Project Phoenix – for a digitally sovereign German state

Phoenix is a joint project between Dataport and renowned partners from the world of business and science. Together, we aim to ensure a digitally sovereign German state.

Explore Phoenix

Zwei Programmierer blicken im Büro auf einen Bildschirm

A sneak peek into the Phoenix workshop

We are developing a fully digitally sovereign workplace with web-based open-source modules for the German public sector. Phoenix places great importance on transparency. Operated both in secure datacentres owned by public sector IT service providers and in secure clouds, the state has full control over its own data and any data it has been entrusted with - at all times. In contrast to other Office products, the Phoenix modules offer total digital sovereignty and are therefore a genuine alternative.

Find out here which modules are already available in the dPhoenixSuite, which ones will be added soon, and which partners are part of the community.

Menschen, die zusammen an einem Tisch sitzen und Ideen austauschen

The Phoenix modules

The dPhoenixSuite comes with modules by different developers, all of which are intuitive to use. Together, they form a comprehensive digital workplace. The modules are continually being developed and optimised in close collaboration with the makers.

We link to the source codes. We also regularly receive requests for further development of the modules ("contributions") from the open source community. The ideas under consideration and their current status are being published in the development project ("pull requests").

Currently, the dPhoenixSuite includes the following modules:

Access management
Univention Corporate Server (UCS) and KeyCloak are used for identity and access management for the dPhoenixSuite. UCS is an enterprise open-source solution for the central, web-based management of user accounts and access rights. Using the UCS portal, users can easily and securely access IT services, resources, and data provided by Phoenix via single sign-on.
Groupware services

Email correspondence. Managing contacts and appointments. Compiling to-do lists. The Open-Xchange software can be operated intuitively and is 100 percent accessible. Experience has shown that users find it easy to switch from Outlook or other established solutions. Open-Xchange also offers collaborative tools and messaging solutions.
Online storage

When teams work together digitally, they often need to edit and share documents. As a result, the number of file versions keeps growing. Nextclouds intelligent FileShare solutions provide secure hosting and increase productivity. In addition, all accessibility requirements are met.
Office programmes
The modern workplace requires everyone to write texts, compile spreadsheets and prepare presentations digitally. Collabora is based on LibreOffice Technology and ensures that your documents are compatible with Microsoft Office products.
Messaging
Messenger services close the communication gap between telephone and email. Matrix enables efficient communication – encrypted end-to-end. The module includes a FileTransfer feature, that syncronizes your chat histories. It also includes a whole range of formatting options for individual messages.
Video communication
Jitsi enables secure, fully encrypted video conferences. Simply invite your participants via URL. Jitsi also allows you to present documents and edit them together with others. Chat rooms parallel to the video stream as well as the “hand signal” feature ensure that your video conferences run smoothly.

Phoenix on track for a bright future

Thanks to the consistent use of open-source software, digital sovereignty is ensured across the German administrative bodies. Nextcloud is thrilled to be part of Dataport’s Phoenix project. Together, we are driving digitalisation forward while taking data protection and IT security into account.
Frank Karlitschek
Founder and Managing Director, Nextcloud

The Covid pandemic has shown everyone how important digital work is. Cloud solutions for the public sector place particularly high demands on security and data sovereignty. I am pleased that we can be part of the Phoenix project with IONOS Cloud, helping to make Germany a little more digital.
Achim Weiß
CEO, IONOS

Phoenix combines the best open-source solutions and offers a real opportunity to become independent from hyperscale players, to ensure data sovereignty and to protect privacy. We feel honoured to be part of this powerful project and to be able to specifically address the needs of the public sector.
Andreas Gauger
CEO, n-X-Change

In the area of software for office work, the public sector has become heavily dependent on proprietary solutions. This is a major obstacle on the road towards self-determined, sustainable and agile digitalisation in Germany. That’s why it is so important that Dataport is offering Phoenix – a powerful, open and better alternative to the previous providers. A very important step for digital sovereignty, not only for administrative bodies. That’s why we at Univention are proud to play a central role in this project with our products for identity management and portals.
Peter Ganten
CEO, Univention GmbH

The Phoenix community – open for all

The dPhoenixSuite relies on the power of its community. It is basically an open network with prominent partners from administration, business, and the open-source community. We pool our know-how and our commitment. We exchange ideas. And together, we develop the project further at our Phoenix workshop. The community is open for new players who are keen to advance the project, open for providers of suitable open-source software, and for new sales partners.

These partners are already on board

Bechtle
As Germany’s biggest IT system provider, Bechtle is a strong partner for sustainable IT infrastructure. Bechtle AG is present in 75 locations across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and has 24 e-commerce companies in 14 countries, making it one of the leading IT businesses in Europe. Founded in 1983, the company headquartered in Neckarsulm currently employs roughly 11,500 people. Bechtle offers its more than 70,000 customers from industry and trade, public service, and the financial sector a complete range of IT infrastructure and IT operations. Bechtle is listed in the MDAX and TecDAX. In 2019, sales exceeded 5.37 billion euros.
Univention
Univention is a leading provider of open-source products for running and managing IT infrastructure, for identity management in enterprises as well as for providing third-party applications that are integrated via identity management and portals. Easy-to-use IT solutions for administrative bodies and public service organisations as well as for the education sector have been of strategic importance for the company for years and are – measured by sales – Univention’s fastest growing user segment. Univention’s more than 700 end customers include public clients and users such as the Brandenburg state parliament, the German Federal Agency for Civic Education, the City of Cologne, and the Federal Office for Radiation Protection.
Capgemini
Capgemini is one of the world’s leading providers of management and IT consultation, digital transformation, as well as technology and engineering services. As a trailblazer for innovation, the company supports its customers with their complex challenges around the cloud, digital issues, and platforms. With more than 50 years of experience and comprehensive sector-specific know-how, Capgemini helps its customers to reach their business goals. It provides a complete service portfolio that includes everything from strategic development to business operations. Capgemini knows that the economic value of technology comes through human use and acts as a multi-cultural business with around 270,000 employees in almost 50 countries.
Fraunhofer Fokus
The Fraunhofer Society is Europe’s leading organisation for applied research. It incorporates 72 institutes and research facilities across Germany. More than 26,000 employees work on research worth 2.6 billion euros every year. Of that, 2.2 billion euros come from contract research. Roughly 70 percent of this is from contracts with the industry and from publicly financed research projects. International collaboration with outstanding research partners and innovative companies around the world give the Fraunhofer Society direct access to the latest, most important and most promising scientific and economic spheres.