, you may not be able to directly upgrade to the current version. In that case, we recommend a fresh installation of the latest version and a manual migration of your data.
Most migrations between installation types are technically straightforward — especially with a clear plan and the right tools. Always make sure to consult our installation documentation and follow our backup and restore guide before making changes.
If you have questions or want to exchange with other users, feel free to ask in the Community forum.
We are thrilled to announce that OpenProject has once again been recognized by Gartner Digital Markets in 2025, earning accolades across multiple platforms for our unwavering commitment to excellence in project management solutions.
Gartner Digital Markets is a Gartner business unit composed of Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice. It is the world’s premier source for software vendors to connect with in-market buyers, through research, reviews, and lead generation.
In 2025, OpenProject has been honored with the following distinctions:
In 2024, OpenProject achieved an impressive overall score of 4.5 out of 5 across all three Gartner Digital Markets platforms: Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice. This year, we have continued to build on that success, higher improving our rating to 4.6 out of 5, maintaining our high standards and dedication to our users. Our consistent recognition by Gartner Digital Markets is a testament to the trust and satisfaction of our user community.
Gratitude to our Community
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our users for their continuous support and valuable feedback. Your insights drive us to innovate and improve, ensuring that OpenProject remains at the forefront of project management solutions.
As we celebrate these achievements, we remain committed to empowering teams worldwide with robust, reliable, and innovative project management solutions.
Want to review OpenProject yourself?
We greatly appreciate your valuable feedback and look forward to many more reviews.
How do cities and municipalities keep track of internal tasks, complaints, and maintenance requests? Without a structured solution, delays, unclear responsibilities, and high coordination efforts arise. OpenProject provides a digital ticket management solution for municipalities that simplifies processes and increases transparency. Read this article to learn how to use OpenProject as ticket management, on the example of a German city administration.
Why digital ticket management is essential for public administration
Digital ticket management is more than just processing inquiries. Many municipalities still record daily tasks and internal reports via email, phone, or Excel spreadsheets — often with unclear responsibilities and long processing times.
Every day, cities and municipalities must coordinate numerous inquiries, complaints, and tasks:
Citizens report issues such as noise disturbances or illegal waste disposal.
Public buildings need maintenance and management.
Public order services coordinate operations within the city.
Yet, many municipalities still lack a structured solution for internally recording, processing, and assigning these tasks. Instead, they rely on emails, Excel sheets, or even paper notes — leading to high coordination efforts, unclear responsibilities, and delays.
What happens internally to these tickets once they are created? How can it be ensured that they are efficiently assigned to the right personnel with the necessary capacity and expertise? And how do we ensure that all essential information is included?
OpenProject: More than just project management
A digital ticket management system like OpenProject solves exactly this problem. Employees can record tasks in a structured manner, assign them directly to the right people, and track progress — efficiently, transparently, and without complex IT integration.
OpenProject is more than a traditional project management tool — and also more than a classic ticketing system. The software combines both approaches in a way that suits the users’ needs. While typical ticketing systems are mostly designed for external requests, OpenProject focuses on internal organization and processing of tasks.
This makes OpenProject an ideal solution for municipalities to manage daily administrative tasks and internal processes more efficiently — whether for citizen inquiries, building maintenance, or deployment planning:
Flexible configuration: Custom workflows tailored to different municipal departments.
Structured recording: Tickets contain all relevant information from the start.
Transparent processing: All stakeholders can track status and next steps.
No media disruption: Communication and documentation happen directly in the system — without email clutter or files like “Ticket-2338-in-progress-2”.
Due to its high configurability, OpenProject allows great flexibility for users.
Best practice: How a city administration uses OpenProject for digital ticket management
To illustrate how this works in practice, let’s look at an example: Think of a typical German city administration that handles inquiries via emails, phone calls, and Excel spreadsheets. As this is a time-consuming and error-prone process, the city wants to introduce digital ticket management and decided to use OpenProject.
The city administration now centrally uses OpenProject for ticket management — from complaints in the public order office to building maintenance. With OpenProject as its central ticket management platform, the city administration is now able to:
Record and prioritize complaints and inquiries centrally.
Clearly define responsibilities and deadlines.
Track the processing status in real-time.
Work more efficiently and transparently.
Now, let’s dive deeper into the praxis and look at two concrete practical examples: How does this German city use ticket management in the area of public order services and in building management?
Use case: Ticket management for public order services
The public order office of our example city uses OpenProject to manage daily operations and complaints efficiently:
Incoming complaints (e.g., noise disturbances, illegal parking, waste issues) are recorded as tickets and automatically assigned to the responsible staff.
Task scheduling is managed through an agile board with priorities and deadlines.
Employees document progress in real-time, including evidence or notes directly in the ticket.
Citizen inquiries are handled faster and more transparently.
The advantage of OpenProject as a digital ticket system for public order services: Less coordination effort, faster processing, and transparent tracking.
Example: Managing a noise complaint with OpenProject
Here’s how a noise complaint could be processed using OpenProject:
A citizen reports repeated nighttime noise disturbances from a bar.
A public order officer logs the complaint as a work package of type ‘Ticket’ in OpenProject.
The department head prioritizes the case and assigns the work package to an on-site inspector.
The inspector conducts an on-site check and documents the findings within the ticket.
The status is updated to ‘Resolved’, with additional details added to the ticket’s activity log. The department head, tagged in the entry, automatically receives a notification.
If necessary, the bar is informed and a follow-up inspection is planned — a new work package is created, with a date and automatic reminder for a review in a few weeks.
Here’s how such a noise complaint ticket could look like in OpenProject:
Image: A work package in OpenProject, type ticket, named ‘Lärmbeschwerde: Bar Westend’, with discussions in the Activity tab, priority high and a set end date.
Use case: Ticket management for building maintenance
A municipal administration has to manage and maintain many buildings. This is another great example on how to use OpenProject as digital ticket management software:
Each maintenance request or issue is logged as a ticket and assigned to the responsible team. Automated reminders ensure that regular inspections and maintenance are carried out on time. Priority repairs (e.g., defective heating in winter) can be handled immediately. The administration maintains a complete record of all completed actions. And all data, communication and information is centralized in the ticket.
The advantage of OpenProject as a digital ticket system for facility management: Structured maintenance planning, no overlooked tasks, and better resource allocation.
The city administration can configure OpenProject so that each building is represented via work package types, subdivided by building category. All tasks for these buildings - from repairs to regular inspections - are created directly in the system as associated subtasks and assigned to the responsible team members for processing. No need to search through lists or Excel sheets. And, of course, automated reminders – in-app and/or per email – prevent forgotten maintenance tasks.
An example of a simple agile status board with tickets in OpenProject could look like this:
Image: An agile status board with tickets of types like ‘Stadtmuseum’ or ‘Kita Regenbogenland’, sorted by status.
Example: Managing a heating repair in an elementary school
Here’s how a heating repair could be handled in OpenProject:
The facility management team logs the issue as a work package of type ‘Ticket’ and adds the school name as a custom field of type ‘Building’.
The responsible janitor, added as an external person, receives a notification.
The repair is documented within the ticket, including photos and notes.
Once completed, the ticket is closed and serves as a permanent record.
Why OpenProject is the ideal ticket management solution for public administrations
There are many software options for task and ticket management. With its open source approach and hosting in Europe, OpenProject is an excellent choice for European municipalities and government agencies.
Why OpenProject is the ideal ticket management solution for the public sector:
Easy implementation and no complex IT integration.
Open source and GDPR-compliant — developed for European administrations.
Choice between secure cloud solutions or self-hosting.
Flexible customization — from facility management to public order offices.
Open source and independent — no vendor lock-in with U.S.-based providers.
Part of openDesk — the digital workplace solution for public institutions.
Not just anyone can become a European Capital of Culture. Since 1985, the European Union has awarded this title to cities whose applications were convincing in six criteria of a multi-year selection process. These include long-term strategy, European dimension, cultural and artistic content, but also the ability to implement the project and the successful involvement of society and administration.
A city who manages to do this proves that they are capable of managing the largest and most complex projects, and Chemnitz in Saxony has achieved this: in 2025, Chemnitz proudly bears the title of “European Capital of Culture”, accompanied by a long list of events.
Out of the silos, a single source of truth was needed
Alexander Hoffmann is responsible for digitalization in Chemnitz. Hoffmann has a background in IT project management, was originally trained as a classic project manager (IT), but later switched to agile project management and attaches great importance to using the right approaches and tools for the job. “The added value lies at the process level,” he explains. Many years ago, he took on the task of setting up project management at the City of Chemnitz’s IT department. “There were a lot of projects that had to be implemented and there still are - and we had to get out of the silos.” And that’s where OpenProject came in. Hoffmann was already familiar with the software and also has direct and close contact with Chemnitz Hospital, which also uses OpenProject.
Alexander Hoffmann is Head of Digitization and Development at the Office for Information Processing of the City of Chemnitz
The most important motivation behind the project management in OpenProject is also to promote the digitalization of the City of Chemnitz internally and externally and also to provide the platform for other municipal projects, such as residents’ meetings or construction projects, of the City of Chemnitz. To this end, Chemnitz operates a self-hosted instance of OpenProject, in-house and completely in the city network. 2500 potential users could register and work with it, and there are also plans to offer the software to external partners and connect it to Nextcloud. The approach to open source is not ideological, but very pragmatic. Chemnitz also uses around 200 MS Project licenses, of which around one hundred will probably remain. The approach does not follow any ideology “If we halve the number, we will have recouped the costs for OpenProject,” says Hoffmann happily.
Low entry barriers with open source
Open source as a value in itself is also playing an increasingly important role as a decision-making factor in Chemnitz. “If we can use open source software, then we combine two opportunities: the entry barrier is lower, we can test and evaluate software without consultants, tenders and thoughts about purchasing licenses. This flexibility alone makes it worthwhile for us to increasingly rely on open source software.”
And the fact that the IT architecture for open source software are transparent and comprehensible from the outset also plays a major role. “Whenever we make a purchase, we always check whether there are open source options, which is the first step for all cross-sectional applications, including project management. This is also a question of security,” confirms Hoffmann. “And the fact that we can always use free software solutions the way we want plays a role. It also has to be self-hosted; in many cases, externally hosted clouds are no (longer) an option.”
