Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Foswiki VS DokuWiki

Compare Foswiki VS DokuWiki and see what are their differences

Foswiki logo Foswiki

Foswiki is the free and open source enterprise collaboration platform.

DokuWiki logo DokuWiki

DokuWiki is a simple to use and highly versatile Open Source wiki software that doesn't require a database.
  • Foswiki Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-01-28
  • DokuWiki Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-16

Foswiki features and specs

  • Open Source
    Foswiki is an open-source platform, meaning that it is free to use and its source code can be modified and customized to meet specific needs.
  • Extensible
    Foswiki offers a flexible plugin architecture, allowing users to extend its functionality with a wide variety of available plugins.
  • Robust Permissions
    It provides robust access control and permissions settings, enabling secure management of user roles and content access.
  • Version Control
    Versioning capabilities allow tracking changes over time, making it easy to revert to previous states of a document or page.
  • Active Community
    There is a supportive and active community around Foswiki, offering help, extensions, and regular updates.
  • Platform Independent
    Foswiki can be installed on any server that supports Perl, making it platform-independent and versatile for different environments.

Possible disadvantages of Foswiki

  • Complex Setup
    The installation and setup process can be complex, especially for users not familiar with Perl or server configurations.
  • Steep Learning Curve
    Users may encounter a steep learning curve due to its broad feature set and extensive customization options.
  • Outdated Interface
    Some users find the default user interface outdated and not as intuitive or modern as other wiki solutions.
  • Performance Issues
    There might be performance issues with large-scale deployments, requiring optimization or additional resources.
  • Limited Built-in Features
    While extensible, Foswiki's core installation has fewer built-in features compared to competitors, relying heavily on plugins.
  • Maintenance Overhead
    Regular maintenance is required to ensure security and compatibility with plugins, which can be resource-intensive.

DokuWiki features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    DokuWiki is known for its simple and straightforward installation process. It does not require a database, making it easy for users to set up and manage.
  • File-based Storage
    Instead of using a database, DokuWiki stores its data in text files. This makes it easy to backup, transfer, and maintain.
  • Extensibility
    DokuWiki has a wide range of plugins and templates available, which allows users to extend its functionality and customize its appearance.
  • Built-in Access Controls
    DokuWiki provides built-in access controls and authentication mechanisms, allowing administrators to manage user permissions effectively.
  • Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Friendly
    DokuWiki is designed to be SEO-friendly, making content more discoverable by search engines.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source, DokuWiki is free to use and benefits from community contributions and support.

Possible disadvantages of DokuWiki

  • Limited Scalability
    Due to its file-based storage, DokuWiki may face performance issues as the amount of content grows significantly.
  • Learning Curve
    Though it is user-friendly, users without technical knowledge might still find it challenging to utilize advanced features or customize their wiki.
  • Basic Features
    While it covers the basics well, some users may find DokuWiki lacking in advanced features compared to other wiki software.
  • Plugin Dependency
    While extensibility is a pro, relying on plugins for additional functionality can lead to maintenance issues, especially if plugins become outdated or incompatible.
  • Less Professional Support
    As an open-source project, professional support is limited compared to commercial options. Users primarily rely on community support.

Analysis of DokuWiki

Overall verdict

  • DokuWiki is a well-regarded choice, particularly for users who need a straightforward and reliable wiki solution without the overhead of a database. It is suitable for both personal use and small to medium-sized enterprises seeking an efficient documentation system.

Why this product is good

  • DokuWiki is considered a good option for its simplicity and ease of use. It is a versatile and lightweight wiki software that doesn't require a database, making it easy to install and maintain. It uses plain text files, which simplifies backups and data portability. DokuWiki also supports a range of plugins and templates, allowing for customization, and it includes features like version control, access control lists, and multilingual support.

Recommended for

    DokuWiki is recommended for individuals or organizations looking for a simple, no-database wiki system. It is especially suitable for small teams, educational projects, personal knowledge management, and internal company documentation that prioritizes ease of use and low maintenance.

