Pros And Cons Of Open Source School Management Software

Pros And Cons Of Open Source School Management Software—Infographic

It is free to download and set up which makes the initial cost almost zero. You do not have to pay anything to get the software.
It is free to modify the software according to the unique requirements of your school. You are not limited to what the software already has.
It is free to reuse in other branches of the same school or you can share the modified software with other schools. Also, there are no limits on the number of users.
It is free to work with any development team. You can hire a developer from your locality.
It is free to host the software anywhere. You can host it online or on a computer within the school campus.
There will be an opportunity to learn some coding and to develop computer science skills for interested teachers.
The IKEA effect. Your users will use the system more efficiently because they also participated in building it.
The software is reliable as it is developed by multiple independent developers and the code is reviewed by hundreds.
The high-security factor. Since the source code is open, it will be audited by experts in the field.
It is fun! Ultimately, using a self-customized open source school management software improves the collaboration between users.

There are problems with support. You can't expect the developer community of the software to prioritize your needs.
It requires technical knowledge in customizing and debugging the software for optimum use.
It needs technical skills in hosting the software and optimizing for scale so that it can be used by hundreds of users at the same time.
Since most of the open source software is developed with developers in mind, the User Experience will not be friendly for non-developers.
The long-term cost of the open source software can go more than the proprietory software if you do not hire the right resources.
You won't be able to use an off-the-shelf open source software as it may not fit well for the specific requirements of your school.
There is a higher probability for the open source project to be orphaned by the developers leading it.
Training videos or documentation for end users may not be user-friendly for a school teacher.