Implementation of the Digital Agenda
Chemnitz is not alone in this, but the topics of the Digital Agenda, such as the Online Access Act or the e-file and how access for citizens and stakeholders can be created in practice, are also on Hoffmann’s mind day in, day out. “Every e-file that we introduce is a project in a clearly defined tree structure. The “Digital Agenda” is the overarching element in OpenProject and each pillar is a sub-project.
Image source: City of Chemnitz, Roadmap of Digital Agenda
OpenProject is very well suited for this and we can also use it to directly inform the top management. They get an up-to-date status quickly and easily without us having to write extra reports.” Mayors who can read along directly in project management sounds unusual, and of course “we prepare the views for the decision-makers, but since we have introduced the software, it has made our work much easier.”
Project templates reduce workload to a fifth
For implementing these challenging goals, there are project managers who maintain the projects and keep their status up to date. Project templates in OpenProject (e.g. for the e-file) help to reduce the effort for new projects to 20% during planning. Chemnitz uses templates, checklists, wiki articles, and more in OpenProject, so that a project manager only has to adapt the project plan according to the new project.
Image source: City of Chemnitz, project template e-file in OpenProject
“It’s a matter of a few hours, and it frees up the project managers to concentrate on managing the teams and projects. They’re all happy for every bit of administrative work they’re spared,” shares Hoffmann.
Image source: City of Chemnitz, example work package template e-file in OpenProject
Although Chemnitz also operates a separate wiki, the wiki in OpenProject is used for all project-specific content. Time recording is also used, but only in the sense of overall time recording, i.e. estimated for projects, with a target/actual comparison for rough resource planning and personnel requirements planning. Meetings are also planned in OpenProject, “the project management software serves as a single source of truth for the many participants.”
Waterfall and agile: boards, tasks, sprints
Chemnitz combines classic project management with agile methods for its project work. Boards and tasks are used in the projects, even if “the projects of the Digital Agenda are mostly organized in a classic way, development assignments are managed agile with backlogs, roadmaps, sprints, sprint planning and so on. We use both approaches, including hybrid ones,” explains the department head. “Not all employees always use all the options that we and the software offer, nor do they have to. We have the backlogs module, but not everyone needs the burn-down and burn-up charts, story points, and sometimes the employee rights also prevent us from using various approaches, for example if this would make performance control and monitoring possible. But we work a lot with the basics, such as epics and the like.”
Configurable down to the last detail
The administration of the European Capital of Culture is also innovative: it defines its own project types and more and more using the project lists in OpenProject. The developers of OpenProject are now working on project phases, a feature that Chemnitz configured via tasks and milestones and thus automatically fills the timeline. This then almost automatically displays “endangered” projects or extended attributes, for example criteria such as “This is an important infrastructure project”. In a current project, the City of Chemnitz is currently introducing a new work package type “project” - this is also possible due to the flexible open source nature of the software.
Hundreds of projects at work
There are currently 345 projects being planned in Chemnitz, around 116 of which are active, and of which around 60 percent are digitalization projects. Other IT projects make up almost the entire remainder.
“The Digital Agenda in particular has led to a huge increase in projects. Many new projects are only named in the beginning. They are given a short title and classification and still have to go through the process of specification to become a real ‘project’”. Only when the stakeholders and milestones and everything else have been defined clearly are the projects fully implemented in OpenProject.
In the past, all of this was kept in Excel, but today the plans are already available in OpenProject via a link and are waiting to become a project at some point. “The many necessary budget processes beforehand make this necessary - and we can’t yet map them properly. But we are hopeful that we will be able to map this with a ‘project’ work package type at some point.”
Open source is more flexible than the proprietary competition
The conscious decision to use project templates for almost all project types makes everyday life easier for employees and managers. “It is now also a very conscious and comprehensible decision as to when a work package type becomes a project.” Once this is done, the project manager, for example, is also appointed straight away. “We have two views implemented in OpenProject: On the one hand, IT project planning with work package view ‘Project’ and the project list itself. This allows us to mix agile and classic projects - that’s priceless flexibility, not at all like the tight corset imposed by the proprietary competition.”
With OpenProject, Chemnitz has not only found the right tool to manage hundreds of projects efficiently but also created a sustainable foundation for future collaboration and innovation. By integrating the open source project management software into their digital strategy, the city is proving that transparency, flexibility, and self-reliance are key to successfully managing the Digital Agenda and the European Capital of Culture 2025.
We are happy to announce the release of OpenProject 15.4. Among other changes, users now benefit from automatic scheduling, in addition to manual scheduling. Other great new features are agenda item outcomes for our Meetings module and exciting updates regarding generating professional PDF documents based on your work packages.
In this blog article, we will take a closer look at these major three feature updates:
And there are many more great updates in this version again! For more details on other changes, features and bug fixes in 15.4, please check out our release notes.
Enable automatic scheduling mode - to start as soon as possible
At OpenProject, we are passionate about automation. Our software should take over whenever possible – but without limiting users in their options. This is no easy goal and sometimes there is a fine line between both. With our new scheduling mode, we are exactly on this line: New work packages start with the manual scheduling mode, which means no change to earlier versions. In this mode, users can freely choose start and end dates.
But if the automatic scheduling is enabled, OpenProject takes over and schedules the work packages to the earliest date possible, based on predecessor or child relations.
See the difference of both scheduling modes in Gantt view:
Single date mode
Another great feature that comes together with the new scheduling modes is the single date mode: Previously, all work packages (except milestones) included both start and finish date fields, even when only one was necessary. Now, new work packages default to having only a finish date, streamlining workflows for teams that don’t require a date range.
The OpenProject Meetings module has been once again enhanced with great features in version 15.4. Just last month, we released recurring meetings that help many users manage their weeklies, dailies and other regular appointments – again with the help of automation.
With the new release, users can set outcomes for agenda items, making it much easier to document what was decided in the meeting. If an outcome is set for a work package in a meeting, the respective work package will automatically update as well and show the outcome on the Meetings tab.
Example: Meeting outcomes for a weekly project discussion
Let’s imagine you are part of a scientific team that collaborates on an aerospace project and has weekly mission status update meetings. Participants may work in very different areas and this meeting is a core opportunity to exchange updates. However, as is natural with such larger meetings, not everyone can always attend. Good documentation of the meeting is therefore essential to keep all project members on the same page – while also saving valuable time and avoiding the need to send follow-up emails with questions about meeting proceedings.
So how does such a meeting look like in OpenProject?
1. When the meeting is open
As this would be a recurring meeting, OpenProject will automatically create the following weekly. All invited users can add, edit and assign agenda items before and during the meeting. If there is the need to talk about a specific work package, users can easily add this work package, which automatically creates a link between the meeting and the work package, on both sides. By default, the status is open:
2. When the meeting is in progress
When the meeting starts, participants can set the meeting status to in progress. This adds a + Outcome button on each agenda item or work package listed. By clicking it, users can document what was discussed or decided during the meeting. In this example, the scientific group decided that Ivan should be responsible for the Milestone to launch the readiness review:
As mentioned above, adding an outcome to a work package in a meeting automatically adds it to the Meetings tab on the work package as well:
3. When the meeting is closed
With the release of version 15.4, users can now click on an agenda item and move it to the next meeting, as long as it is part of a meeting series like in our example. This is very helpful for teams working with recurring meetings. For example, if Ivan – the person responsible for the work package – is not participating at that meeting, their colleagues can move this work package to the next meeting, when Ivan will be back.
When the meeting is over, the status can be set to “closed”. Currently, this has no further impact except that, like with the “open” status, no outcome can be added. Please note that a meeting can be re-opened again, so no harm will be done if you accidentally close a meeting too early.
Tip
We continue developing updates for the Meetings module. In a future release, participants of recurring meetings will also be able to move all agenda items without outcomes to the next meeting(see this feature). Also, a meeting agenda items backlog for recurring meetings is planned (see this feature).
Generate PDF documents from a work package description
The third great feature we want to highlight in this article is an improvement to PDF exports. Previously, you could only generate PDFs that included the entire work package, including attributes like the assignee in a table format at the beginning of the document. Now, you can also export only the work package description — formatted specifically for use in German contracts. While this is a very specific use case that is appreciated by our German customers, e.g. in the public sector, it can also be helpful for other users.
The main aspect here is, again, automating tasks that used to cost a lot of time and nerves when done manually. With OpenProject, we aim to provide users with work packages that include all important information for all stakeholders at all times. This way, we also want to give users the possibility to create beautifully styled PDF files for contracts, approval notices, project orders and other formal documents.
To do so, the “Download PDF” option on work packages has now been renamed to Generate PDF and offers expanded customization options. Clicking it opens an interface where you can tailor your document — for example, by enabling hyphenation or adding a footer text.
Most importantly, you can now choose between two templates:
Attributes and description: This template creates a document similar to the one used before version 15.4, including a table showing the work package’s attributes, along with the description.
Contract: Choosing this template creates a PDF designed in the style of a German contract, and includes only the work package description.
We will continue working on this feature and plan to add other templates.
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 15.4 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 15.4 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to the City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations. We also thank Klinikum Chemnitz for their active and enthusiastic feedback during the design process of the new automatic scheduling mode.
Also, a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to René Schodder, Abhiyan Paudyal, Gunter Ohrner and Markus K..
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to particularly thank user greench, for an outstanding number of translations into Turkish.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
The time of closed, proprietary software is coming to an end. The future belongs to open source solutions. More and more organizations, especially in the public sector, are realizing the benefits and making the switch. By choosing open source software for their project management, governments not only significantly reduce costs but also foster innovation, increase transparency, and ensure digital sovereignty.
Imagine waking up to find your entire project infrastructure locked away just because a foreign government changed its policies. Sounds extreme? Yet, this is the risk of relying solely on proprietary software controlled by big tech monopolies from the USA. The public sector remains dependent on decisions made abroad, including policies from erratic leaders that could suddenly limit access to critical tools.
