[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":437},["ShallowReactive",2],{"navigation-docs_en":3,"/en/blog/schleswig-holstein-blueprint-libreoffice-migration-states-municipalities-2026-posts_en":51,"/en/blog/schleswig-holstein-blueprint-libreoffice-migration-states-municipalities-2026-surround-posts_en":426},[4],{"title":5,"path":6,"stem":7,"children":8,"page":25},"En","/en","en",[9],{"title":10,"path":11,"stem":12,"children":13,"page":25},"Docs","/en/docs","en/1.docs",[14,26],{"title":15,"path":16,"stem":17,"children":18,"icon":25},"Getting Started","/en/docs/getting-started","en/1.docs/1.getting-started/1.index",[19,21],{"title":20,"path":16,"stem":17,"children":-1},"Introduction",{"title":22,"path":23,"stem":24,"children":-1},"Migration Roadmap","/en/docs/getting-started/migration-fahrplan","en/1.docs/1.getting-started/2.migration-fahrplan",false,{"title":27,"path":28,"stem":29,"children":30,"page":25},"Technologies","/en/docs/technologies","en/1.docs/2.technologies",[31,35,39,43,47],{"title":32,"path":33,"stem":34,"children":-1},"Nextcloud","/en/docs/technologies/nextcloud","en/1.docs/2.technologies/1.nextcloud",{"title":36,"path":37,"stem":38,"children":-1},"Matrix / Element","/en/docs/technologies/matrix","en/1.docs/2.technologies/2.matrix",{"title":40,"path":41,"stem":42,"children":-1},"ONLYOFFICE","/en/docs/technologies/onlyoffice","en/1.docs/2.technologies/3.onlyoffice",{"title":44,"path":45,"stem":46,"children":-1},"Ubuntu Linux","/en/docs/technologies/ubuntu","en/1.docs/2.technologies/4.ubuntu",{"title":48,"path":49,"stem":50,"children":-1},"Keycloak","/en/docs/technologies/keycloak","en/1.docs/2.technologies/5.keycloak",{"id":52,"title":53,"authors":54,"badge":60,"body":62,"date":376,"description":377,"extension":378,"faq":379,"howto":395,"image":418,"meta":420,"navigation":421,"path":422,"seo":423,"stem":424,"__hash__":425},"posts_en/en/3.blog/26.schleswig-holstein-blueprint-libreoffice-migration-states-municipalities-2026.md","The Schleswig-Holstein blueprint – 80 percent LibreOffice migration and what German states, municipalities and SMEs can copy from it in autumn 2026",[55],{"name":56,"to":57,"avatar":58},"europioneer Team","/",{"src":59},"/favicon.svg",{"label":61},"Migration Blueprint",{"type":63,"value":64,"toc":366},"minimark",[65,69,109,114,124,163,166,170,177,216,227,231,265,269,276,308,320,324,340,344],[66,67,53],"h1",{"id":68},"the-schleswig-holstein-blueprint-80-percent-libreoffice-migration-and-what-german-states-municipalities-and-smes-can-copy-from-it-in-autumn-2026",[70,71,72,73,77,78,81,82,85,86,89,90,93,94,97,98,101,102,104,105,108],"p",{},"On ",[74,75,76],"strong",{},"24 August 2026"," the bid deadline for the new Microsoft Enterprise Agreement tender in ",[74,79,80],{},"Baden-Württemberg"," expired – only days after the corresponding deadlines in North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony. While state procurement offices review the bids, ",[74,83,84],{},"Schleswig-Holstein"," has quietly continued on a different path: by August 2026 around ",[74,87,88],{},"80 percent of the 30,000 state workstations"," have been migrated to ",[74,91,92],{},"LibreOffice",", ",[74,95,96],{},"44,000 mailboxes"," run on ",[74,99,100],{},"Open-Xchange"," and Thunderbird, and ",[74,103,32],{}," is replacing SharePoint step by step. The annual saving is over ",[74,106,107],{},"€15 million"," in license costs. The blueprint is no longer a forecast; it is a measured reality. For municipalities, states and SMEs looking to use the autumn tenders, the question becomes concrete: what in the blueprint is transferable – and what is not.",[110,111,113],"h2",{"id":112},"what-schleswig-holstein-has-actually-achieved-by-august-2026","What Schleswig-Holstein has actually achieved by August 2026",[70,115,72,116,119,120,123],{},[74,117,118],{},"4 December 2025",", the Chief of the State Chancellery and Digital Minister ",[74,121,122],{},"Dirk Schrödter"," published the interim report. The migration has continued to accelerate since. The hard numbers from the official state reports and from reporting by heise online and HiSolutions:",[125,126,127,134,139,146,151,157],"ul",{},[128,129,130,133],"li",{},[74,131,132],{},"80 percent"," of state workstations use LibreOffice as the standard office suite.",[128,135,136,138],{},[74,137,96],{}," have moved from Exchange to Open-Xchange.",[128,140,141,142,145],{},"Around ",[74,143,144],{},"100 million"," emails and calendar entries were migrated without loss.",[128,147,148,150],{},[74,149,107],{}," in license costs are avoided every year.",[128,152,153,156],{},[74,154,155],{},"€9 million"," one-off migration and development costs are flowing in 