OpenCms Frequently Asked Questions

What features does OpenCms offer?

Please see the Feature List for an exhaustive list of OpenCms features. Have a look at the Guided Tour to see some screenshots of OpenCms in action.

What does OpenCms cost?

OpenCms is true Open Source Software and thus there are no licensing costs for using the software. This, of course, includes commercial usage on as many servers or clients or databases as you like.

How stable and mature is OpenCms?

OpenCms is very stable and mature. The system has been in active Open Source development since 1999, and it has been deployed by a large number of international companies and organizations for websites as well as for Intranet or Extranet applications. Please check out the list of Reference Sites to get an impression of some of the sites successfully using OpenCms.

Is professional support available for OpenCms?

Certainly! Alkacon Software offers a selection of professional support options. OpenCms is also supported by a number of interactive agencies and software consulting companies worldwide. Check out the Solution Providers section for a list of companies offering professional support for OpenCms worldwide.

How can I participate or contribute to OpenCms?

If you decide to use OpenCms, you will benefit from the success of OpenCms as it gains more and more widespread use. Have a look at the Promoting and Sponsoring page to check how you can help making OpenCms even more popular.

We welcome all development contributions to the OpenCms project, please check out our Development section for more details on how to participate in the OpenCms development. You can for example help by developing additions or enhancements to the OpenCms core system, by publishing OpenCms modules, by working on the documentation for OpenCms, or by translating OpenCms to other languages.

How do I spell OpenCms correctly?

OpenCms (the product) should be spelled with capital "O" and "C", the rest is all lower case, and it's one word. So it's "OpenCms". The following spellings are all "wrong": OpenCMS, Open CMS, openCMS, Opencms... In case you write about (or refer to) OpenCms, please use the "right" spelling.

What license is used for OpenCms?

OpenCms uses the lesser GNU general public license, or LGPL, version 2.1. The LGPL is one of the most accepted Open Source licenses. It is verified as a "true" Open Source license by the Open Source Initiative (OSI). The full text of the LGPL is available on the website of the Free Software Foundation (FSF). For further information about the LGPL, please see the website of the FSF.

Does using the LGPL mean that all additions to OpenCms must be Open Source as well?

OpenCms has a build in module API (which is in fact a Java interface). All modules that use that API are in terms of the LGPL "works that use the library" and therefore are not bound by the LGPL license. However, if additions or changes to the core system are made, the result is a derivative work, and certain restrictions apply, the most important being that the license used for the derivative work must also be the LGPL.

So companies can develop their additions to OpenCms as a module and choose any license they like. However, the OpenCms core system and all enhancements or additions to it will stay Open Source.

Who is coordinating the OpenCms development?

The development of OpenCms is officially coordinated by Alkacon Software. An active Open Source community is participating in the OpenCms development and a number of solution providers around the world offer professional support for OpenCms.

What is the history of OpenCms?

OpenCms is based on ideas and software developed and deployed since 1994. The first versions of OpenCms were developed by Alexander Kandzior as an "in house" web agency solution while working on various professional web projects between 1994 and 1999.

The first open source release of OpenCms was issued March 2000. Since then, OpenCms has been continuosly developed as an Open Source project. A number of companies and individuals have contributed to the development.

Starting 2002, Alkacon Software GmbH, a software development company started by Alexander Kandzior, has been doing most of the work on the core OpenCms core system. Alkacon Software has been officially coordinating the further development of OpenCms and the opencms.org website since then.

OpenCms 5.0 was released by Alkacon in May 2003. OpenCms 6.0 was released by Alkacon in May 2005, followed by OpenCms 6.2 in March 2006. OpenCms version 7.0 was released by Alkacon in July 2007.