Blesta Vs Whmcs :)

[PauloV]

Hello Blestars

 

To raise the mood hover here I ask all your "FREE" opinions about the Blesta VS WHMCS

 

For me is:

 

Blesta Advantages

 

- Blesta is Secure

- Blesta is Well Coded

- Besta lets you see 99% of code for you to make changes

- Blesta team  is Friendly and Open to sugestions

- Blesta Comunity is great and help each outher, most of the time for FREE

- 99% of Modules/Plugins/Extensions made by developpers are FREE

- Blesta is Mobile Ready

- Blesta have some of the best Plugins outh there like cPanel Extended (V1/2), Blesta Online Chat and Admin Tools from naja7host

- Blesta Order Forms are very clean and eye pleasent

- Blesta Client Area, is one of the best looking outh there

- Blesta is EU Ready (need some small improvments)

- Love to be able to Bill unlimited by Day/Month/Year

- Love to be able to make a bill by Hour

 

Blesta Disavantages

 

- Blesta needs some EU improvments on Invoice/Orders (Store on DB Client Details for TAX proposes)

- Blesta needs some EU improvments on Invoice/Orders/Services (be able on first page to select the Language/Coin and auto fetch the correct TAX for that Country)

- Blesta needs some improvments on Domain Module Setup (be able to set diferent prices for Register/Transfer/Renew)

- Blesta needs some improvments on Domain Module Setup (be able to set auto prices for 1 to 10 years to quickly deploy)

- Blesta needs some improvments on Domain Module Order Pages (be able purchace more clearly a Domain with Hosting and Hosting With a Domain)

 

-------------------------------------

 

WHMCS Advantages:

 

- WHMCS as an huge list of Modules/Plugins

- WHMCS as an huge forum members that help each outhers

- WHMCS eams solid product, but in realitty...

 

WHMCS Disavantages:

 

- I dont trust WHMCS since it got Hacked more than once

- WHMCS code is bad (we dont know how bad because we cannot see the code, but was hacked more than once because of the bad coding)

- WHMCS let down a lot of Clients including me (im still using untill I finish some modification on Blesta)

- WHMCS is limited to what it can do, but dont do a bad job. Its works but with patches

- WHMCS and cPanel are doing a really bad JOB, for me was a very bad decision on cPanel buy 49% shares of WHMCS, and now cPanel is trying to integrate WHMCS (yes I have notice they are slowlly adding WHMCS to it, and if they do I quicly Switch for exemple to Interworx)

 

There are more and more to tell from Blesta VS WHMCS, please share your mind

 

 

Blesta needs more "LOVERS"

"Blesta needs you!"

 

 

Thanks to all,

PV

 

Blesta VS WHMCS

[Paul]

Seems like a fair comparison 

 

It wouldn't be a Blesta vs WHMCS thread without a link to BillingBrawl though.

[Wouter]

I think one big disadvantage of Blesta is domains in general. WHMCS isn't great in it either, but Blesta simple sucks in it. The additional requirements you've listed there is just 1% of the features that needs to be build it, to let Blesta rock with domains. 

 

And, the WHMCS support indeed sucks, but I haven't heard great noises about Blesta either (although, I didn't experience this - yet, just becuase I didn't but anything yet).

[Blesta Addons]

I think one big disadvantage of Blesta is domains in general. WHMCS isn't great in it either, but Blesta simple sucks in it. The additional requirements you've listed there is just 1% of the features that needs to be build it, to let Blesta rock with domains. 

 

And, the WHMCS support indeed sucks, but I haven't heard great noises about Blesta either (although, I didn't experience this - yet, just becuase I didn't but anything yet).

 

 

stay tunned, i'm almost done the new hosting/domain order template . i hope i can resolve a 30% or 50% of this lock .

 

a mockup simple .

 

[Michael]

stay tunned, i'm almost done the new hosting/domain order template . i hope i can resolve a 30% or 50% of this lock .

 

a mockup simple .

 

availability.png

 

 

How does one skip ordering a domain and looking good.