At the same time, proprietary software is expensive and restrictive. High costs and vendor lock-in force organizations into long-term contracts. Open source project management isn’t just an alternative — it is essential for an innovative and independent Europe.
High prices limit collaboration
Many project management tools charge per user, making collaboration costly. Imagine paying for every person who receives an email? Ridiculous, right? Yet, proprietary software forces organizations to exclude key stakeholders or pay excessive fees just so people can participate. This pricing model drives teams to manage projects through inefficient email threads or static MS Office documents.
At OpenProject, we do things differently. Our Community Edition is completely for free, so organizations can get started with open source project management easily without financial barriers. For mission-critical projects, our Unlimited Plans provide enterprise-level features and professional support. This ensures organizations have a secure, high-performance system with expert guidance and support. Public institutions can finally focus on their projects without worrying about restrictive pricing models.
PM²: an open and accessible framework
I recently learned that a key OpenProject customer — a federal state in northern Germany — chose PM² as its project management framework because OpenProject supports it. This shows how open methodologies, combined with the right tools, deliver scalable solutions for public administration.
Working with the creators of PM² has been truly inspiring. Their commitment to open and accessible project management aligns perfectly with our mission. Unlike commercial methodologies, PM² evolves based on real-world needs rather than profit motives. Seeing institutions like the BVA customize PM² into PMflex proves that open collaboration leads to better solutions.
Unlike proprietary frameworks such as PRINCE2, PMP, or IPMA, which require expensive certifications and strict licensing, PM² is free. Public organizations can download, study, and adapt it to fit their needs, something commercial methodologies don’t allow. PRINCE2 and PMP do not even provide free access to their core materials, let alone the ability to customize them.
At OpenProject, we support this transition. Open source solutions, built on open standards, give public institutions full control over their software, free them from high fees, and ensure long-term independence. By integrating with PM², OpenProject provides a flexible, future-proof alternative to proprietary tools.
Open source project management is the future
Why should European taxpayers fund software they cannot even modify nor rely on? Why continue spending billions on proprietary software licenses when open solutions offer more flexibility at lower costs?
This change is already happening, and digital sovereignty is now firmly on the political agenda. The collaboration between ZenDiS in Germany, Dinum in France, and openDesk demonstrates how European institutions are actively working together to build independent digital infrastructure and reduce reliance on foreign providers. It’s time to rethink project management, break free from restrictive systems, and embrace open collaboration.
Jira is a well-known agile project management tool. For many, Jira is a household name for issue tracking software. However, Jira is not open source. OpenProject is - and offers quite similar features. On top of that, OpenProject provides both a cloud or on-premises edition. Jira has chosen to focus on the cloud side of things and has terminated the self-hosted option. Let’s compare Jira and OpenProject.
Hosting
Jira shifted its focus to the cloud edition and has discontinued the on-premises offer. This move marks a shift in focus towards the cloud edition. Jira users who self-host their software had been requested to make plans to move to the cloud or data center, as support for self-hosted Jira is no longer available since spring 2024. Since then, many Jira customers already migrated to an alternative or are still looking for an easy way to do so.
OpenProject continues offering both the cloud and on-premises editions. OpenProject Enterprise on-premises edition enables companies to install OpenProject on their own servers and offers additional Enterprise add-ons and security features, as well as support. It provides the flexibility of self-hosting while ensuring a high level of security and extensibility with additional features.
OpenProject is an open source software and as such provides independence and complete autonomy. Its source code is publicly available on GitHub. It allows users to modify code and create new plug-ins for maximum flexibility. Being open source means that users can customize and tailor it to their needs, making it an attractive option for businesses looking for a flexible and adaptable project management solution. With OpenProject, users can take full control of their project management process and make it fit their unique workflows.
Jira is a proprietary software, which means that the software code cannot be reviewed, so the users are dependent on the vendor for reliability, code adjustments and upgrades. This also means that certain features require third-party plugins and can significantly increase maintenance costs.
Data security
Data security is an important aspect when choosing a project management tool. Both OpenProject and Jira treat the subject with the seriousness it requires.
Large companies often have strong data privacy and data security guidelines which might prohibit the use of web-based solutions, making use of Jira cloud solutions potentially problematic. Furthermore, the location of data storage must be considered. Jira uses AWS storage services. While storing customer data in the European AWS region is possible, it must be actively requested.
For OpenProject data security is a top priority, our processes meet all requirements of the EU General Data Protection Regulation. Whether you decide to use the cloud or a self-hosted edition, you can be sure that your data is safe. All our customer data for the cloud edition is hosted and kept in the EU. For the self-hosted edition, you have absolute control over your data.
Features
OpenProject and Jira both offer comprehensive and customizable project management tools that offer a range of features to support agile, classic, and hybrid project management. They both provide similar capabilities for issue tracking, backlog maintenance, reporting, user management and more. It should be noted that with Jira, some of the functionalities or more advanced versions of such functionalities come through integrating one or more plugins. This can mean additional maintenance efforts, not to mention additional costs.
Let’s take a look at how some of the features compare.
Issue & task tracking
Both Jira and OpenProject offer sophisticated issue tracking with custom fields and workflow customization.
Jira
In Jira users can create new issues either directly in the list view of the existing issues or in a popup window. The displayed fields can be configured, and the view can be customized to users’ needs. It is possible to specify workflows for different issue types.
Image: Issue tracking in JiraImage: A list view of issues in Jira.
OpenProject
In OpenProject you can create new issues from the work package table. Similar to Jira, the displayed attributes can be configured for each issue type. On top of this, you can display help texts to assist users in setting the correct attribute values. You can adjust the workflow for each issue type, as well as for the author and assignee of a work package.
Image: Create a work package in OpenProject.Image: A list view of work packages in OpenProject.
Project planning with Gantt charts
Managing a project plan is a critical component for successful project management.
Jira
The core version of Jira previously did not include a Gantt chart. This has now been compensated be the timeline function that displays the project time plan. Sophisticated Gantt chart options are available via installing additional plugins.
Image: A time plan in Jira.
OpenProject
OpenProject enables creating and managing project plans using Gantt charts, both for single projects, as well as multi-hierarchy projects. The dynamic and interactive Gantt chart in OpenProject can be displayed on the work package table. This allows a seamless transition from the list view to the Gantt chart view. Start and due dates can be easily updated by either setting the dates in the list view or using drag & drop in the Gantt chart. Thereby, you can choose between top-down and bottom-up planning. You can also create and visualize dependencies in the Gantt chart. Project managers can create and visualize the progress, even for complex Gantt charts which span multiple projects. It is also possible to add a baseline comparison to also display planning changes.
Image: A Gantt chart time plan in OpenProject.
Time and cost tracking
An essential feature for any larger project is the ability to track the time, as well as the costs spent on a project.
Jira
Jira supports time tracking, including the detailed specification of working times and hours. In the basic version, the time spent on an issue can be logged in the detailed view of a task but is not displayed in the list of all the tasks. More advanced time tracking options are available through various add-ins. Jira does not support cost tracking in the basic version. However, it is possible to download add-ins in the Atlassian marketplace for cost tracking.
OpenProject
You can enable time and cost tracking for each project separately within OpenProject. Additionally, OpenProject allows users to track costs - both personnel costs as well as unit costs. Furthermore, you can create budgets within projects to compare planned and realized costs. You can create and save detailed time and costs reports filtered and grouped based on your needs. A sophisticated permission model allows users to restrict the data that users can see. This includes for example whether a user can only see and edit own tracked time.
Image: A time tracking overview in OpenProject.
Conclusion: OpenProject vs Jira
In conclusion: Jira is a very powerful application with more than 2,000 add-ons and a large following. It is highly customizable. However, this flexibility comes at a price: Many add-ons come with a significant price tag which adds up. Also, going forward, Jira is putting its cloud version first, deprioritizing server products.
OpenProject is open source, it offers very similar features all from the same source without additional expense. The decision between the cloud or on-premises editions is entirely up to you. OpenProject is the best open source Jira alternative.
If you consider moving from Jira to OpenProject, there is a way to import tickets from Jira to OpenProject. First, you can export your tasks from Jira into an Excel file and then import these tasks via an Excel plugin into OpenProject. Additionally, there is the user-built OpenProject Jira importer, as mentioned in the beginning of the article. If you would like to discuss your specific case, you can always get in touch with us.
Agile methods make administrations more effective - but without the right software, good ideas often remain good ideas. Modern task management makes it possible to control processes efficiently and react flexibly to changes. OpenProject offers exactly this possibility: a customizable open source solution that ensures full control over data with a high level of functionality. Cost-effectively.
Making digital administration work: Cutting complexity, boosting efficiency
Endless Excel lists, lost emails, and overflowing inboxes—does that sound familiar? Many administrative teams struggle with outdated tools and rigid workflows that slow down rather than support their daily work. Digitalization is supposed to help, but too often it brings complicated, expensive, and impractical solutions.
We understand—many people don’t want to hear about digitization anymore. Too many initiatives have promised improvement but ended up adding more complexity instead. The real question is: How can digital tools actually simplify work in administration — without creating new obstacles?
OpenProject offers a pragmatic approach here. The open source project and task management software helps to clearly structure tasks and make processes more efficient. Without burdening employees with unnecessary complexity. Freedom of design for administrators, simple and perfectly tailored application for employees.
Introducing agile processes with efficient task management
Digital task management is a key building block on the path to greater agility in administration. Every day, numerous tasks, approvals and processes are created in public administrations that need to be coordinated. Without a clear structure, this leads to lags, extra work and a lack of transparency. Professional task management ensures that:
responsibilities are clearly defined,
all tasks can be tracked at all times,
work processes run efficiently and transparently.
Agile working does not mean chaos, but flexibility with a basic structure at the same time. Administrative staff can react more quickly to changes and adapt their work to current requirements. Instead of constantly adapting rigid processes, agile structures can create more efficient workflows that grow dynamically. This enables a sustainable, future-proof way of working in administration.
What features does task management software need in administration?
For task management in administration to function simply and efficiently, the software must have the following features:
Easy to use: Only administrators have to deal with technical details - for everyone else, operation is uncomplicated and intuitive.
