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Alfresco vs OpenText Content Manager vs ShareFile comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Mindshare comparison

Enterprise Content Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Alfresco7.8%
SharePoint11.3%
OpenText Content Management8.0%
Other72.9%
Enterprise Content Management
Enterprise Content Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
OpenText Content Manager4.5%
SharePoint11.3%
OpenText Content Management8.0%
Other76.2%
Enterprise Content Management
Cloud Data Exchange Services Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ShareFile1.7%
AWS Data Exchange36.7%
Microsoft Azure Data Share31.7%
Other29.89999999999999%
Cloud Data Exchange Services
 

Featured Reviews

JM
Country Head Spain at Apiux
Maintaining document integrity with persistent linking and customizable workflows
Currently, documents in Alfresco are stored on a file server, which, while good for performance, is a security risk. Clients, especially large enterprises such as banks, are concerned about document security if someone breaches the server. It would be beneficial if Alfresco offers different options for document storage, such as databases or cloud solutions. Also, it would be helpful if Alfresco's viewer could be easily embedded in other systems, as its integration is currently complex.
Maurice Riverso - PeerSpot reviewer
Records Management Officer at ANZPAA
Our our official repository and it has disposal management and retention management
The security architecture is the only problem as it's a little bit complex and too torturous at times. So it could be improved a little bit, but it is regarded as a very good system in Australia. It's probably overly subscribed. Also, what's missing is what people would like, which is basically online collaboration. That's a problem. But it has so many other things to offer that SharePoint, I'm sure, will not have. So, that will be an interesting issue to come up. It's not very good at providing stable and robust add-ins to Microsoft. That's a bit of a problem with Content Manager. They're kind of very volatile. So, that's been definitely something that could be improved.
David Donaldson - PeerSpot reviewer
Regional Information Technology Director at a real estate/law firm with 10,001+ employees
Flexible plans, stable, and scalable
I used another solution at the same time, which was far worse. The American company I worked for used a similar file-sharing solution called LeapFile, a secure file transfer service. Personally, I found Citrix ShareFile to be much better than LeapFile, which was quite clunky. I later used a solution called Egnyte, which my company used as its main file transfer solution, though I'm not sure if it's still in use. The company moved to Egnyte because it is more of an enterprise-level solution. Egnyte was expensive, but it worked. I believe Citrix ShareFile is aimed at smaller to medium-sized organizations, making it a more appropriate solution than Egnyte due to its pricing.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The product allows engineering teams and developers to introduce new things in a seamless and easy way."
"Alfresco's technical support is very fast and professional."
"I like the ease of use, sections, and calendar."
"The most valuable feature is the flexibility of the searching elements of the metadata."
"Document repository."
"The most valuable features of Alfresco include its integration with the scanning solution, the ability to search, and the capability to store and index to capture metadata."
"Alfresco allows broad searches with many index fields that you can search on, although the created fields and their values may not be intuitive."
"The digitalization of workflow, forms, operations, and business processes is also significant."
"An advantage is integration with your IP directory."
"The product can be integrated with different solutions."
"The tool's implementation has made life easier for customers. It is sold by SAP. The integration between SAP and the solution is good, making it easy to access the documents. It is widely recognized as a market leader in enterprise document management."
"It has a robust search but has often been difficult for people to learn."
"For a records management system, Content Manager is a really good system."
"We like how the solution allows us to have retention of records and workflows, as well as its fire plan."
"I did not face issues with the product's scalability...The solution's technical support is good."
"The most valuable features of OpenText Content Manager are its stability, reliability, security, and workflow engine."
"It's user-friendly for end users."
"ShareFile gives you all of the features of cloud providers, but in an on-premises solution."
"Easy to manage and fully secure."
"The solution would query the Active Directory, and if new accounts were identified, Citrix ShareFile would add them automatically."
"The Enterprise Dropbox solution is highly integrated with Microsoft's Office 365 and Azure products."
"This provides us with a secure way of sending tax returns without having to use passwords."
"The solution is scalable."
"Citrix has a very good file auditing features and security features."
 

