VIENNA Advantage Community Review

Our 2020 research and analysis of document management systems leads us to recommend VIENNA Advantage Community as the best free document management solution system for small businesses. We chose VIENNA Advantage Community from the dozens of document management systems we considered because it offers a comprehensive enterprise content management platform with highly effective tools and a user-friendly interface at no cost.

To learn how we selected our best picks, you can find our methodology, as well as a comprehensive list of document management systems, on our best picks page.

Editor's note: Looking for a document management system for your business? Fill out the below questionnaire to have our vendor partners contact you about your needs.

Pricing

VIENNA Advantage Community version is free, and requires in-house installation, updates and ongoing technical support. It is available in a Professional edition and Enterprise edition. Pricing isn't listed on the website; instead, you'll need to contact the sales department to obtain a price quote.

VIENNA Advantage is a sprawling, modular system. When you talk to their sales representative, you'll need to describe which features and functionality you need the most in a document management solution to their sales representative, as well as how many employees will use the software, to receive an estimate.

Features

VIENNA Advantage Community can consist of multiple different modules. For the purposes of this review, we focused on the company's document management module.

The core features of the document management module can be broken down into the following categories:

Document Input

Users have multiple ways of uploading documents into the system, including by email, scanner, mobile app, web services and bulk upload.

Document Indexing

Indexing is automated through VIENNA Advantage Community, leveraging an optical character recognition tool that understands 27 languages and organizes documents by metadata after scanning for keywords and formats throughout the document. Additionally, the software indexes all revisions made to documents, creating a comprehensive versioning archive that can be used to recall older versions of documents if needed.

Document Search

The search tool in VIENNA Advantage Community locates documents by any of the individual attributes or metadata associated with it. The software includes an advanced search feature and scalable document search engine so it's easy to find the files you're looking for even as your database grows.

Document Processing

VIENNA Advantage Community includes built-in word-processing software in addition to customizable templates for the quick creation of standard documents (such as invoices). It includes the key collaboration features we looked for in all document management software: Users can revise documents, "check out" documents so that all changes to a document are preserved, securely share files with others, and email documents to outside recipients.

Workflow Automation

Admins can use the workflow automation tool to implement certain processes so that the correct information is captured on all incoming documents. The system can also be set up to automatically route documents to the correct folder based on the metadata captured on input. When using additional modules of VIENNA Advantage Community, documents in the document management module can be used to automatically update business records associated with other VIENNA modules, such as accounting or CRM, creating a fully integrated and seamless system covering a wide range of your business's operations.

Security

VIENNA Advantage Community maintains a full audit log, which is useful for internal transparency and complying with federal and state regulations. All documents stored on the system are encrypted as well. VIENNA Advantage Community also allows administrators to set individual rules for specific users, tailoring who can see and edit certain documents and who cannot.

Not only does VIENNA Advantage Community offer all the key features we looked for, it includes more useful tools at no cost. In addition, when installing the community edition of VIENNA Advantage, you gain access to the VIENNA Market, which includes free and paid add-on features in addition to those listed above.

VIENNA Advantage Community Pros

VIENNA Advantage Community offers an extremely powerful, modular, cloud-based enterprise content management platform (that includes useful document management features) all wrapped up in an easy-to-navigate user interface.

Besides its document management module, VIENNA Advantage Community offers modules for accounting, CRM, business intelligence, HR, inventory management and supply chain management. These modules can be implemented as stand-alone applications or as a full suite. Best of all, VIENNA Advantage Community is free.

Once you overcome the hurdle of implementing VIENNA Advantage Community successfully, you have access to an intuitive user interface that is easy to learn and navigate. VIENNA Advantage Community is a browser-based tool that works via an online portal login. Upon logging in, you see a dashboard that displays all available modules. Based on your role in the organization, you might see more or less content, depending on the permissions set by your system administrator.

On the left-hand side of the screen, a workflow tool keeps tabs on any tasks assigned to you that need your attention. Notifications work similarly, alerting you to specific instances you set up beforehand. For example, you can be alerted when another user edits a specific document.

The dashboard includes a social media-style news feed that displays the most recent actions related to documents you have favorited or subscribed to. Additionally, a built-in chat tool, calendar and email tool on the dashboard allow team members to stay in constant communication.

VIENNA Advantage Community Cons

The biggest limitation of VIENNA Advantage is its lack of implementation assistance and technical support after the first 30 days. As an open-source, community-driven platform, VIENNA Advantage requires some technical knowledge on the part of the user. Luckily, there's a community of more than 14,000 members to go to for support. Another helpful resources is the developer documentation available on the VIENNA Advantage website. It is worth noting that there is a wealth of self-guided resources and how-to videos to assist you with installation.

If you are looking for a simple document management software that won't break your budget but are concerned that VIENNA Advantage Community may be excessive for your purposes, or you are concerned about implementation and technical support, consider our best pick for low-cost document management software, eFileCabinet. Read our full review of eFileCabinet. 

Ready to choose a document management system? Here's a breakdown of our complete coverage:

• Best Document Management Software and Systems
• Document Management Systems: A Buyer's Guide
• Best Low-Cost Document Management System
• Best Document Management System for Ease of Use 

Editor's note: Looking for a document management system for your business? Fill out the below questionnaire to have our vendor partners contact you about your needs.