Self-hosted collaboration.
THE OPTIONS
Self-hosted project management applications Hosted services Existing tools your team already uses
WHAT SELF-HOSTING GIVES YOU
Data control and no per-user subscription.
WHAT IT COSTS
Installation, updates, backups, security, and being the person everyone contacts when it breaks.
REQUIREMENTS
Most of these applications are demanding: substantial memory, background jobs, and frequently a persistent process which shared hosting does not permit.
Check carefully before committing. Several popular options genuinely require a VPS.
THE COMMON OUTCOME
A self-hosted tool installed enthusiastically, used for two months, then abandoned and left unpatched.
BEFORE INSTALLING
Establish that the team will actually use it. A tool nobody adopts is worse than none, because it fragments where information lives.
THE PRACTICAL ADVICE
For a small team, hosted services cost money and require nothing from you. Self-host where the economics at your scale genuinely favour it, or where data control is a requirement rather than a preference.
