Local Hosting Google Apps equivalent.

[jallsop]

Not sure if this is the right section, but Mods, please move if you need to.

 

We currently use Google Apps for Education, and have been from a few years, but with the sale of the school to an Education Group in September, we've been told that the policy of the group is not to use Cloud based services unless the data is held either in Switzerland, or the EU, at a push.

The staff and students have been using the google share and collaborate features quite heavily over the past few years, with lots of positive impact on the learning, and as it currently stands, the school runs a BOYD policy for students, so a web based platform solves the issues of OS dependancy. The school provides a MS network but the students usually (95%) are mac users.

 

Does anyone know of a locally hostable set of apps, with the same collaboration and share potential that Google apps base given us. Failing that, are there any EU based solutions that anyone know of?

 

I know the whole world is going cloud based, and schools are no exception, but we've tried to argue our case, but the answer is a firm, NO!

 

Thanks in advance.

[fiza]

Office365?

[jallsop]

Office365?

From what we understand, if we signed up to this here in Switzerland, the Cloud part is in US, not EU. Plus it has nowhere near the functionality of Google apps as we use it here, although we have a funny feeling the group might make us use some form of 365. I have to say, i'm not a fan of it.

[ThatBoringBloke]

Sure I read somewhere that Schools in the EU have their Google Apps data stored in Ireland.

 

Just not sure where I read it.

[jallsop]

Thats possible but Switzerland isn't in the EU, for contracts like this, so we're just trying to figure out this ourselves. Microsoft aren't being very helpful. The group is really pushing for local hosting if at all possible too.

[fiza]

From what we understand, if we signed up to this here in Switzerland, the Cloud part is in US, not EU. Plus it has nowhere near the functionality of Google apps as we use it here, although we have a funny feeling the group might make us use some form of 365. I have to say, i'm not a fan of it.

 

I know MS have updated their collaboration so that it is similar to what you get with Google Apps recently. Have you tried it recently?

[jallsop]

I know MS have updated their collaboration so that it is similar to what you get with Google Apps recently. Have you tried it recently?

We don't have access to it at the moment. I admit it has been a little while since I last used it (at another school), but its still cloud based, and the group are so anti cloud its almost silly. They're only entertaining 365 as a last ditch alternative to local hosting.

[edutech4schools]

Shame about the Gapps thing as we use it at all my schools. Still does more than 365 imo.

 

If someone reading this is in the EU you might want to read this EU demands answers over Microsoft's Patriot Act admission | ZDNet

 

Not sure what it was called (do a search in edugeek) but someone did mention a very good system that created a locally stored cloud style system from the server it was installed on.

 

If I find it I will post back.

[Arthur]

Huddle or OwnCloud?

[ThatBoringBloke]

Just because the live data is stored in the cloud doesn't mean that the backups have to be.

 

Could you not see where they would stand on this? cloud based data with all backups locally stored?

[jallsop]

Just because the live data is stored in the cloud doesn't mean that the backups have to be.

 

Could you not see where they would stand on this? cloud based data with all backups locally stored?

 

They want as little as possible stored in the cloud. Its a security thing, based on our student population. It's a worry about any data being in the cloud at all. Personally I can't see the problem, as long as its in a Swiss equal country. Basically the EU. The powers that be tend to disagree.