[niyo]

stay tunned, i'm almost done the new hosting/domain order template . i hope i can resolve a 30% or 50% of this lock .

a mockup simple .

availability.png

I genuinely think I just fell in love with you :*

How does one skip ordering a domain and looking good.

The bottom option behaves how entering your domain under configurable option currently does.

As for advantages/disadvantages I think Paolo pretty much covered most of them. I haven't used whmcs for a couple years so my input there is limited as I've recently noticed some nice changes in ui while researching other small hosting companies. With that said I think the key advantage of whmcs is its built in marketing tools. Whmcs is designed to help users make money. Key features include affiliate marketing, sophisticated coupon system that also ties into the affiliate system, the ability to create bundled products, as well as the option to offer free domains when you order x etc.

Where blesta shines though is intuitive billing. Ie partial payments, pay invoice link etc although I would like to see partial refunds as well. Also multi company is a godsend, and very well designed. Judging by the well thought through database there is scope to have clients details shared between companies down the line ie through global client groups or something of that ilk. That way it can also be used in a multi-brand vein. Ie someone may have a company/brand exclusively for SSL that's separate from their hosting business. The way it's set up currently setup a user would have to sign up again for the second company although I haven't dug deeper since I started using blesta.

The way I see it is as a marketing tool whmcs is king but as a billing tool blesta is king. Once blesta has had the time to get its marketing and domain game up then it will surely reign.

[Michael]

I genuinely think I just fell in love with you :*

The bottom option behaves how entering your domain under configurable option currently does.

As for advantages/disadvantages I think Paolo pretty much covered most of them. I haven't used whmcs for a couple years so my input there is limited as I've recently noticed some nice changes in ui while researching other small hosting companies. With that said I think the key advantage of whmcs is its built in marketing tools. Whmcs is designed to help users make money. Key features include affiliate marketing, sophisticated coupon system that also ties into the affiliate system, the ability to create bundled products, as well as the option to offer free domains when you order x etc.

Where blesta shines though is intuitive billing. Ie partial payments, pay invoice link etc although I would like to see partial refunds as well. Also multi company is a godsend, and very well designed. Judging by the well thought through database there is scope to have clients details shared between companies down the line ie through global client groups or something of that ilk. That way it can also be used in a multi-brand vein. Ie someone may have a company/brand exclusively for SSL that's separate from their hosting business. The way it's set up currently setup a user would have to sign up again for the second company although I haven't dug deeper since I started using blesta.

The way I see it is as a marketing tool whmcs is king but as a billing tool blesta is king. Once blesta has had the time to get its marketing and domain game up then it will surely reign.

 

 

There's no option for a skip and on Blesta's default it has a Skip button which is the third one....

[niyo]

There's no option for a skip and on Blesta's default it has a Skip button which is the third one....

That's a different screen. What Naja is showing isn't the domain search, what he's showing is the config options for hosting package. So currently it just says domain name and has one field, but with Najas solution users will have more flexibility to order a domain with their hosting if they land on a hosting package. You can see my logic here:

http://www.blesta.com/forums/index.php?/topic/5909-logical-order-forms-for-domains-and-hosting/#entry41809

[PauloV]

There's no option for a skip and on Blesta's default it has a Skip button which is the third one....

 

 

The solution of naja7host is simple and makes sence

 

Think this way:

 

1º- You go to a hosting website to Buy a Hosting Plan, and click on "Buy Hostin Plan A"

 

2º- You are redirected to Blesta Order page that only shows 3 options

• I Would like to register a new domain.
• I would like to transfer my domain
• I will use my existing domain and update my nameservers

 

You dont need any outher extra options, because you will by a Hosting Plan and not "Only" a Domain

 

One of the "Confusions" abouth the order pages is this one that naja7host show how to make it work

[Wouter]

@naja7host Looking nice, but that won't solve anything, unfortunately. It's just domain management, managing hundreds/thousands of domains in the same time, changing nameservers, DNS, get EPP codes, manage WHOIS info and much, much more. 

[Blesta Addons]

i will not qoute any reponse , i will make a response global for all questions .

 

first the template is for domain/hosting . so no sense to make "order other itmes" , normally we have 3 options ;

 

1- client take domain (register/transfer) + hosting package .

