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Here is the comparison between Commercial and Open Source ERP software systems. This study has been made considering different parameter. Study concludes commercial erp softwares are suitable only for big corporations and open source business software should be the choice of small and medium scale industries.Know what is open source ERP before proceeding with this study. 

Study has been made on following 10 factors while comparing commercial and open source ERP softwares.

Pricing

Flexibility

Duration

Dependence

Results

Training

Security

visibility

Ease of integration with current systems

Longevity

Pricing
Most open source software is freely distributed with no up-front licensing fees. Further savings come from ease of deployment, training and integration. Companies that implement open source ERP solutions often report a 50% savings over proprietary systems. With free systematic open source ERP training methodology like SOSE! site you can own your software for no cost.

Commercial ERP is an expensive package and suitable only for bigger corporations. The prices do vary significantly but according to the size of the company and volume of business. In any cases they have been found to be extremely costly irrespective of the quantum in which they are purchased. These packages are not subject to flexibility and molding. Their usage modalities are rarely liberal and cause troubles when they are modified. Hence the deployments also turn out to be costly and inconvenient due to the procedures involved, in the future. Another major allegation against the package is that they consist of lot of hidden costs.

Flexibility
When you compare commercial and open source ERP, commercial systems are not flexible in nature. They let business with no other choice but to change their way of business. However when it comes to open source ERP everything was decided by the code .Therefore companies can do the necessary modifications in code and without much support from the vendor. Another advantage of open source is that it does not interfere with the regular schedule of the company during the implementation stage. This is a major difference between commercial and open source ERP applications. You should use business software for your needs, you should not change the way of your business to fit into software needs.

Duration
When you study commercial and open source ERP,The time allotted for implementing open source ERP is very less when compared with commercial ERP. The innumerable number of complexions in commercial ERP calls for longer time span. It consumes a lot of time not only during implementation but in every stage of ERP process due to the nature of work involved. With use of SITE ERP implementation methodology you can reduce time required for open source ERP to the minimum.

Dependence
When it comes to the question of relying on the vendor the open source ERP owners enjoys a considerable edge than the commercial ERP. Since open source is license free users have full freedom for taking care of needs by themselves. The productivity is also high in open source ERP systems and the failure rates are very low.

Results
Success rate of open source ERP are considerably more compare to proprietary ERP softwares. Read open source ERP success stories for more details.

Training
Lots of training is required for using commercial ERP. It calls for lots of investments in terms of time and money. If they don’t give the necessary impetus the results will be poor. Similarly validity of training sessions designed and handled exclusively by the ERP vendor is also debatable.

On the other hand Open Source ERP does not require much training. The results are also bound to be effective because the user gets to learn through the process of self training. The company need not spend much on training and makes a minimal utilization of the resources. This is another way of reducing the level of dependence on the ERP vendor. You can get free online ERP training with SOSE!.

Security
On comparing commercial and open source ERP applications, Commercial ERP systems are less secure. They are by and large prone to the traps and pitfalls of hackers. Even though open source ERP makes everything transparent and available in the public domain it bring into the notice of user whenever something goes wrong.

visibility
Few end users change the underlying code of an open source application. But when the need arises, open source provides access to the code to make changes to suit each distributor’s unique business needs. Open source customers enjoy a refreshing level of transparency from their vendors around activities such as bug reporting and fixing and road map planning.

Ease of integration with current systems
ERP solutions touch every aspect of a company, from warehousing to accounting. As such, a company’s ERP solution should easily integrate with existing IT infrastructure components, such as application servers, directory services and storage arrays. Open source solutions are compatible via standards-based interfaces with multiple technologies, including support for lowest-cost commodity operating systems, databases, utilities and hardware.

Longevity
Virtually any ERP solution will work well when initially deployed, but time is the true test of every ERP solution and vendor. Unforeseen opportunities will likely drive changes to a business’ objectives and necessitate changes to its ERP solution. Independently, a vendor’s commitment to supporting a solution could change over time. An open source solution with a flexible foundation addresses today’s needs and safeguards the solution’s future. Because the user has the source code, a solution can never be bought or merged out of existence, meaning the investment lasts as long as needed. Independent services for ERP implementation support is also available for free with open source ERP.

Conclusion
Functionality is the top consideration when reviewing ERP solutions, but it should be closely linked with evaluating open source and proprietary options. The demonstrable benefits of open source products reach deep into a company’s infrastructure. You can evaluate and select business ERP software which give functionality you need.

The differences between commercial and open source ERP show the Edge enjoyed by open source ERP players. And independent free ERP trainer like SOSE! will help open source ERP to reach people.