Cons

"If you don't have proper governance, things can go wrong. You have to make rules, such as one folder should not have more than 5,000 subfolders or children."
"The setup process for Alfresco was complex."
"I think the presentation layer could be improved - currently, it's too complex, and there are too many features cluttered all over the screen."
"Currently, documents in Alfresco are stored on a file server, which, while good for performance, is a security risk."
"Alfresco has a very steep learning curve, and unfortunately, during the learning process, it's very easy to make errors, which often are unforgiving."
"Metadata, auto class, disposition log, and legal hold."
"I would like them to consider document capture functionality."
"The configuration of Alfresco is a big challenge."
"OpenText Content Manager needs to improve its user interface. Its installation process is difficult and can be made easier."
"Due to very limited use in the industry, vendor and contract support are hard to find."
"Pricing is an issue, as it is too expensive."
"The product could improve its scalability."
"The ease of use should be addressed."
"The stability of the solution is an area of concern where improvements can be made."
"It's not very good at providing stable and robust add-ins to Microsoft."
"Support could be enhanced. The first line of support consists of individuals who lack experience with some key aspects. When you create a support ticket, the time to resolve the issue may be prolonged because the first person may not understand the system or the solution."
"Everything they have should be integrated into one item."
"The configuration on the mobile devices is a little clunky, in terms of setting up the application."
"There are sometimes scalability issues after updates."
"The user interface is not very intuitive."
"Some of our customers are facing issues if they've deployed in hybrid mode."
"DLP features are lacking and required because, especially with everyone working from home, security is now paramount when the data is on BYOD devices."
"My only issue with this solution is the cost, which should be improved."
"They should integrate the solution with more email services."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is cheaper compared to head-to-head competitors."
"The license for Alfresco is expensive - not the maximum, but close. There are also extra costs once you start building integrations, as implementation seems to be very costly."
"If you buy Alfresco through a partner, there is usually a OEM licensing option."
"There are costs for any upgrade or additional functions."
"The fees incurred are for the licensing and maintenance."
"I would suggest that you do a thorough evaluation of all competing products and look for support for these products in your local area."
"I rate the product price an eight or nine on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive. The solution is expensive."
"The solution's licensing cost depends on the customer domain. Though its costs are high, the product is worth the money. You have to pay a one-time cost and support costs."
"If you are already a Citrix customer, I recommend having the Platinum licensing level, as it provides licensing for a number of various features that all integrate together."
"I give the cost of the solution a five out of five."
"You have to work hard in order to get the suitable licenses."
"Citrix has a very good file auditing features and security features."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Government
16%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Legal Firm
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alfresco?
The pricing of Alfresco starts at $100,000, which can be expensive for small projects. There is often a transition fr...
What needs improvement with Alfresco?
Currently, the challenge is the general availability to users. Initially, they had poor documentation, but over the y...
What is your primary use case for Alfresco?
This is mainly for unstructured document management systems with workflow and data classification.
What do you like most about Micro Focus Content Manager?
An advantage is integration with your IP directory.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Micro Focus Content Manager?
Pricing is a disadvantage as it is very expensive, especially in this market.
What needs improvement with Micro Focus Content Manager?
Pricing is an issue, as it is too expensive. Support and services need to be more user-friendly. The support has been...
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Also Known As

No data available
Micro Focus Content Manager, HPE Records Manager, HPE Content Manager
Citrix RightSignature, Citrix ShareFile
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Over 1,300 companies from 180 different countries. Including EuroStar, Saks Fifth Avenue, NASA Langley Research Center, and KLM.
Missouri State Courts
SecondMarket, KBC Partners, Twilio, You Know Who Design, oDesk Corporation, CMT Agency, Townhog
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, IBM, OpenText and others in Enterprise Content Management. Updated: February 2026.
881,757 professionals have used our research since 2012.