2026.",[128,158,159,162],{},[74,160,161],{},"End of 2026"," is the planned completion date for the full state administration.",[70,164,165],{},"The core message: the migration is economical, technically feasible and operationally stable. It is no longer a pilot, it is production.",[110,167,169],{"id":168},"the-six-pillars-of-the-blueprint","The six pillars of the blueprint",[70,171,172,173,176],{},"The Schleswig-Holstein stack is deliberately ",[74,174,175],{},"modular",". It can be introduced pillar by pillar – with no big-bang migration required:",[125,178,179,184,193,198,204,210],{},[128,180,181,183],{},[74,182,92],{}," as replacement for Word, Excel and PowerPoint.",[128,185,186,188,189,192],{},[74,187,100],{}," plus ",[74,190,191],{},"Thunderbird"," as replacement for Exchange and Outlook.",[128,194,195,197],{},[74,196,32],{}," for file storage, sharing and collaborative editing – replaces SharePoint and OneDrive step by step.",[128,199,200,203],{},[74,201,202],{},"Linux"," as desktop operating system, medium-term replacement for Windows.",[128,205,206,209],{},[74,207,208],{},"Univention Corporate Server"," as directory service and identity provider – replacement for Active Directory.",[128,211,212,215],{},[74,213,214],{},"OpenTalk"," for video conferencing and telephony – replacement for Teams calls and conference rooms.",[70,217,218,219,222,223,226],{},"The combination covers the complete administrative workstation. For the cloud base the state uses a combination of its ",[74,220,221],{},"own data centre in Kiel"," and the inter-municipal provider ",[74,224,225],{},"Dataport",". Neither Microsoft Azure nor Amazon Web Services are part of the architecture.",[110,228,230],{"id":229},"why-the-blueprint-pays-for-itself-at-15-million-per-year","Why the blueprint pays for itself at €15 million per year",[70,232,233,234,237,238,241,242,245,246,249,250,255,256,260,261,264],{},"The business case is straightforward. The avoided costs come from three blocks: license fees for ",[74,235,236],{},"Microsoft 365 E3/E5",", Azure operating costs for ",[74,239,240],{},"Exchange Online"," and ",[74,243,244],{},"Teams",", and effort for ",[74,247,248],{},"data-protection impact assessments"," that fall due with every new cloud release. The €9 million one-off investment is recovered after roughly eight months. The structure matches what we have calculated for comparable state and federal procedures in the article on the ",[251,252,254],"a",{"href":253},"/en/blog/bundestag-operation-sovereignty-microsoft-exit-2026","Bundestag Operation Sovereignty"," and on the ",[251,257,259],{"href":258},"/en/blog/euro-office-microsoft-365-alternative-2026","EuroOffice alternative",": sovereign stacks come in at ",[74,262,263],{},"40 to 55 percent"," below the Microsoft comparison over 36 months.",[110,266,268],{"id":267},"what-municipalities-and-smes-can-copy-from-the-blueprint-directly","What municipalities and SMEs can copy from the blueprint directly",[70,270,271,272,275],{},"The blueprint is explicitly designed for ",[74,273,274],{},"re-use",". Schleswig-Holstein publishes configuration profiles, migration scripts and operating playbooks under open licenses. Four elements are ready for immediate adoption by municipal IT leadership and mid-sized companies:",[125,277,278,290,296,302],{},[128,279,280,281,284,285,289],{},"The ",[74,282,283],{},"Open-Xchange reference architecture"," including the migration tool chain from Exchange – works for SMEs with 20 to 500 mailboxes too (see ",[251,286,288],{"href":287},"/en/blog/nextcloud-for-smes","Nextcloud for SMEs",").",[128,291,280,292,295],{},[74,293,294],{},"Nextcloud configuration"," for document-based collaboration with Collabora Online.",[128,297,280,298,301],{},[74,299,300],{},"LibreOffice deployment templates"," including templates for public-sector forms and forms with electronic signature.",[128,303,280,304,307],{},[74,305,306],{},"Univention blueprint"," for directory services, which replaces an existing Active Directory step by step without end users noticing.",[70,309,310,311,314,315,319],{},"The categorised provider overview with German and European operators for all six pillars is at ",[251,312,313],{"href":313},"/en/alternativen",". For procurement offices it complements the ",[251,316,318],{"href":317},"/en/blog/opendesk-partner-program-2026","OpenDesk partner programme"," run by the federal government, which has standardised procurement and support paths since early 2026.",[110,321,323],{"id":322},"where-the-blueprint-stalls-and-how-to-solve-the-remaining-20-percent","Where the blueprint stalls – and how to solve the remaining 20 percent",[70,325,326,327,330,331,334,335,339],{},"The