Introduction:
Odoo is a popular ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) suite that has a wide range of functions. Some functions are behind a paywall, while others are available in the community version. In this article, I’ll outline some of the key features of Odoo, as well as link to individual articles with detailed discussions about the various features and limitations of the product.
For my own purposes, I use Odoo Community Edition mainly as a CRM platform. It’s a great alternative to Salesforce, is self-hosted, and doesn’t have a licensing fee. If I gloss over other areas of Odoo, it’s because I’ve not had an opportunity to use them in a production environment and do not feel that I can give useful advice. As always, if there’s something that you’d like more information on, feel free to leave a comment and I’ll work to provide some insight.
Version Breakdown:
Versions: Odoo has both “Enterprise” and “Community Edition”. Odoo provides a great link to compare the two versions and decide which is best for you. Community Edition is free but has some limitations on the applications available. Enterprise Edition does not have these limitations but does have a monthly license/support fee. This fee is calculated based on the number of users and the apps that have been enabled in your environment. The licensing costs for Enterprise can be found substantial for larger environments with widespread app usage, but it’s easy to “start small”.
Installation: Odoo is very easy to install on Debian 11. They’ve provided a repository that can be used to install, rather than having to deploy from scratch. I’ve created an Odoo 16- Install guide that you can use to get started. There are a number of tweaks that need to be made but this is a great start.
Tweaks:
- Change/customize login appearance
- Allow larger uploads (>1mb)
- Send/receive email (using SendGrid)