Filestash vs SeedDMS
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted document management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Filestash
Web-based file manager and document gateway
VS
SeedDMS
Easy-to-use web-based document management system
| Feature | Filestash | SeedDMS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Document Management | Document Management |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Go | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 14,711 | ★ 200 |
| First released | 2017 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Dropbox, SharePoint | SharePoint, M-Files |
What are Filestash and SeedDMS?
Filestash
Filestash is an open-source web file manager that connects to many storage backends such as S3, SFTP, FTP, and WebDAV. It provides document viewing, organization, and editing through a single interface.
- Connects to many storage backends
- Document and media viewers
- Office document editing
- Lightweight single binary
SeedDMS
SeedDMS is an open-source web-based document management system that is easy to install and use. It supports versioning, access control, notifications, and full-text search for small and medium teams.
- Document versioning
- Fine-grained permissions
- Full-text search
- Email notifications
Filestash vs SeedDMS: key differences
Filestash is written in Go, while SeedDMS is built with PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Filestash versus GPL-2.0 for SeedDMS. Filestash is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for SeedDMS. SeedDMS is the more established project (first released 2010), while Filestash arrived in 2017. Filestash has the considerably larger community, at 14,711 GitHub stars versus 200.
Why pick each one
Choose Filestash if…
- Unifies access to many backends
- Easy deployment
Watch out for
- Not a full archival DMS
- Some features require a license key
Choose SeedDMS if…
- Quick to deploy
- Approachable interface
Watch out for
- Hosted mainly on SourceForge
- Dated UI
Frequently asked questions
Is Filestash or SeedDMS better?
Filestash is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider SeedDMS if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Filestash and SeedDMS free and open-source?
Yes. Filestash is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and SeedDMS under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Filestash and SeedDMS with Docker?
Filestash: yes. SeedDMS: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Filestash or SeedDMS?
Filestash has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for SeedDMS. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.