remaining 20 percent are usually line-of-business applications with hard ",[74,328,329],{},"Windows or Microsoft Office dependencies"," – resident-registration software, land-registry systems, industry-specific ERP. The path chosen in Schleswig-Holstein: joint procurement across states, negotiation with the vendors of those applications about native Linux or web ports and – where unavoidable – the targeted operation of a small number of ",[74,332,333],{},"Windows terminal servers"," for specialist users. The rule remains: the standard workstation is sovereign, the exceptions are documented and bounded. Those who want to adopt the systematic approach will find the ",[251,336,338],{"href":337},"/en/blog/microsoft-vs-opensource","basic Microsoft vs. open source comparison"," as an entry matrix.",[110,341,343],{"id":342},"summary-and-next-steps","Summary and next steps",[70,345,346,347,350,351,354,355,357,358,361,362,365],{},"The Schleswig-Holstein blueprint is currently the only statewide reference in which ",[74,348,349],{},"digital sovereignty"," is not just demanded but operationally run across more than 30,000 workstations. For state and municipal administrations that want to backstop the tenders in NRW, Lower Saxony and Baden-Württemberg with a sovereign successor option, the blueprint is free to use. For implementation we recommend three steps: first, the live analysis of your Microsoft 365 data flows at ",[251,352,353],{"href":353},"/en/microsoft",". Second, the provider matrix at ",[251,356,313],{"href":313},". Third, an initial consultation via ",[251,359,360],{"href":360},"/en/contact"," on a migration plan based on the Schleswig-Holstein stack. Price orientation for administrations and SMEs is at ",[251,363,364],{"href":364},"/en/pricing",".",{"title":367,"searchDepth":368,"depth":368,"links":369},"",2,[370,371,372,373,374,375],{"id":112,"depth":368,"text":113},{"id":168,"depth":368,"text":169},{"id":229,"depth":368,"text":230},{"id":267,"depth":368,"text":268},{"id":322,"depth":368,"text":323},{"id":342,"depth":368,"text":343},"2026-08-25T00:00:00.000Z","Schleswig-Holstein has migrated 80 % of its state administration to LibreOffice. What German states, municipalities and SMEs can take from the €15M blueprint now.","md",[380,383,386,389,392],{"q":381,"a":382},"What is the Schleswig-Holstein blueprint for open-source migration?","The blueprint is the documented combination of software components, migration scripts and operating playbooks with which Schleswig-Holstein has moved around 80 percent of its 30,000 state workstations off Microsoft 365 to a sovereign stack by August 2026. It comprises LibreOffice as office suite, Open-Xchange with Thunderbird as mail and groupware system, Nextcloud as SharePoint replacement, Linux on the desktop, Univention Corporate Server as directory service and OpenTalk for video conferencing. All components are open source and run in a state data centre in Kiel and at the inter-municipal provider Dataport – with no Azure or AWS share.",{"q":384,"a":385},"Is the migration legally sound for municipalities and SMEs?","Yes. The stack meets the requirements of the BSI IT baseline protection, is GDPR compliant and does not require an additional data-protection impact assessment for third-country transfers. The US CLOUD Act 18 U.S. Code §2713 does not apply because none of the components is operated by a US legal entity. For domains with a high protection requirement – social data, resident registration, critical infrastructure – the blueprint meets the Germany-level C2 of the new [BSI C3A catalogue](/en/blog/bsi-c3a-microsoft-365-procurement-sovereignty-2026).",{"q":387,"a":388},"What are the investment and payback compared to Microsoft 365?","Schleswig-Holstein reports annual savings of around €15 million in license costs. One-time migration and development effort in 2026 is €9 million. Payback is therefore reached after about eight months. For municipalities with 500 to 5,000 workstations, transition costs are proportionally in the range of €150,000 to €1.5 million one-off; for SMEs with 20 to 200 workstations around €5,000 to €50,000 one-off. Over 36 months the total cost of ownership is typically 40 to 55 percent below the Microsoft comparison.",{"q":390,"a":391},"Which software components belong to the Schleswig-Holstein stack?","The stack has six pillars. LibreOffice replaces Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Open-Xchange and Thunderbird replace Exchange and Outlook. Nextcloud replaces SharePoint and OneDrive. Linux replaces Windows on the desktop – this pillar takes the longest but is set. Univention Corporate Server replaces Active