Flexible methods: Personalized composition of agile and classic methods - in a modular system, suitable for the working methods of the respective administration.
Tasks in work packages: All information collected in one place, with clear responsibilities and traceable progress.
Data protection and compliance: Security and GDPR compliance must of course be guaranteed.
No vendor lock-in: Public administrations must retain full control over their data at all times.
Five stars for OpenProject - perfect for task management in administration
The demands on modern administrations are increasing at every turn: More tasks, more regulations - and more digitalization. OpenProject is a solution that was developed precisely for these challenges. No more Excel spreadsheets like “xxx_new-2”, just centralized task management supported by agile processes.
Let’s put OpenProject to the test and take a closer look at the five requirements mentioned above:
Feature
Description
⭐ Easy to use for all employees
- Administrators can set up the instance with the help of extensive configuration options, so that it is easy to use for users.
⭐ Structured workflows with clear responsibilities
- Tasks are assigned transparently, so everyone knows who is responsible for what. - Status updates and automatic notifications ensure that the entire workflow remains traceable.
⭐ Flexibility with agile and traditional methods
- Whether Kanban, Scrum, or Gantt charts – OpenProject supports various ways of working. - Government teams can use hybrid methods and gradually introduce agile processes.
⭐ Data protection and digital sovereignty
- OpenProject is open source, giving public administrations full control over their data. - GDPR compliance and secure hosting options ensure maximum security.
⭐ Future-proof and sustainable solution
- No dependency on proprietary vendors, as OpenProject is open, extensible, and customizable. - Regular updates and an active community drive continuous development.
Tip
openDesk - your secure office and collaboration suite: Do you already know openDesk? The office and collaboration suite bundles proven open source tools explicitly for digital administrative work - including OpenProject for efficient task management and agile processes. Learn more about openDesk.
Features for agile administration with OpenProject - an overview
Successful digital administrative work requires more than just task management. OpenProject offers a wide range of features that are specially tailored to the needs of public administrations, such as:
Agile Boards - Manage tasks and processes visually, prioritize them flexibly and maintain an overview.
Meetings - Plan meetings in a structured way, link them to work packages and thus easily integrate agile methods such as dailies.
Time and cost tracking - Track working hours and budgets accurately to manage projects and resources optimally.
Here’s an example status board created in OpenProject:
Tip
Did you know? OpenProject is your best choice, if you do not exclusively use either agile or classic project management features. It offers a high range of customization and flexible administration. Read about your best mix with hybrid project management here.
European public administrations successfully work with OpenProject
OpenProject has been a popular choice for project and task management in the public sector long before the launch of openDesk. We’ve already outlined several reasons for this. Now, take a look at concrete real-world examples. We’ve spoken with customers and created case studies to provide transparency on the typical challenges faced by public administrations and how exactly OpenProject – and its key features – offers a solution.
How do public institutions in Germany use OpenProject?
“With OpenProject as part of openDesk, we have a centralized, flexible platform that greatly facilitates our work as the office of the Federal IT Standardization Board – from meeting planning, execution, and documentation to the centralized management of federal IT standards. The software supports us in collaboration and the coordination of our initiatives.”
Tobias Schuh, IT Standards Coordinator at FITKO (Federal IT Cooperation)
FITKO faces the significant challenge of coordinating and streamlining numerous tasks and stakeholders. With the introduction of openDesk, FITKO members now have access to a centralized and secure office and collaboration suite that enables just that. Read more in FITKO’s case study with OpenProject.
City of Ravensburg
“OpenProject enables us to plan long-term and reliably without overburdening our staff. As a municipality, OpenProject has finally given us the opportunity to properly manage our resource planning. The platform provides high reliability and transparency regarding workload distribution.”
Eric Fischer, former Process and Project Manager in Digitalization at the City of Ravensburg
The City of Ravensburg is just one of many municipalities relying on OpenProject. Since 2023, Ravensburg has been using OpenProject primarily for traditional project management, utilizing features like Gantt charts and the time and cost module. One major challenge before introducing OpenProject was making employees’ workloads visible at all. Now, it is possible to track workloads precisely and, most importantly, in time to redistribute tasks when necessary. Read more in the case study on City of Ravensburg and OpenProject.
Conclusion: Start agile now - at your own pace
The best way to get to know OpenProject? Just give it a try! You can test OpenProject free of charge for 14 days - no strings attached. Discover for yourself how intuitive and powerful digital task management can be for your administration.
Would you like an individual introduction or in-depth training? No problem! We offer customized training and consulting to provide you and your team with the best possible support.
Why is the location of a project management software provider important?
Choosing the right project management software is not just about features — it is also about data protection and data sovereignty. The location of your software provider determines the legal framework under which your data is processed and stored.
With project management software, you handle confidential company data: business processes, customer and supplier information, internal documentation, employee details, and intellectual property. That is why data security should be one of the most important factors when selecting a provider.
Many software providers are based in either the EU or the USA. Companies should be aware of the different data protection regulations to ensure that their sensitive data is processed under the desired legal framework.
Why a European project management software?
Europe has long been committed to privacy and data security. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was introduced as a unified law to establish clear priorities for:
Data protection principles and secure data processing
Personal rights and consent to data processing
Data protection by design and by default
The “right to be forgotten”
Companies that violate the GDPR face severe fines. To avoid legal risks, it is advisable for European businesses and organizations to choose project management software from Germany or the EU, ensuring compliance with the highest data protection standards.
Why a project management software made in Germany?
Besides being part of the EU and consequently enforcing the GDPR, Germany is well known for data protection. Germany was the first country worldwide to introduce a data protection law in 1970. This was in the State of Hesse and 7 years later it was followed by the Federal Data Protection Act seven years later. That means, in Germany, the protection of the citizens’ personal data is a state responsibility.
So even before the GDPR, the German Federal Data Protection Act was one of the strictest in the world and many amendments of the GDPR did not present anything new for Germany as it had already been implemented previously.
Continuing its pioneering role in data protection, Germany was also the first country to implement all new requirements of the European directive in the so-called German Data Protection Amendment Act (GDPAA) in 2017.
For organizations looking for task or project management software from Germany, it is crucial to choose a provider that fully adheres to local data protection regulations.
OpenProject is made in Germany
OpenProject is a leading open source project management software from Germany, designed to meet the highest data protection and security standards.
As a company based in Berlin, OpenProject strictly adheres to European and German data protection laws. Our software can be hosted on-premises, giving organizations full control over their data. Alternatively, OpenProject offers hosting in certified German data centers that comply with the highest security and privacy standards.
Hosting and server location: Full control over your data
GDPR-compliant hosting in Germany or other parts of Europe – no personal data stored outside the EU.
On-premises option – full control over your infrastructure.
Highest security standards – servers in certified European or optionally German data centers.
One of the biggest advantages of OpenProject is its open source license, which provides organizations and developers with freedom and security. Because the code is publicly available, the Community can review it for potential security vulnerabilities and fix them quickly — an advantage that proprietary software does not offer.
openDesk: The all in one office and collaboration suite, not only for the public sector
Alongside OpenProject, openDesk is part of a new generation of digital open source solutions. openDesk is your secure all in one office and collaboration suite, specifically designed for public institutions and data-sensitive organizations.
With openDesk, organizations can rely on an independent and GDPR-compliant alternative to traditional US-based providers. OpenProject is a core component of this solution, enabling secure and efficient project and task management for public administration.
Project management for the public sector in Europe
For public administrations and government institutions, digital sovereignty is a top priority. With OpenProject and openDesk, there is now an open source alternative designed to meet the specific needs of the public sector.
Why is OpenProject ideal for the public sector in Germany and Europe?
GDPR-compliant & BSI-recommended – Designed for government and public institutions.
Modular setup for hybrid project management – Combines agile and classic methodologies.
On-premises or EU hosting – Full control over your data.
Sovereign open source solution – No dependence on proprietary providers.
Conclusion: Why choosing project management software from Germany matters
When selecting project management software, security, compliance, and digital sovereignty are just as important as functionality. Organizations handling sensitive data — whether in businesses or the public sector — need solutions that ensure full control over their information while complying with GDPR and national data protection laws.
By choosing project management software developed in Germany, organizations benefit from high security standards, legal clarity, and transparent open source development. OpenProject, as a German open source alternative, offers flexible hosting options, including on-premises deployment and secure German-based cloud hosting, allowing teams to collaborate efficiently while maintaining control over their data.
As digital sovereignty becomes increasingly relevant, OpenProject continues to support businesses and public institutions with a transparent, secure, and community-driven approach to project management.
An upcoming version of OpenProject will introduce automatic scheduling for work packages. This highly-requested feature will make the process of setting up complex predecessor/successor relations a lot more practical for users who rely on OpenProject for complex project setups.
This blog post describes the upcoming changes and how they might affect you.
Note
The upcoming changes will not overwrite existing dates for any existing work packages but can change the scheduling mode. Please read on more more details. Don’t have much time? Skip directly to the summary.
Why we need this change
Especially in large projects with many assignees and stakeholders, scheduling can be a complex task. In the current version of OpenProject (15.3), there are two ways to schedule: a manual mode in which you can freely enter fixed dates which are never affected by relations, and a default mode where the dates are sometimes automatically adjusted, derived or constrained by relations. Whilst the current approach is functional, it is not always consistent.
For example, in default (non-manual) mode, a predecessor is able to push a successor to the future but unable to pull a successor earlier in time. This means that if, for example, a predecessor ends later than initially planned, it will push the follower back by as many days. However, if the predecessor ends earlier than initially planned, the follower stays where it was. Users rightly reported that this behaviour was inconsistent.
This behaviour does not affect work packages that are manually scheduled: users are already able to make the successor’s dates unaffected by those of the predecessor by choosing manual scheduling for the successor.
The upcoming changes will address this inconsistency and make scheduling more dependable.
Two scheduling modes: Manual and automatic
An upcoming version of OpenProject will introduce two distinct scheduling modes for work packages: manual and automatic.