Foswiki videos

Lonely Data vs Linked Data (with Foswiki)

More videos:

  • Tutorial - Foswiki Tutorial - How to create a new user
  • Tutorial - Vadim Belman - "Foswiki, And How To Redesign 20 Years Old Code"
  • Review - Introduction to Foswiki - The free and open source Wiki
  • Tutorial - Foswiki Tutorial on how to create, edit and control a new topic
  • Tutorial - Foswiki Tutorial on how to create, edit and control a new topic

DokuWiki videos

Dokuwiki Tutorial: Overview

More videos:

  • Review - Dokuwiki: Quick Walk Through

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Foswiki and DokuWiki)
Note Taking
22 22%
78% 78
WiKis
19 19%
81% 81
Content Collaboration
27 27%
73% 73
Knowledge Base
11 11%
89% 89

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Foswiki and DokuWiki

Foswiki Reviews

We have no reviews of Foswiki yet.
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DokuWiki Reviews

Top 12 Self-hosted Wiki Engines for 2024: A Comprehensive Guide
DokuWiki is an open-source wiki software that stands out for its simplicity and versatility. Key features include ease of installation and use, low system requirements, built-in access control lists, support for over 50 languages, and device independence. It doesn't require a database, making it easier to maintain and back up. DokuWiki is extensible with a large variety of...
Source: medevel.com
The 10 Best Self-hosted Wiki Software for Linux System
Dokuwiki is a highly flexible and easy-to-use open source wiki software that does not require a database. Many users love it due to its ease to use and fluent syntax. The lack of limitations, backup, and installation make it the favorite of any user who wishes to maintain a collaborative website.
Best 11 Open-source Free Wiki Engines for teams and enterprise in 2022
DokuWiki is a popular PHP-based open-source wiki that has been standing for years. It offers a multilingual support as it packed by a large community of experienced users and developer from all over the world.
Source: medevel.com
The Best 20 Wiki Software For Your Business& Internal Knowledge for 2022
DocuWiki is a versatile open-source wiki tool that is noted for its clean and readable syntax. Feature-packed and easy to install, this software can be used to build a corporate wiki, private notebook, and software manual. Its built-in access controls and authentication connectors make it a perfect choice for enterprises looking for a solid security system. Creating a...
17 open source wiki engine/software
DokuWiki is a lightweight, standards compliant free PHP Wiki engine that allow you to create any kind of documentation. It has a simple yet powerful syntax which makes sure the data files remain readable outside the Wiki and eases the creation of structured texts. All data stored in plain text files – no database backend are required.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Foswiki seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 5 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Foswiki mentions (5)

  • Otter Wiki: A minimalistic wiki powered by Python, Markdown and git
    Do you know a wiki where one can add metadata to the pages? I used https://foswiki.org and it was great for combining structured and non structured information. - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • Making a Company Directory
    Use FOSWiki. It's best suited for a corporate intranet, but has a learning curve. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Software for an organization, think 'teams' and 'sharepoint'
    The best software around is FOSWiki, which is an enterprise wiki with numerous plugins, eg for taking meeting notes, setting up workflows, searching, appending files to wiki pages, etc. The only drawback is that it comes as a blank page, but there are foswiki consultants available for this job. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Does anyone else create cooking "plans" before a large meal? What's that called?
    I host my own instance of https://foswiki.org/ on my home linux box. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Recommendations: Standard Compliance Audit software
    Use an enterprise wiki with forms and workflows. A lot of work to customise the system, but if you use FOSwiki, you can use pattern matching queries to extract the standards from the text of a page (eg from documentation), having the advantage that whenever you edit the documentation, the standards (and questions) change automatically ;-) You should think about versioning, though. Source: almost 4 years ago

DokuWiki mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of DokuWiki yet. Tracking of DokuWiki recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Foswiki and DokuWiki, you can also consider the following products

WackoWiki - WackoWiki is a light and easy to install multilingual Wiki-engine.

MediaWiki - MediaWiki is a free software wiki package written in PHP, originally for use on Wikipedia.

TiddlyWiki - a non-linear personal web notebook

Wiki.js - An open source, modern and powerful wiki app built on Node.js, Git, and Markdown.

XWiki - A powerful Open Source collaborative platform enhancing collaboration and communication.

Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware - Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware, also known as Tiki (or TikiWiki), is a full-featured, web-based, multilingual, all-in-one Free/Libre Open Source Software solution. Tiki can be used to create all kinds of web apps, portals, knowledge bases, intranets, etc.