On Linux hosts or virtual machines, free-software stacks give you auditable tools without per-seat license friction. Below is a curated sampler aligned with common collaboration patterns.
Office and collaboration
- LibreOffice: full-featured office suite—writer, spreadsheet, slides.
- OnlyOffice: collaborative editing with online integration options.
- Etherpad: real-time multi-cursor editing for meeting notes and specs.
Tasks and projects
- Taskwarrior: CLI task lists with rich filtering and hooks.
- Org-mode: Emacs-native planning and capture (see the Emacs guide for context).
- Redmine: self-hosted ticketing and project tracking.
- Nextcloud with Deck: kanban boards plus files and calendars in one self-hosted hub.
Personal knowledge
- Joplin: encrypted notes with optional sync targets you control.
- Zim: desktop wiki/notebook for structured journals.
Team chat
- Mattermost: Slack-style channels you can host internally.
- Rocket.Chat: another self-hosted real-time comms option.
Automation and delivery
- Gitea: lightweight Git forge for private repositories.
- Jenkins: automation server for build/test pipelines.
Time and task boards
- Focalboard: self-hostable boards with a product feel similar to commercial kanban tools.
- Task Coach: desktop planner with time tracking features.
Conclusion
Mix and match: not every tool belongs in one VM image. Pick a small integrated set—chat + git + tickets + docs—then expand when friction appears.
For more remote-work tooling ideas (including proprietary options people still encounter in enterprises), see Remote team productivity tools.
Free software rewards operators who read docs, automate backups, and patch regularly—plan operations, not only installation.