Manual Mode: In this mode, users have the freedom to select dates at their discretion. This flexibility allows project managers to set timelines based on specific needs, deadlines, or external factors that may influence project delivery. Manually scheduled work packages behave as they do today: they can still have predecessor, successor, parent or child relations but these relations will not affect the manually input dates.
Automatic Mode: In automatic mode, it is not possible to manually enter a start date. This means that when a task is scheduled, the date picker will automatically calculate the appropriate start date based on the nearest predecessor. You can still enter a duration (and effectively change the finish date). This makes it possible to create a dependable chain of automatically scheduled work packages that automatically adjust to planning changes.
Note
Automatic scheduling mode will only be available to work package that have predecessors or have children.
Enhanced context in automatic mode
The work package date picker in OpenProject already gave you helpful context. With the upcoming release, they will provide even more precise context in both automatic and manual modes:
The context includes information about the task’s scheduling, such as:
Which related work package is determining the start date in automatic mode (predecessors or children)
If there is a significant gap between the predecessor and successor when the successor is in manual mode
If there is an overlap of dates with the predecessor and successor in manual mode
This improvement is designed to enhance user understanding and confidence in the scheduling process by making things more transparent.
Improved navigation with tabs
Another enhancement is the introduction of tabs within the date picker.
There will be three new tabs that display existing relations in addition to the default Date tab:
Predecessors: Tasks that must be completed before the current one can begin. In automatic mode, the closest predecessor from which the current work package derives its dates is marked with a “closest” label.
Successors: Tasks that will commence after the current one is finished. In automatic mode, the start dates of these are affected by the current work package’s finish date.
Children: Sub-tasks that fall under the current work package. If a work package has children, it will by default be in automatic scheduling mode. The start and finish dates of the parent will cover the dates of all containing children.
This structure allows users to quickly navigate through related tasks, making it simpler to understand project dependencies and manage timelines effectively.
Default setting for new work packages
By default, new work packages will be set to manual scheduling. This change allows users to begin by setting their own dates, which can be particularly beneficial in the initial planning stages of a project. It ensures that project managers have the flexibility to establish timelines that best suit their workflow from the outset. Switching to automatic mode remains a one-click operation in the date picker.
Single date mode
Along with automatic scheduling, an upcoming version of OpenProject will bring another feature to the date picker: single date mode.
Currently, all work packages except milestones have two date fields: start date and finish date. In other words, the date field is always a range. Of course, you do not always have set both dates, and you can also set the two dates to be the same. But in many cases, you don’t need two fields; a simple finish date is enough to signal a deadline or a delivery date.
To enable this, the date field for work packages in an upcoming version will by default only ask for the finish date. This simplifies things for users who don’t need both, but this is just the default; the user can in a single click go from single date mode to range mode (like today) by clicking on the + Start date button or adding a duration. The date picker will then behave as is does today. Of course, if the user wants single date mode with just a Start date instead of a Finish date, this is possible too.
Work packages in single date mode work exactly like work packages do today when only one date is entered and the other left empty. This will therefore not involve a change in behaviour and scheduling, simply a change in the default behaviour and UI of the date picker.
In summary
Here is a summary of changes coming in an upcoming version:
The date picker now offers two scheduling modes: manual and automatic scheduling.
Dates can be selected freely in manual mode and will not be affected by relations.
The start date is automatically derived in automatic mode based on predecessors or children; the duration can still be manually input.
In automatic mode, the date picker banners will give more helpful context about what the start date is derived from.
The date picker will include tabs that list predecessors, followers and children.
Scheduling mode for new work packages will be manual by default.
New work packages will default to a single date mode with finish date only; users can easily switch to range mode by adding a start date or duration.
Your feedback
As an open source software company, we value the ideas and feedback of our user Community. This upcoming changes are directly a result of user feedback. If you have opinions about these changes or have feature requests, feel free to join our Community instance and share your thoughts on this feature. We hope you’re looking forward to this improvement as much as we are looking forward to releasing it.
The OpenProject integration app for Nextcloud reached version 2.7.2 earlier and was updated to version 2.8 today! ✨ This update ensures full support for the latest Nextcloud version 31, which was also released today.
This release requires OpenProject version 13.2 or newer. Update to the newest version of the app through your Nextcloud app center to take advantage of the latest enhancements and fixes.
Changes of the release 2.7.2:
Fixed fatal error related to group folders
UI/UX improvement: consistent element sizes in Create work package modal
UI/UX improvement: accomodate long subject of a work package
Changes of the release 2.8.0:
Support Nextcloud 31
Correct encoding of the avatar url
Expose OpenProject API endpoints as OCS endpoints
Thanks, Nextcloud, for our continued partnership! 💙
Today, we have released OpenProject 15.3. Among other changes, you can now create meeting series. This is a major update to our meetings module and a big improvement for organizing your recurring appointments within OpenProject. With this blog article, we will take a little tour to see how exactly you can do that.
Let’s take a quick look at the most important feature changes first:
This blog post explores recurring meetings, highlighting key improvements and how they can help teams stay organized. For more details on other changes, features and bug fixes in 15.3, check out our release notes.
Recurring meetings: Overview of changes in OpenProject 15.3
OpenProject 15.3 introduces over 20 improvements to the Meetings module. The most notable change is the Recurring meeting option, now available alongside One-time meetings and Classic meetings. So what was previously called Dynamic Meetings is now split into Recurring and One-time Meetings.
Image: The OpenProject Meetings module, with a dropdown menu for creating a new meeting: One-time, Recurring, and Classic.
In the past, if you wanted to set up regular meetings in OpenProject, you had to manually copy existing meetings for each new occurrence. This process was time-consuming and made it harder to keep track of recurring discussions.
With OpenProject 15.3, this changes: You can now schedule recurring meetings using templates. Instead of copying meetings manually, you set up a template once, define the schedule (e.g., every day, every working day, weekly), and OpenProject automatically creates future meetings for you.
Most important updates regarding Meetings:
When creating a new meeting, you now have the option to choose a Recurring Meeting (or a One-time Meeting).
The Classic Meeting still exists, but we will sunset that option once it becomes fully obsolete.
The sidebar on the left has changed. It now shows existing meeting series, in addition to preset filters like My meetings or Recurring meetings.
To switch between upcoming and past meetings, you now find buttons on top of each meeting overview page.
Here’s an example overview page of the updated Meetings module, filtered for ‘My meetings’:
Image: The OpenProject Meetings module, filtered for ‘My meetings’, showing upcoming meetings structured into Today, Tomorrow, and Next week or later. An additional section that is not shown in this example would be Later this week.
Example: Scheduling a monthly team meeting on Thursdays at 10:00
Let’s say your team holds a team meeting every four weeks on Thursday at 10:00 AM.
Previously:
You had to manually copy the meeting for each new meeting.
Setting up a consistent structure (agenda, participants) required manual effort.
It was difficult to track and manage recurring meetings in a clear overview.
Now with recurring meetings:
Create a new meeting and select Recurring meeting.
Set the recurrence to Weekly.
Adjust the Interval to 4 – this means the meeting repeats every 4 weeks.
OpenProject will display: Every 4 weeks on Thursday at 10:00.
Choose when the meetings series ends:
Never
After a specific date
After a set number of occurrences
Tip
Please note that you can create flexible meeting schedules by combining a frequency (daily or weekly) with an interval (e.g., 4, meaning every 4 days or every 4 weeks). More advanced monthly options are currently not available yet. If you want to cast your vote on this feature, please see https://community.openproject.org/work_packages/61522.
Image: Your options when creating a new recurring meeting – Project, Title, Location, Dates, Duration, Frequency, Interval and End of the series.
Meeting templates
Use templates to prefill each recurring meeting occurrence with some general agenda items and sections. We at OpenProject for example structure our weekly all-hands meeting in sections for each department, a “Good News” section, one for customer and user feedback, and so on. This way, the meeting is always structured in the same way and, for a specific date, attendants only have to add their agenda items or work packages to the respective sections.
Of course, you can adjust the template anytime and also edit each meeting occurrence so that it differs from the template.
Image: The OpenProject Meetings module, showing an empty template agenda and a note that you are editing a template that every new occurrence of a meeting in the series will use.
Meeting series
Once you created a recurring meeting, it will be displayed in the left side menu under Meeting series. Here, you can switch again between upcoming and past, while the default view is upcoming meeting occurrences, divided into Open and Planned. OpenProject opens the agenda of the next meeting for you as soon as the previous has started. This way, you can already start adding agenda items to the next meeting during your appointment, which can be quite helpful. Additionally, you can open any planned meeting by clicking on the Open button in the list. This action moves the occurrence up and lists it under Open. Open meetings are clickable, so that you can change the agenda.
Here is a screenshot showing the team meeting series from our example above:
Image: Example meeting series: Marketing monthly, two occurrences are displayed under Open, three under the section Planned.
More to come: Agenda item outcomes (Meeting minutes)
While Recurring meetings improve scheduling, we’re already working on the next major enhancement: Agenda item outcomes (Feature work package).
With this update, you’ll be able to take minutes, note decisions, and create follow-up work packages from agenda items in meetings. Regarding recurring meetings, agenda items without outcomes might be transferred to an upcoming meeting. This will be another major improvement to provide users with a structured and efficient meetings module.
OpenProject 15.3: Migration, installation, updates and support
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 15.3 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 15.3 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to the City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations.
Also, a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to Luka Bradesko, Max Mutzge, Lars Geiger, Rudi B., Alexander Aleschenko, Alex Fantini, and Peter Wafzig.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to highlight
greench, for an outstanding number of translations into Turkish.
Kuma Yamashita, for a great number of translations into Japanese.
Willers-ICT, for a great number of translations into Dutch.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
Teams around the world are looking for alternatives to Jira, whether due to changing project requirements, a preference for open source solutions or rising costs. However, switching tools is often easier said than done – especially if a seamless migration solution is not readily available. This is where the strength of open source and Community-driven development comes into play. A developer recently faced this exact challenge — needing to migrate from Jira to OpenProject but finding no suitable tool. Instead of giving up, he developed his own open source Jira migration tool using the OpenProject API and made it available to others – helping not only himself but the entire open source Community.
