Compiere
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software, Enterprise resource planning, Customer relationship management |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founder | Jorg Janke |
| Fate | Acquired by Consona Corporation in 2010 |
Area served | Small and Medium-sized Enterprises |
| Products | ERP and CRM software (Community Edition, Professional, Enterprise, Cloud Editions) |
| Parent | Consona Corporation |
Compiere (pronounced KOM-pyeh-reh, derived from the Italian term for "to accomplish") is an open-source ERP and CRM platform designed primarily for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) operating in sectors such as distribution, retail, services, and manufacturing. Distributed through Consona Corporation alongside an authorized Partner Network, Compiere provides both community-supported and commercial editions.
Established in 1999 by Jorg Janke, Compiere gained significant traction, ranking within SourceForge's top 10 projects between 2002 and 2006. By 2006, it had surpassed one million downloads and cultivated a network of 100 partners.
In 2006, Compiere, Inc. obtained venture capital funding from New Enterprise Associates to transition its open-source ERP into a viable commercial enterprise. The following year saw growth in leadership, engineering, support, and sales teams. The product portfolio broadened to include Professional, Enterprise, and Cloud Editions while preserving the open-source Community Edition.
Conflicts emerged between management’s commercial ambitions and community members advocating for fully open-source solutions such as Adempiere and iDempiere. On June 16, 2010, Consona completed the acquisition of Compiere, Inc.; financial details were not disclosed.
The Community Edition of Compiere is distributed under the GNU General Public License version 2. Commercial Professional Editions provide enhanced functionality, proprietary licenses, comprehensive documentation, and dedicated support agreements.
Functionality
Compiere delivers an extensive suite of ERP capabilities structured to minimize data redundancy and maintain data consistency. Its modules encompass Quote to Cash, Requisition-to-Pay processes, Customer relationship management, Partner Relationship Management, Supply Chain Management, Performance Analytics, Warehouse Management, Double-entry accounting, Workflow Management, and an integrated Web Store. Additionally, a manufacturing module is being developed independently through the CMPCS project (refer to the external links section).
Architecture
Constructed on a Model Driven Architecture foundation, Compiere is engineered to evolve alongside changing business requirements. Users have the flexibility to customize its data model to accommodate new demands. The system offers various perspectives on business data derived from transactional information and supports integration with external datasets. Employing Compiere's MVC design pattern allows these perspectives to be tailored. At its core lies the Active Data Dictionary (ADD), which governs data entities (including types and validation), user interface elements (such as labels, help text, and layout), and security policies.
Developed using Java EE, Compiere utilizes robust enterprise technologies to ensure scalability and adaptability.
Database independence
Originally reliant on the Oracle database platform (including Oracle XE), Compiere has progressively achieved greater database agnosticism since version 2.5.2 via its Database Kit, facilitating migration across multiple database systems. Beta versions exist for ports supporting PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Sybase. Additionally, it operates on Firebird through the use of Fyracle extensions without requiring a full port.
The ER/Box initiative leverages the Database Kit to provide a completely Java-based open-source distribution of Compiere compatible with Apache Derby and PostgreSQL databases. Support for the open-source Oracle alternative EnterpriseDB is also included. Access to user documentation continues to be provided under a paid model.
Releases
| Version | Release Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0.0 Beta | 1999 | Initial preview edition |
| 2.0.0 Beta | 2000 | First official release of Compiere ERP + CRM |
| 2.3.1 Beta | 2001-10-10 | Business solution for Linux and Windows platforms |
| 2.4.0 Beta | 2001-11-12 | ERP + CRM available for Linux and Windows environments |
| 2.4.2 | 2002-03-05 | Significant update supporting Linux and Windows systems |
| 2.4.2b | 2002-03-14 | Minor update compatible with Linux and Windows |
| 2.4.2d | 2002-06-17 | Small-scale release for Linux and Windows platforms |
| 2.4.3b | 2002-11-18 | Maintenance update, platform-independent |
| 2.4.3c | 2002-12-12 | Maintenance update, platform-neutral release |
| R2.4.4 to R2.4.4c | 2003-02-24 to 2003-05-15 | Series of maintenance releases, platform-independent |
| R2.5.0d (two releases) | 2003-10-10 & 2003-12-03 | Platform-neutral maintenance updates |
| R2.5.0e | 2004-01-31 | Maintenance release; discontinued platform-specific versions |
| R2.5.1 to R2.5.1g series | 2004-02-18 to 2004-11-09 | Combination of major and maintenance releases enhancing ERP + CRM features |
| R2.5.2 to R2.5.2d series | 2005-02-14 to 2005-06-02 | Major and maintenance updates focusing on product reliability |
| R2.5.3a & R2.5.3b | 2005-10-29 & 2006-02-25 | Maintenance updates |
| R2.6.x series | 2006-11-04 to 2007-05-14 | Major and maintenance releases aimed at functionality improvements |
| R3.x series (3.0.0 to 3.3.0) | 2007-12-04 to 2010-06-01 | Key releases advancing the Compiere ERP + CRM platform within the community segment |
See also
- Comparison of CRM systems
- iDempiere, Adempiere, metasfresh, Openbravo (projects derived from Compiere source code)
- List of free and open-source software packages
Spin-offs
- Adempiere: Emerged following disagreements between a portion of the Compiere user base and Compiere, Inc., primarily due to concerns that the company favored venture capital interests over community involvement, resulting in this open-source fork.
- metasfresh: A German-developed ERP system built upon the ADempiere foundation.
- iDempiere: Also referred to as OSGI + ADempiere; this project restructured the codebase using the OSGi framework to support a plugin-based architecture and is now maintained by one of the most dynamic and autonomous open-source ERP communities.
- Openbravo ERP