November 1, 2025
Screenshots or it didn’t happen
OpenDesk by the Centre for Digital Sovereignty
Gov-made OpenDesk lands; crowd wants screenshots and asks if it’s just Nextcloud
TLDR: OpenDesk, a government-backed open toolbox for email, chat, docs, and files hosted on your own servers, just dropped. Commenters demand a public demo, struggle to find the community edition until a link appears, and debate the big question: is this basically Nextcloud or a true all-in-one alternative?
OpenDesk arrives from Centre for Digital Sovereignty, promising a “sovereign workplace.” It bundles calendars, chat, contacts, docs, email, and files, all hosted locally under strict privacy rules (GDPR = Europe’s data protection law). The pitch: avoid Big Tech lock-in with open tools like Element (Matrix chat), Collabora (office), OX Mail/Calendar/Contacts, and Nextcloud for files. Sounds official—Germany’s military and NATO reportedly use the chat—but the comment section instantly turned it into a trust test. Top mood? Skeptical excitement. The loudest chorus: “Screenshots or it didn’t happen.” Dennip begged: “A public demo or some screenshots would go a long way,” while others joked it’s “governmentware with a brochure.”
Cue the rescue: elashri dropped the community edition link, earning instant kudos and fixing the “where is it?” mystery. Then came the knife: falleng0d asked, “how does it compare with nextcloud?” sparking takes like “Is OpenDesk just Nextcloud wearing a trench coat?” and “Finally, an all-in-one that isn’t email glue.” The vibe swings between hope for a real open alternative and doubts about polish, UX, and transparency. The meme of the day: a sovereign suite without a public demo feels… less sovereign. The crowd wants proof, a tour, and ideally, a click-to-try right now.
Key Points
- •OpenDesk is a modular, browser-based workplace suite for public administration built on open standards and local hosting.
- •Core applications include OX Calendar, OX Contacts, Element (Matrix-based chat), Collabora Online, OX App Suite, Nextcloud, and Nubus by Univention.
- •Element provides secure, GDPR-aligned real-time communications and is used by the German Federal Armed Forces and NATO.
- •Collabora Online enables real-time document editing with broad file format support, drawing on LibreOffice expertise.
- •Nubus integrates identity and access management, supporting standalone directories and integration with Keycloak or Active Directory.