“Since I’m a developer, and to a hammer, everything is a nail — I wrote my own migration script.”
Emad Ibrahim, developer of the OpenProject Jira importer
The challenge: Migrating from Jira to OpenProject
For many teams, Jira has long been the project management tool of choice. In many cases, simply out of habit and a lack of time to start over. Especially since Atlassian continues to raise prices and “lock-in” users into their cloud offering, more and more organizations are rethinking their options and looking for cost-effective open source alternatives that are trustworthy and feature-rich.
However, switching from Jira to OpenProject presents challenges:
Time constraints – teams often don’t have the resources to manually migrate their projects.
Technical complexity – a migration tool must be able to handle issues, work logs and custom fields.
Lack of ready-made solutions – until now, there was no open source Jira to OpenProject migration tool.
A member of the open source Community developed a solution
In the face of these challenges, a member of the open source Community who wanted to migrate from Jira to OpenProject took action: Developer Emad Ibrahim created his own Python-based migration script to streamline the process – and, in the true spirit of open source, made it available to others. He shared his experience on Hacker News, explaining:
“Migrating thousands of JIRA tasks (projects, comments, attachments, etc.) was a challenge. OpenProject provided an Excel Macro written in Visual Basic, which didn’t work for me. So, I wrote a Python script to automate the migration. In a few hours, I had all our data moved over, and we’ve been happily using OpenProject ever since.”
The open source community quickly took notice of this post. Users quickly recognized the value of this migration tool and expressed their appreciation:
“This is awesome. JIRA migrations are a massive headache, and the fact that you are providing a working solution as open-source software is solid.”
“Perfect for people who want to ditch proprietary tools.”
“I have been thinking about using a tool other than Jira for so long, but since you have already shared your experience, I could use your script and switch to OpenProject.”
This positive response highlights how challenges can be solved together when developers share their solutions and open source them. 💙
We at OpenProject want to help finding migration solutions
At OpenProject, we want to support solutions that make migration easier. Many teams want to make the switch but don’t have the time or technical skills to do so. This Community-developed migration tool is a step in the right direction and helps lower the hurdle for those looking to migrate.
Tip
This story also reminds us of another recent Community success: The GitLab integration for OpenProject. Similar to this migration tool, the GitLab integration also started as a Community initiative before becoming an official OpenProject integration.
Thanks a lot to Emad Ibrahim for open-sourcing your development and helping others migrate, too! It’s really great to see success stories like this in our open source Community and we are very happy to be a part of it.
If you want to use the OpenProject Jira importer, you can find it here on GitHub. Please note that even though we really appreciate this tool, it is a Community-developed tool and not part of the official OpenProject offer, so we cannot provide support related to using it. If you are interested in other OpenProject Community-developed plugins as well as official integrations, see this list in our documentation.
Teams rely on clear and structured task names to stay organized, but manual naming often leads to inconsistencies. OpenProject’s upcoming feature, Automatically generated work package subjects, ensures work packages follow predefined naming rules. This improves searchability, reduces errors, and saves time. Read on to learn how it works — along with ready-to-use subject patterns for your workflows.
Struggling with inconsistent task names? Here’s why it matters
A well-structured project relies on clear and standardized task names. In reality, however, manually naming work packages often leads to inconsistencies. Different team members may use different formats, leave out important details, or follow outdated guidelines. Over time, this creates confusion, makes filtering and searching harder, and increases the risk of errors.
For teams that handle structured processes — such as HR processing vacation requests, finance tracking invoices, or IT logging security patches — consistent naming isn’t just helpful, it’s essential.
The solution: Automatically generated work package subjects
To solve this challenge, OpenProject will soon introduce Automatically generated work package subjects, a feature that ensures work package names follow predefined patterns — without manual input. This feature is still in development and planned for one of our upcoming releases in early 2025. However, details and the release timeline may still change.
Admins define structured naming rules
Instead of relying on users to type a subject manually, admins can then define naming patterns using placeholders such as:
Employee name — Ensures HR requests always include the relevant person.
Dates — Automatically adds a start and end date for structured tracking.
Project name — Makes it easier to distinguish work packages across projects.
Custom fields — Allows flexibility for department-specific workflows.
Whenever a user creates a work package of a specific type — such as a vacation request, supplier invoice, or IT security patch — the subject is automatically generated based on these rules. This means no more inconsistent or incomplete task names — just clear, structured, and searchable work package titles every time.
Example: Automating vacation request subjects for HR
HR teams process numerous vacation requests every year, often requiring a clear and structured naming convention to track employee leave. Without predefined subject patterns, employees might enter inconsistent titles like:
Vacation – Max
Vacation Request 15-12 to 06-01
Max Mustermann holiday leave
These inconsistencies make it difficult to filter requests, ensure compliance, and standardize approvals. Also, some subjects miss important information like the date.
With Automatically generated work package subjects, admins can define a structured naming rule to enforce consistency. For vacation requests, an HR admin could configure the following pattern:
How Automatically generated work package subjects improve vacation request tracking
An employee creates a Vacation request work package. (Note: In the screenshot, the work package type is Feature)
Instead of manually entering a subject, OpenProject automatically generates:
VACATION REQUEST: Max Mustermann 15/12/2024 - 06/01/2025
If the employee or HR updates the request’s start or end date, the subject updates automatically to reflect the change.
Note
Please note: Work package types with automatically generated subject lines cannot be edited manually.
This ensures that all vacation requests follow a uniform format, making it easier for HR teams to track and manage employee leave. With standardized subject lines, filtering and reporting become more efficient, allowing teams to quickly find requests for specific time periods. Additionally, the automated structure helps prevent missing information by ensuring that every request includes the employee’s name and the relevant dates.
Standardized subject patterns for different departments
Automatically generated work package subjects can be applied across various industries and teams. Let’s look at some example subject patterns that teams can use across different work package types.
These predefined formats help standardize naming conventions, making tracking and collaboration easier:
By using predefined subject patterns, teams across different departments can ensure clear, standardized work package names that make tracking and collaboration easier.
Tips on crafting your own patterns
If you don’t see exactly what you need in the list above, here’s how to create patterns tailored to your team:
1. Identify critical attributes
Ask yourself: When someone sees the title, which details do they need right away?
Which date matters? (Start date, Finish date, Creation date)
Are there key custom fields? (Invoice ID, Budget Period, Lead Name)
2. Add meaningful labels
Include short, recognizable keywords that describe the purpose at a glance:
VACATION REQUEST
SUPPLIER INVOICE
BUG REPORT
CONTRACT RENEWAL
3. Start small and focus on impact
If you’re new to subject patterns, begin with one or two high-impact cases — perhaps work packages that frequently cause confusion, such as vacation requests or invoices.
Prioritize what matters most — Avoid adding too many details. Keep subjects short and clear for quick identification.
Expand gradually — Once you see the benefits, apply patterns to additional work package types.
4. Communicate the rollout
Make sure your team is aware of the new conventions. Share examples, explain the benefits, and provide guidance on how these patterns will improve workflows.
Stay tuned for automatically generated work package subjects
With Automatically generated work package subjects, OpenProject will soon introduce a great feature that will help teams save time, reduce errors, and ensure clarity in work package naming. Whether you’re managing vacation requests, invoices, or project milestones, structured subject patterns will bring more consistency to your workflows.
We’re excited to bring you this new feature soon — so stay tuned!
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Transparency is a cornerstone of OpenProject’s open source values. By sharing our roadmap openly, we invite you to see where the software is heading, align your workflows with upcoming features, and actively contribute to the development process. At openproject.org/roadmap, you can continuously track which features are planned for which dates — while keeping in mind that plans may evolve.
This article provides a focused summary of our current priorities for 2025, looking beyond individual features to highlight overarching goals. Discover what’s planned for OpenProject in 2025!
Overview: Current focus topics for developing OpenProject
Here is a brief overview of the key areas we’re focusing on to make OpenProject even more valuable in 2025:
Let’s take a closer look at each of these topics, highlighting exemplary features and why they’re planned for this year.
OpenProject’s focus on project portfolio management
Managing multiple projects efficiently is a critical challenge for many organizations. Our focus on project portfolio management in 2025 is planned to help you maintain clarity, prioritize effectively, and make strategic decisions across your portfolio.
Roadmap 2025: Planned portfolio management features
One of the exciting upcoming features regarding project portfolio management is the project lifecycle with stages and gates. These represent specific phases (stages) and critical decision points (gates) in a project lifecycle. By integrating these into the system, project portfolio managers will be able to better track and manage projects as they progress through different stages.
Image: Preview OpenProject 2025 – Project lifecycle with stages and gates - administration. Please note that the feature is still in development and this is just a preview.
OpenProject’s focus on team collaboration
Collaboration is the foundation of successful project management. In 2025, we’re planning enhancements to help teams communicate, coordinate, and work together seamlessly.
Meetings play an essential role in project collaboration – for companies of all sizes. That’s why we’re excited to continue improving our dynamic meetings module this year. Some key features will be the ability to take meeting minutes during the meeting as well as recurring meetings.
Image: Preview OpenProject 2025 – Recurring meetings. Please note that the feature is still in development and this is just a preview.
OpenProject’s focus on integrations and API solutions
Integrations and API solutions remain a priority to ensure OpenProject works seamlessly with other tools in your ecosystem. These planned improvements aim to make workflows smoother and more connected.
The Nextcloud integration for OpenProject has played a central role in file management for years. We are very happy about this collaboration and look forward to developing further integrations with valued open source partners such as Element and XWiki soon.
OpenProject’s focus on user experience and accessibility
Making OpenProject more intuitive and accessible is an ongoing goal. We aim to ensure that every user, regardless of their technical background or abilities, can benefit from the software. In 2023, we started introducing the Primer design system and continued applying it last year. In 2025, we will continue applying standardized components to missing pages and improving accessibility, with a special focus on the Scrum module. Learn more about the Primer design system for OpenProject.
Mobile app
In 2025, we continue developing our mobile app, which is not yet publicly available. While most of our developers are focused on the web app, we are excited about the progress of our mobile app. Stay tuned for updates as we work toward delivering a powerful mobile experience.
