As the Frappe Universe continues to expand, I’ve noticed the importance of understanding the future plans and ensuring seamless integration between various apps built on the Frappe framework. There are so many amazing apps out there, each bringing unique value, but they often face compatibility issues with each other.
The core of our ecosystem is the Frappe framework, with ERPNext being the prominent app on this platform. This leads us to an essential question: What are the plans to streamline app compatibility in the Frappe Universe, especially with ERPNext?
The Need for a Compatibility Matrix
I believe it’s essential to have a clear understanding of which apps are compatible with ERPNext and can work effectively in both standalone and private environments. Here’s a preliminary compatibility matrix I’ve created to get us started. This table is exploratory and will need further checking and development.
Proposed Compatibility Matrix
App
ERPNext Compatible
Standalone
Private Environment
Framework
ERPNext
Frappe HR
Learning
Courses, Quizes, Users, public viewable
Insights
Wiki
CRM
Q3 2024
Gameplan
Books
Helpdesk
Builder
Drive
Education
Print Designer
Press
Bench
Datatable
Charts
Gantt
**Legend:**
ERPNext Compatible: Indicates if the app is compatible with ERPNext.
Standalone: Indicates if the app can function independently without ERPNext.
Private Environment: Indicates if the app can be used in a private environment without exposing any internal information.
Your Input is Valuable!
I suggest that we add compatibility information directly in the GitHub repository for each app. This will ensure transparency and ease of access for developers and users alike.
I invite you all to contribute and suggest features that can be displayed in the compatibility matrix for better clarity. This will simplify our development and deployment processes, ensuring that the Frappe Universe functions as a well-oiled machine.
Join the Discussion
Follow this thread and share your experiences, challenges, and suggestions. Your insights will drive the community toward a more unified and compatible future.
Let’s collaborate to make the Frappe Universe a cohesive, efficient, and user-friendly ecosystem!
Tags: installation problems, migration issues, compatibility matrix, Frappe apps, ERPNext integration, standalone apps, private environment, on-premise setup, data privacy, telemetry monitoring, public information exposure, privacy dashboard, GitHub repository documentation, open source ERP, consumer privacy laws, transparent ERP systems
Thank you for your valuable input and for pointing out these important aspects.
Clarifications
ERPNext Compatible
You are correct; “ERPNext Compatible” may be better interpreted as “integrated” with ERPNext. My intention was to identify apps that seamlessly work with ERPNext without additional installation. Fully integrated apps do not need to be listed separately since they are already part of ERPNext, without additional installation.
Private Environment
By “Private Environment,” I meant that the app can be used on-premise without exposing internal information to the public by default. For example, with the Learning app, the entire user list and course content become public without requiring login, posing a security risk. This shouldn’t happen. Ideally, we should have a privacy dashboard allowing admins to control what is public. This ensures that apps like Learning can be configured to share only non-sensitive content. So, “Private Environment” refers to data privacy by default, not merely self-hosting.
Next Steps
I will refine the table for greater accuracy and welcome further suggestions. Additionally, adding these details to each app’s GitHub repository would help clarify compatibility and integration.
you might want to look into and very diligently track everything “telemetry”, “posthog”, etc. (might change unexpectly and non-keyword-compatibly) in ERPNext in order to determine if it is itself compatible with such privacy instead of doxxing any info of its users.
This is no easy question because people are free and don’t easily agree about all the things they expect from each other in a free world. It needs a lot of love and humility to become able to objectively asses what brings us forward collectively and, inversely, what might lead to overstepping boundaries of respect of each other.
That’s an excellent idea for enhancing privacy. Starting by displaying what information will be publicly viewable when your instance is connected to a public IP is a crucial first step.
Extensively documenting compatibility and privacy is feasible with Frappe/ERPNext as it’s open source. This would provide a significant advantage in regions with stringent consumer privacy laws. While many leading competitors offer largely undocumented black-box ERP systems, focusing on transparency can build trust based on clear documentation and openness, not just past performance.
