Need to throw together a new Intranet on a zero-dollar budget, and do it within a day? It can be done! And here’s how…

Fedora Core

Link: http://fedoraproject.org/

What it does: Fedora Core is a free linux distribution. As with most free linux distributions, it usually contains the “bleeding edge” code from the OpenSource projects that comprise the distribution. Generally, this is desirable for people looking to take advantage of new features, but for enterprise servers, or for applications requiring a more stable and tested codebase, distributions such as RedHat Enterprise Linux or SuSE Enterprise Linux are more appropriate. Fedora is my particular favorite, but Debian and Ubuntu are also very solid.

PHP5

Link: http://www.php.net/

What it does: It’s PHP! Duh! … Fedora Core features this in an RPM package, and you can install it during the installation process.

Apache2

Link: http://httpd.apache.org/

What it does: Apache is the front-end webserver required by all of the other OpenSource projects on this list. As with PHP, it is included in the Fedora Core distribution as the HTTP server, and you can install it during the initial installation process.

mySQL

Link: http://www.mysql.com/

What it does: mySQL is the database back-end required to store data for all of the OpenSource projects on this list. As with PHP and Apache, it is a part of the Fedora Core distribution, and can be installed during the installation process.

MediaWiki

Link: http://www.mediawiki.org

What it does: MediaWiki is a fantastic OpenSource wiki platform. It’s fairly straightforward to set up and deploy, and you’ll be up and running in no time. MediaWiki is the platform that supports Wikipedia.

Drupal

Link: http://drupal.org/

What it does: Drupal is a web content management system. Drupal includes templates, making it easy for departments to start building their own web pages quickly and easily.

phpBB

Link: http://www.phpbb.com/

What it does: phpBB is a web-based discussion platform (aka a bulletin board system, or forums). Having a web-based platform for discussion allows you to capture tacit information that might otherwise be inaccessible in email discussions and make it readily available to anyone searching for it on your Intranet.

Horde

Link: http://www.horde.org/

What it does: Horde is a web-based email, calendaring and task management system that is quick to set up and deploy.

WordPress

Link: http://www.wordpress.org

What it does: WordPress is simply the best PHP-based blogging application available.

Coppermine

Link: http://coppermine-gallery.net/

What it does: Coppermine is an easy-to-use and powerful image gallery application.

Know of anything I missed that should be on the list?  Let me know!

Filed under: CMS, Consumer Web, Enterprise Web, PHP, Wikis