Image: The OpenProject mobile app Home screen in an alpha version. Please note that the app is still in development and this is just a preview.
Your feedback, ideas, and wishes for our roadmap
Your opinion matters: Are these planned features useful to you? Is anything missing that you really wish for? We would love to hear from you.
As an open source company, we work in the open. So if you would like to participate in OpenProject, join our Community instance to request features, report bugs, and get early access to upcoming releases. See this guide to our Community instance to learn how exactly you can contribute.
Stay connected
Apart from using our Community instance, there are other ways to stay informed about OpenProject:
We are very happy to announce the release of OpenProject 15.2. With this update, users are now able to set reminders for work packages to never forget about a task again. Another great features are:
In this blog article, we’ll examine the feature of setting reminders for work packages along with the feature of exporting time tracked in work packages now as PDF. To learn more about the other features and bug fixes included in version 15.2, please check out our release notes.
Set reminders for work packages
With OpenProject 15.2, you can stay on top of your tasks with the new Reminder feature. Need a nudge about a work package at a later time? Simply open the work package, click the new Reminder icon, and set the date and time for your reminder. When the moment comes, you’ll receive a notification in your notification center, ensuring you never miss a critical task.
Simply click on the Reminder icon and specify when you would like to be notified:
We expect this feature to help many users to organize themselves even better and to keep the notification center free of outdated reminders. Maybe it has happened to you that you don’t mark notifications as read because you want to edit or view the corresponding work package later. However, this causes your notification center inbox to grow over time and become more and more cluttered.
In addition, it can often happen in your daily work that you have a work package open which you would like to look at again later – today, or days or weeks later. This is especially true in management positions if you want to monitor the progress of a task.
With the new reminder feature, you can now focus on your most urgent work and let OpenProject remind you of the work packages that will become relevant at a later point in time.
Export timesheets as PDF
Time tracking - and reporting in a nicely styled document – grows more and more important for many companies and freelancers. Until now, you could export your OpenProject timesheets to Excel.
With OpenProject 15.2, exporting time reports just got more flexible! You can now also generate PDF timesheets in the Time and Costs module. Simply set up your report filters, click the Export PDF timesheet button, and download a polished, easy-to-share PDF report.
Important
Please note that for now, the PDF export focuses exclusively on time entries and does not include cost data.
Here’s an example:
… And this is how the generated PDF will look like:
OpenProject 15.2: Migration, Installation, Updates and Support
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 15.2 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 15.2 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to the City of Cologne and ZenDiS for sponsoring parts of this release. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations.
Also, a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to Stefan Weiberg.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to highlight
atifahnordin, for an outstanding number of translations into Malay.
Alin Marcu, for a great number of translations into Romanian.
Yuliia Pavliuk, for a great number of translations into Ukrainian.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
Meet Samantha, OpenProject’s dynamic Customer Success Manager, whose passion for empowering customers and fostering collaboration drives the company’s mission forward. From shaping processes to celebrating team successes, Samantha’s journey exemplifies dedication and adaptability in a rapidly evolving environment. In this interview, she shares insights into her role, the evolution of OpenProject, and what inspires her every day.
A few fun facts about Samantha
To get to know her better, let’s start with a few fun facts about Samantha:
Favorite activity outside of work: I love being outdoors, whether cycling, walking in parks, or spending time at the beach. I also enjoy baking.
Favorite art form: I frequently visit museums and appreciate a wide range of styles. My time in Paris deepened my love for the arts.
First job: My first job was in event management, a role that honed my organizational and communication skills, which I continue to apply today.
Current read: I’m reading Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor, exploring the health benefits of proper breathing techniques.
Can you tell us about your role and day-to-day responsibilities at OpenProject?
As a Customer Success Manager at OpenProject, I focus on delivering exceptional experiences and fostering long-term relationships. My role centers around understanding our customers’ needs and ensuring they maximize the value of OpenProject in their daily operations.
My responsibilities include answering customer inquiries, providing timely support, and guiding users through OpenProject’s ever-evolving functionalities. I prioritize ensuring customers feel supported and empowered, particularly when new features are released each month.
Collaboration is another vital aspect of my role. I work closely with sales, marketing, and product teams, sharing customer feedback to drive product and process improvements. Teamwork is key. Creating a collaborative environment ensures the team is motivated and aligned toward our shared goals.
At what point do you engage with customers, and how do you prioritize their needs?
I work with customers at all stages—from those exploring OpenProject during a trial to seasoned enterprise clients. While all customers can reach us via email or phone, we prioritize enterprise customers as they have support plans with us. We also assist trial users to showcase the value of OpenProject early on.
Community Edition users are encouraged to leverage forums or documentation, but we still monitor their inquiries for insights into potential improvements. It’s beneficial for us to understand their feedback, even if they’re not enterprise users.
How do you keep your team motivated?
I encourage open communication and celebrate collective successes. When a team member’s efforts lead to positive customer feedback, I make sure they know their impact.
Can you share your journey with OpenProject and how the company has evolved during your tenure?
I started in customer support, and the department was in its early stages. Over time, I contributed to shaping processes, transitioning ticket systems, and building a more professional support structure.
After taking maternity leave in 2023, I returned to discover a dynamic landscape with new features and team members. It was inspiring to see how much had changed and improved in my absence.
What’s an accomplishment you’re particularly proud of last year?
Reintegrating into the team and learning about all the new functionalities introduced during my leave was a big accomplishment in 2025. Adaptability and enthusiasm underscore my commitment to personal growth and team success.
What are you passionate about, and how does it align with OpenProject’s values?
A strong advocate for work-life balance, I appreciate OpenProject’s 100% remote work policy. I was looking for a company that values flexibility and happiness in the workplace. OpenProject embodies that.
Do you have any memorable customer success stories?
Sometimes, a simple inquiry leads to unexpected appreciation, and it’s always rewarding. Whether it’s proactive outreach or resolving a complex issue, customer gratitude reaffirms the team’s efforts.
What is one of your favorite aspects of working at OpenProject?
The pace of innovation. Monthly releases, new features, and consistent improvements ensure there’s always something exciting happening. It keeps the work dynamic and challenging.
Samantha’s journey with OpenProject is a testament to her dedication to fostering customer success and building strong teams. Her story highlights the company’s commitment to innovation, collaboration, and work-life balance.
Would you like to be a part of OpenProject? We at OpenProject are happy to welcome new colleagues who are passionate about open source. Click here to see our vacancies.
At OpenProject, our mission is to create tools that empower teams to collaborate and succeed. But what truly makes OpenProject special is the people who bring this vision to life. In this installment of our Culture Series, we’re thrilled to introduce Marcello, a senior software engineer whose passion for open source and teamwork is at the heart of what we do.
Marcello’s journey into tech is anything but ordinary — starting as a veterinarian and eventually transitioning into software development, his path reflects the curiosity and resilience that define OpenProject’s culture. In this interview, Marcello shares insights into his role, his love for open source, and the moments that make working at OpenProject so fulfilling. From crafting integrations to fostering team collaboration, Marcello’s story offers a glimpse into the dedication and innovation driving our team.
Dive into the conversation to learn more about Marcello’s work, his philosophy on tech, and what makes OpenProject a place where passion meets purpose.
What is your role at OpenProject, and what are your day-to-day responsibilities?
I’m a senior software engineer at OpenProject. My main focus is on files, file storage, and computer-to-computer communication—essentially the ‘plumbing’ that supports our features. It’s the kind of work that users may not directly see, but it’s critical to making the system function smoothly.
Can you tell us about the tech stack you work with?
We use Ruby for the backend, and my main tools are RubyMine and the terminal. I occasionally collaborate with other teams, like operations, but most of my time is spent in these tools, which are like my power tools for coding.
How long have you been in tech, and what led you to OpenProject?
I’ve been in tech for about 20 years, but my journey is unconventional—I actually trained as a veterinarian! After working in various fields, including public and private sectors in Brazil, and startups in Germany, I joined OpenProject about a year and a half ago. Despite the short time, it feels like I’ve been here forever — I truly love it.
Why do you feel so strongly about OpenProject?
OpenProject aligns with my values. It’s not about chasing world domination or massive profits. It’s about delivering meaningful, open source software that anyone can use. I’ve been an open source advocate for a long time, and being paid to work on something open source is a dream come true. It’s not just a job; it’s a labor of love.
What has been a memorable project or achievement for you at OpenProject?
I’m especially proud of our recent OneDrive integration. It was a complex project that required us to challenge long-standing assumptions about file storage and integration. Beyond the technical accomplishment, it sparked valuable discussions within our team and led to system-wide improvements, like better error messages and more comprehensive testing. These changes benefit not just us as developers, but also our users.
How does remote work impact your collaboration?
Remote work is relatively new to me. I started during the pandemic. While I enjoy working from home, as I’m a bit of a hermit, it’s clear that we lose certain subtleties, like body language. Those non-verbal cues are hard to replace, but we’re improving how we communicate through language and tone.
What sparked your love for open source?
I discovered open source nearly 30 years ago through Linux and its ecosystem. To me, software is like art — it’s imagination turned into something tangible. Open source thrives on collaboration and recognition among peers, and that’s what drew me in. Over the years, I’ve contributed to various projects, but one of my proudest contributions was to a Ruby framework called Hanami. It was challenging but incredibly rewarding.
What do you do outside of work?
I’m passionate about board games and tabletop RPGs. My wife and I host game nights with friends regularly — it’s a social event where we play, chat, and enjoy each other’s company. I’ve also loved progressive rock since my youth. Bands like Porcupine Tree and Pink Floyd are my go-to programming soundtracks.
What advice would you give to others entering tech?
Be curious and ask questions. It’s okay to challenge assumptions and seek clarity. Also, never stop learning. I’m constantly reading and revisiting materials, like Pedagogy of the Oppressed, which helps me mentor others effectively. Tech is as much about people as it is about code.
In summary
Marcello’s passion for OpenProject and open source shines through every aspect of his work and life. His unique background and dedication to collaboration make him an inspiring figure within our community. Stay tuned for more stories from the OpenProject team!
