Deploy SuiteCRM on Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04 using Docker — the most feature-complete open-source CRM with campaigns, quotes, contracts, workflows, and advanced reporting, fully self-hosted.
Grab the automated bash script from GitHub to follow along with the video.
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mhmdali94/Docker/main/crm/suitecrm/suitecrm-ubuntu.sh
chmod +x suitecrm-ubuntu.sh
sudo bash suitecrm-ubuntu.shwget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mhmdali94/Docker/main/crm/suitecrm/suitecrm-ubuntu.shchmod +x suitecrm-ubuntu.shThe script installs Docker if needed, then deploys SuiteCRM with MySQL automatically.
sudo bash suitecrm-ubuntu.shOpen your browser and navigate to:
http://<your-server-ip>Follow the installation wizard to accept the license, verify system requirements, configure the database connection, and set your admin credentials. The wizard runs through several screens — each one validates your environment before proceeding.
| Port | Purpose |
|---|---|
| 80 | SuiteCRM Web UI (HTTP) |
| 443 | SuiteCRM Web UI (HTTPS — via reverse proxy) |
| 3306 | MySQL — internal only, not exposed |
SuiteCRM is a fork of SugarCRM Community Edition and the most feature-complete open-source CRM available. Where EspoCRM and Twenty cover the CRM basics, SuiteCRM goes further — it includes a full campaigns engine (email, print, telesales), quotes and invoice generation linked to contacts and accounts, a contract management module, bug and case tracking, and a project management tool. It is a GPL-licensed PHP/MySQL application with an active community and regular security releases. SuiteCRM is particularly strong for sales teams that need the full quote-to-cash workflow (opportunity → quote → contract → invoice) inside their CRM without a separate tool, and for marketing teams that need campaign management with target lists and tracking.
SuiteCRM is the only fully open-source CRM that covers the complete commercial CRM feature set — leads, accounts, contacts, opportunities, quotes, invoices, contracts, campaigns, projects, cases, bugs, and reporting — all in one application. Its reports module is genuinely powerful, supporting chart reports, matrix reports, and scheduled email reports out of the box. The workflow engine (AOS Workflows) can trigger complex automation sequences based on field conditions, time delays, and record changes. For organizations that previously paid for SugarCRM Professional or Salesforce and want to eliminate that cost without losing capability, SuiteCRM is the natural migration target.
SuiteCRM only needs port 80 (HTTP) or 443 (HTTPS via reverse proxy) open to users. MySQL runs on port 3306 inside the Docker network and must never be exposed publicly. Configure ufw allow 80 and ufw allow 443, and block all other inbound ports. SuiteCRM also sends email on outbound port 587 (SMTP TLS) — ensure your server can make outbound connections on that port for campaign delivery and notification emails.
EspoCRM is the best lightweight alternative — faster, cleaner UI, and easier to set up, but lacks quotes, contracts, campaigns, and the full reporting suite. Twenty is a modern developer-friendly CRM with a GraphQL API but is much earlier in maturity. Odoo CRM is part of the Odoo ERP and is more powerful when you also need accounting and inventory. Salesforce is the gold standard for enterprise CRM but costs $150–300 per user/month. For organizations that need the full SugarCRM feature set without the license fee, SuiteCRM is the only realistic self-hosted option.
If your team only needs basic contact management and a sales pipeline, SuiteCRM's complexity and resource requirements are overkill — use EspoCRM instead. SuiteCRM is heavy: it requires at least 2 GB RAM and a proper PHP/Apache stack, and its UI shows its SugarCRM heritage (less modern than EspoCRM or Twenty). If you need a developer-friendly API-first CRM to build custom apps on, SuiteCRM's API is functional but not as clean as Twenty's GraphQL. For teams already deep in the Microsoft ecosystem, Dynamics 365 may integrate better despite the cost.
PrismaTechWork provides end-to-end infrastructure services — from initial deployment and security hardening to ongoing monitoring, automated backups, and dedicated support. Whether you need a single-server setup or a multi-site network, our team ensures your infrastructure is built right, secured properly, and maintained reliably.
SuiteCRM is a fork of SugarCRM Community Edition 6.5, created in 2013 when SalesAgility (a UK CRM consultancy) took the last open-source version of SugarCRM and continued developing it independently. SugarCRM itself became fully proprietary. SuiteCRM added the quotes, contracts, campaigns, projects, and reporting modules that SugarCRM had locked behind paid tiers. Today SuiteCRM is the GPL-licensed successor maintained by SalesAgility.
Yes — SuiteCRM has two APIs: the legacy v4.1 API (XML-RPC, inherited from SugarCRM) and the newer v8 API (JSON:API standard, RESTful). The v8 API supports all CRUD operations on any CRM record and is the recommended integration path for new projects. You can use it to push leads from your website, sync contacts with marketing tools, or integrate with n8n automation workflows.
Yes — SuiteCRM has a full Campaigns module supporting email campaigns, telesales campaigns, and print/direct mail campaigns. You build target lists, create email templates with tracking links, configure the campaign scheduler, and SuiteCRM handles send queuing and open/click tracking. For high-volume sending (10,000+ emails), configure a dedicated SMTP relay like SendGrid or Mailgun.
SuiteCRM supports multiple languages through language packs. An Arabic language pack is available from the SuiteCRM community. However, RTL layout support in SuiteCRM is less polished than in EspoCRM or Odoo — some UI components may not render correctly in RTL mode. If Arabic RTL is a primary requirement, EspoCRM has better built-in RTL support.
Minimum: 2 vCPU / 2 GB RAM / 20 GB SSD for a small team (under 20 users). Recommended for production: 4 vCPU / 4 GB RAM / 50 GB SSD. SuiteCRM is a PHP/MySQL application that performs well on modest hardware, though it is noticeably heavier than EspoCRM under concurrent load. PHP 8.1+, MySQL 8.0+, and Apache or Nginx are required.
First, ensure your product catalog is populated: go to AOS Products Catalog and add your products with prices. Then navigate to AOS Quotes → Create Quote, link it to an Account and Contact, add line items from your product catalog, apply discounts, and generate a PDF. You can email the PDF directly from the quote record or convert it to an invoice once accepted.
SuiteCRM upgrades are done through the Admin → Upgrade Wizard. Download the upgrade package from the SuiteCRM GitHub releases page, upload it through the wizard, and follow the steps. Always back up your database and application files before upgrading. SuiteCRM upgrade packages are version-specific — check the supported upgrade path for your current version.
Yes — SuiteCRM can sync contacts and calendar events with Google Workspace through the built-in Google Sync feature (Admin → Google Maps / Google Sync). For Microsoft 365, community plugins add Outlook calendar and email sync. Two-way email sync with any IMAP/SMTP provider is also available through the email account settings, which works with both Google and Microsoft mail.