Directory. OpenTalk replaces Microsoft Teams calls and video conference rooms. The pillars can be introduced independently; a big-bang is explicitly not required.",{"q":393,"a":394},"How does Schleswig-Holstein handle line-of-business applications that still need Windows?","The remaining roughly 20 percent of workstations with hard Windows dependencies – for example resident-registration software, land-registry systems or industry-specific ERP – are handled in three ways. First, by negotiating native Linux or web ports with the vendors of those applications. Second, by joint procurement across states to share porting costs. Third, by running a small number of Windows terminal servers for remaining cases. The standard workstation stays sovereign; exceptions are documented and reduced step by step.",{"name":396,"description":397,"totalTime":398,"steps":399},"How to rebuild the Schleswig-Holstein blueprint in a public administration or an SME","Six-step plan for IT leadership in municipalities, state procurement offices and mid-sized companies to introduce the sovereign workstation on the basis of the Schleswig-Holstein reference.","P180D",[400,403,406,409,412,415],{"name":401,"text":402},"Inventory of Microsoft licenses and line-of-business dependencies","Capture all active Microsoft 365 licenses, Azure services and locally installed line-of-business applications. Classify each workstation as either a standard or specialist profile. Only standard workstations are migrated in the first step – specialist profiles stay untouched initially.",{"name":404,"text":405},"Mailbox pilot on Open-Xchange and Thunderbird","In a closed user group of 20 to 100 mailboxes, migrate from Exchange to Open-Xchange. Use the openly documented migration scripts from Schleswig-Holstein. Verify calendar interoperability, shared folders and mobile sync. Roll out to all mailboxes only after at least four weeks of stable pilot operation.",{"name":407,"text":408},"LibreOffice deployment for standard workstations","Distribute LibreOffice via existing software distribution and uninstall Microsoft Office on the same devices. Reuse the Schleswig-Holstein templates for public administration forms and forms with electronic signature. Train users in a one-hour webinar – the delta to Word and Excel is smaller than expected.",{"name":410,"text":411},"Introduce Nextcloud as SharePoint replacement","Set up Nextcloud with Collabora Online for collaborative document editing. Migrate SharePoint and OneDrive content via the official import tools. Connect Nextcloud to the existing directory service via LDAP or SAML so that user accounts do not need to be maintained twice.",{"name":413,"text":414},"Migrate the directory service to Univention","Replace Active Directory step by step with Univention Corporate Server. Use the AD compatibility layer so that remaining Windows devices can still be connected. Migration in small domain groups, not big-bang.",{"name":416,"text":417},"Document line-of-business exceptions and port them step by step","Maintain a public list of all Windows-dependent line-of-business applications with a porting status. Make native Linux or web support a procurement criterion in new contracts. Use cross-state joint procurement to share porting costs.",{"src":419},"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1451187580459-43490279c0fa?w=1200&q=80",{},true,"/en/blog/schleswig-holstein-blueprint-libreoffice-migration-states-municipalities-2026",{"title":53,"description":377},"en/3.blog/26.schleswig-holstein-blueprint-libreoffice-migration-states-municipalities-2026","i9Xe4-Seo46eOM2SmIQGrUMZHD_FHMfkRfbmvBokEEo",[427,432],{"title":428,"path":429,"stem":430,"description":431,"children":-1},"BSI C3A meets Microsoft 365 – How the new sovereignty criteria catalogue changes the German state tenders in autumn 2026","/en/blog/bsi-c3a-microsoft-365-procurement-sovereignty-2026","en/3.blog/25.bsi-c3a-microsoft-365-procurement-sovereignty-2026","Germany's BSI C3A catalogue makes cloud sovereignty measurable. What the new criteria mean for Microsoft 365 tenders in NRW and Lower Saxony this autumn.",{"title":433,"path":434,"stem":435,"description":436,"children":-1},"Energy sector under NIS2 – why municipal utilities and grid operators can no longer defer the Microsoft 365 question before the autumn 2026 audit","/en/blog/municipal-utilities-nis2-energy-microsoft-365-sovereign-alternative-2026","en/3.blog/27.municipal-utilities-nis2-energy-microsoft-365-sovereign-alternative-2026","From autumn 2026 municipal utilities and grid operators count as essential NIS2 entities. What that means for Microsoft 365 in the energy sector, concretely.",1788852143215]