Another year is almost over! Given the current difficult economic and political situation around us, we are more than grateful and proud of this successful year in which OpenProject has once again grown and made great progress. This is in particular due to our amazing team working hard to continuously improve this open source software in many ways, the fantastic users and customers and of course a vibrant and very engaged Community that support us throughout the year.
Let’s take some time to look back: What happened at OpenProject 2024? Spoiler alert – we released almost 30 new versions this year! With so many changes and updates, a summary of the highlights is particularly valuable. So please sit back and join us on a little journey through the last 12 months in this article. There is a high probability that you will discover (or rediscover) a feature that will help you achieve your 2025 goals. 🏆
From January 17 to December 11, 2024, 28 versions were released for OpenProject. Of these, 2 were major, 10 minor and 16 patch releases. Comparing to the previous year: In 2023, there were only twelve releases in total, less than half as many as this year. This is due to our decision at the beginning of 2024 to release one minor/major release every month. The reason for this is to provide users with finished features and improvements directly – even if they are small. In addition, our team has grown, enabling us to develop faster and to get user feedback more quickly – to then be able to quickly react to it.
After one year of monthly releases, we are very interested to know: As an OpenProject user or administrator, what do you think of this monthly cycle? Do you appreciate getting new features much quicker? Please write us your feedback or exchange ideas with other users in our Community Forums.
Highlight features of 2024
With all these new versions, let’s take a closer look at our highlight features that were released in 2024:
Starting December 2023: A OneDrive/SharePoint integration (Enterprise add-on)
In December 2023, we introduced a OneDrive/SharePoint integration as an Enterprise add-on. This integration allows you to link files and folders from OneDrive or SharePoint directly to work packages in OpenProject. It simplifies access to important project documents by keeping everything in one place. You can add a specific folder for each project with automatically managed permissions. This also enables to create project templates with a pre-defined folder structure and linked file templates.
Furthermore, we have continued to improve this integration during the year, by adding
project folders,
a connection validation ,
and the ability to activate storage for multiple projects at once.
We would like to thank the City of Cologne for sponsoring great updates on project lists in 2024.
In February 2024, we introduced features to filter and save custom project lists. This allows you to create personalized views of your projects by applying filters and saving these configurations for quick access. It helps project portfolio managers keep on top of things, especially when handling numerous projects.
In July 2024, we enhanced project portfolio management by allowing users to mark project lists as favorites and share them. You can now easily access frequently used project lists by marking them as favorites, streamlining your workflow. Additionally, sharing project lists with the entire instance is available in the Community edition, while sharing with specific users or groups is offered as an Enterprise add-on, fostering better collaboration.
For complete information on how to set up and use project lists, check out our user guide.
March 2024: A GitLab integration
In March 2024, we introduced a GitLab integration, which was developed from a Community plugin. This feature allows you to link GitLab merge requests and issues directly to work packages in OpenProject, streamlining collaboration between development and project management teams. By connecting these elements, you can monitor development progress and maintain a unified workflow.
For more information on setting up and using this feature, please refer to our GitLab Integration Guide. To get an overview of all OpenProject’s integrations, take a look at our new integrations overview page.
Starting April 2024: Progress reporting across work package hierarchies
In April 2024, we enhanced progress reporting across work package hierarchies. This improvement provides a cohesive overview of estimates, effort, and progress, especially beneficial for multi-project management. By linking progress tracking with time entries and extending it across hierarchies, you gain a clearer picture of your project’s status.
In June 2024, we enhanced progress reporting again by allowing time entries to be recorded in days, in addition to hours. This flexibility enables teams to log work and remaining work in the unit that best fits their workflow, improving accuracy in time tracking. Administrators can define the number of hours that constitute a working day to align with organizational standards.
Later in October 2024, we made this feature more flexible, by allowing manual editing of the % Complete field and introducing new settings for progress calculation, giving administrators greater control over progress tracking.
May 2024: PDF export of Gantt charts (Enterprise add-on)
In May 2024, we introduced the PDF export of Gantt charts as an Enterprise add-on. This feature allows you to export your Gantt chart views to PDF format, facilitating easy sharing and printing of project timelines. It enhances project documentation and communication by providing a portable format for your schedules. Later in the year, we improved this feature by adding options for paper size selection and date zoom levels, offering more flexibility in your exports.
In August 2024, we introduced a dark mode to enhance user experience. This feature provides an alternative visual theme with light text on a dark background, reducing eye strain in low-light environments and offering an aesthetically pleasing interface. Users can enable dark mode by navigating to My account > Settings and selecting Dark under the Mode option. This setting applies individually, allowing each user to choose their preferred display without affecting the entire instance.
September 2024: Restore local backups in text editor
In September 2024, we introduced the ability to restore local backups within the WYSIWYG text editor. This seems like a small feature, but is very valuable as it allows users to recover unsaved content changes in work package descriptions or wikis. So this feature prevents data loss due to accidental closures or crashes. By clicking the clock icon in the editor’s header, you can access and restore previous versions of your content, each marked with a timestamp and word count. This enhancement ensures that your work is safeguarded and easily retrievable.
November 2024: Emoji reactions and more in the new Activity tab
In November 2024, we unveiled a redesigned Activity tab for work packages, enhancing communication and collaboration. The new design offers a cleaner, more structured interface, aligning with GitHub’s Primer design system. Key improvements include:
Real-time updates: Comments and notifications now load instantly, eliminating the need for page refreshes.
Emoji reactions: Users can respond to comments with a selection of eight emojis, making interactions more engaging.
Fixed comment box: The input field is anchored at the bottom for easy access.
Filtering and sorting: Options to filter by all activities, comments only, or changes only, and to sort by newest or oldest first.
December 2024: Custom fields of type hierarchy (Enterprise add-on)
Our last bigger release in 2024 included an Enterprise add-on to create custom fields of type hierarchy. It allows users to structure data further into multi-level selections within custom fields, making it easier to categorize and manage complex information in work packages. Whether you’re organizing locations, structuring teams, or categorizing products, this feature adds clarity and precision to your workflows.
If you have been following OpenProject and our updates for a while, you will know that we started a major design change last year. In September 2023, we reported that we wanted to adopt the design system Primer from GitHub and that we would be incorporating it into the application in many small iterations.
In the course of 2024, we have already updated some parts to the new design. In addition to the more modern, user-friendly design, we have improved features in some places at the same time, such as the dropdown function in the relations tab on work packages.
Have you noticed these design changes? How do you like them?
In 2025, we will continue to adapt further areas of OpenProject to the Primer design system. Thank you for your patience and understanding that such changes can only be implemented step by step. This way, we have capacities for new great features, bug fixes and further innovations in addition to the design adjustments.
Launch of openDesk 1.0
OpenProject is driven by values around open source and data sovereignty. Therefore, it is very important to us to collaborate with other great open source software providers. On the one hand, we do this in the form of providing integrations, as we have done so far with Nextcloud, for example, with further integrations planned with XWiki and Element on our roadmap.
During the Smart Country Convention in Berlin this October, openDesk 1.0 was officially launched. We are excited about this big step and look forward to the first in-depth user experiences.
Company and culture at OpenProject 2024
We are immensely proud of how well OpenProject as an organization and we as a team have developed and grown in 2024. We were able to attract a large number of exceptional people and also win some of them back.
Our new team members
The best part of growth are the new team members who strengthen and professionalize the team. In 2024, our team has grown again – a warm welcome to every new team member!
Jen, Marketing & Community Manager US
Cécile, Senior Software QA Engineer
Ivan, Senior Software Engineer
Simon, Support Specialist
Judith, Senior Software Engineer
Giuseppe, People & Organization Manager
Dorothee, People & Organization Manager
Tobias, Senior Software Engineer
Oleksii, App Developer
Bruno, Senior Software Engineer
Alex, Senior Software Engineer
Jan, Senior Software Engineer
Vanessa, Team & Accounting Assistant
Note
Interested in seeing your name on this list next year? We at OpenProject are happy to welcome new colleagues who are passionate about open source. Click here to see our vacancies.
Team meetups and official events
We also had some wonderful team highlights in 2024. The most important is probably our annual team offsite. As much as we welcome and have embraced remote working, it’s also nice to get together with the team in person from time to time. This year we met in Berlin at Wannsee for our company offsite and worked, laughed, spent time together and strengthened our bond.
Furthermore, we attended several conferences again this year, such as the Univention Summit, FOSDEM (watch our talk at FOSDEM 2024), Nextcloud Community and Enterprise days, the Smart Country Convention and the Open Source Experience. These fairs are always a great opportunity to get in touch with our users and the Community.
Roadmap for 2025
Of course, we have some exciting updates on our roadmap for 2025. Please feel free to check back at www.openproject.org/roadmap to see which features are planned for which approximate time frame. Please also keep in mind that we develop in an agile way and that plans are always subject to change.
One topic in particular will be on our minds in 2025: As requested by many users, we have been working on a mobile app for some time now, which is scheduled for release in the course of the coming year. We will publish more detailed information as soon as the scope and release date become clearer.
Stay up to date regularly, it’s worth it! We particularly recommend subscribing to our newsletter, which informs you about new versions and features at least once a month.
Feel free to visit and subscribe to our social networks to get all the information directly:
That was our summary of 2024. What did you particularly like? Where would you like to see changes? Please do not hesitate to contact us and give us honest feedback. We would also like to take this opportunity to refer you to our Community forums, where you can exchange ideas with other users about OpenProject.
If you would like to contribute to OpenProject, please visit our Contributions guide that we recently created, as so many of you asked how to support us. You can help by translating OpenProject, by reporting bugs or submitting feature ideas. You can also help by contributing to our documentation. And of course, if you spread the word, link to our website or give us a testimonial for us to publish, this also helps a lot.
Many thanks to everyone who has accompanied and supported us again this year! To our great Community, which supports us in so many ways with bug reports, translations and more. To our sponsors, who enable growth and innovation. And to our team, who did a great job again in 2024 and contributed to becoming the leading project management software for data conscious organizations. True to our vision, to achieve great things for the good of society.
And with that, we wish you a good break between the years and a powerful start to the new year 2025! 🌟
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