2- client take just a  domain (register/transfer) .

3- client take just a hosting package with it own domain .

 

so my template will handle all of this cases , it was hard for us to design a solution without hacking/changing the order plugin . so my solution is limited to what the order plugin support .

 

in first i have designed the order as PauloV described , but we was blocked by the limitationb of the plugin itself , so we have arrived to actual schema . 

 

client select wich domain he want (i have used a standalone whois class) , then in the page of hosting package selection  , he can select the hosting package or go without hosting selection .

 

now i'm working in improving and trying to add some feature (if the order plugin can support ) .

[PauloV]

@naja7host Looking nice, but that won't solve anything, unfortunately. It's just domain management, managing hundreds/thousands of domains in the same time, changing nameservers, DNS, get EPP codes, manage WHOIS info and much, much more.

A litle correction on your POST

Blesta register modules alredy Support:

WHOIS managment

Nameservers change

GET EPP Key

Only DNS and Email Fowarding is not fully supported (My InternetBS and OpenSRS blesta modules Support this and also diferent prices for regist/transfer/renew domains)

[bunny]

Blesta needs more Modules/Plugins , automatically will be more "LOVERS". WHMCS is perfect, upgrade from one version to another also works perfectly. In business you can not afford to wait ,I use proven solutions. In my opinion, I made a mistake. Blesta stops the operation and development of the business. From the beginning, this is still beta for me. Sorry!

[PauloV]

Blesta needs more Modules/Plugins , automatically will be more "LOVERS". WHMCS is perfect, upgrade from one version to another also works perfectly. In business you can not afford to wait ,I use proven solutions. In my opinion, I made a mistake. Blesta stops the operation and development of the business. From the beginning, this is still beta for me. Sorry!

I agree with you

What modules and plugins and/or functions are missing for your case in blesta?

[Blesta Addons]

I agree with you

What modules and plugins and/or functions are missing for your case in blesta?

 

i have used blesta from the first beta Since 2007 till now in the big brand i have ,  for other brands i use whm__ , the most wanted thing from my opinion is .

 

-the real mechanism of the hosting industry .

-bundled package for hosting .(free X package with Y term package selected, like the free domain ) .

-affiliate system (i have worked in it before but not completed) .

-less events for cores/plugins

-unique shopping cart , i have resolved this with my new hosting template order , i will offer it free .

-true Multi-languages , i have resolved 90% of this with a custom plugin , i will release it soon .

-Transaction Fees .

-Credit Notes for clients .

-true EU invoicing .

 

and some other small thing that we can live without it .

 

What blesta staff really need is not focus only in the core . it need to give the plugins/modules more time , because who will make blesta success is the modules/plugins not the core. what i can do with a solid core if don't have the plugin/module what i want . i know a lot of clients that has moved to blesta and then bck to the old billing system just of lock of plugins/modules .

also look at your status (PauloV) , you can't move now !!

 

i have already make a post about this in a old thread , and i have focused the dev of plugins/modules , specially modules .

 

i can adapt with the actual situation , but other who tested another system i'm sure they will see a lot of lock of the new system .

[austenite]

I've used both WHMCS and Blesta extensively but am a big open source advocate. I run Linux servers, use Linux desktops and also wanted an open source billing system. I think Blesta works and looks great and will only get better. 

 

The simple way to think about it - WHMCS is twice the price, but is it twice as good? I would say no - therefore the most economical and financially sensible decision would be to go with Blesta. The biggest thing for me is the community here, it's a fantastic area where anyone and everyone can contribute, where users can actively influence developers decisions. Your ideas are helping mould the softwares future and lay foundations for new features. How can you not be excited by that? How can you not appreciate that? Most companies just don't bother! 

 

I only sell hosting and it's all I'll ever sell, domain management is not important to me in the slightest. Why? Because, no matter what I do I'll never be able to match the prices of the big boys, so why bother when I can focus 100% on my web hosting platform? I sell hosting because I believe I can do it better, there's already lots of amazing registrars out there and if it can save my customers a few quid then I'm happy for them. As long as they continue to host with me then all is good and business goes on. 

 

Just my 2 cents, sorry for the long ramblings