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Bogdan Chechlowski - PeerSpot reviewer
Kierownik Biura Informatyki at EIB SA
Real User
Top 5
User interface could be better and inconsistent platform direction and development (e.g., discontinuation of XPages technology)
Pros and Cons
  • "The most important benefit is security. The security architecture is very good. It's the best part of the solution."
  • "Scalability is also an issue. We have problems with large databases."

What is our primary use case?

It's used for mail collaboration and as a CRM for our customers. All processes in our company rely on Domino.

What is most valuable?

The most important benefit is security. The security architecture is very good. It's the best part of the solution.

What needs improvement?

The interface could be more user-friendly, and it would be better to have one programming language instead of multiple. 

Also, some platform directions should be more consistent. For example, the XPages technology, which was important to me, was discontinued.

Integration has always been a problem, but we manage.

For how long have I used the solution?

We (my company) started using HCL Domino in February 2000.

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HCL Domino
December 2024
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is going in the wrong direction and isn't good anymore. I would rate it a two out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is also an issue. We're having problems with large databases, and we're exceeding the limits.

There are around 200 end users. We have four developers. The rest are regular users.

How are customer service and support?

The customer service and support are not very friendly. 

How was the initial setup?

The setup was easy, but it wasn't very modern. We had trouble using new security settings and features on our main server, such as blacklisting.

The deployment was easy for normal features, but we faced issues when we wanted to use extra features.

What about the implementation team?


What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The license for Domino is yearly. The price is high, but it's reasonable for this kind of software. It would be good if the performance and technology improved.

What other advice do I have?

I don't think it's a good platform to start using because it's not improving as it should.

Overall, I would rate it a two out of ten. The main reason we decided to stop using Domino was its performance. We have big databases. Everything was very slow with our large databases and the customizations we added to make the solution more user-friendly. The performance was bad, especially in the last year.

I would recommend it for security. The security architecture is very good. It's the best part of the solution.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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M. Asim Butt - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant General Manager IT at Hinopak Motors Limited
Real User
Stable and mature but needs improvement in its GUI and security
Pros and Cons
  • "I like that HCL Domino is stable. It's a great product. I also like that HCL Domino is a mature product under IBM, which is why many companies use it."
  • "An area for improvement in HCL Domino is security. New enhancements in the IT industry mean that security should be improved. The HCL Domino GUI also needs improvement."

What is our primary use case?

We're using HCL Domino for the email system.

What is most valuable?

I like that HCL Domino is stable. It's a great product. I also like that HCL Domino is a mature product under IBM, which is why many companies use it.

What needs improvement?

An area for improvement in HCL Domino is security. New enhancements in the IT industry mean that security should be improved.

The HCL Domino GUI also needs improvement.

What I want in the product's next release is for it to have a user-friendly environment. HCL Domino should also integrate well with other software, for example, Outlook. If I want to use the product with Outlook, I should be able to access and get all the emails from Outlook. HCL Domino should have compatibility with Outlook as Outlook is easy to understand and is used by many people and companies.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using HCL Domino for ten or twelve years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

HCL Domino is a stable product because it's under IBM, a big name in the industry.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

HCL Domino is a scalable product.

How are customer service and support?

I've never contacted the technical support team for HCL Domino, though I'm not sure if other team members did.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

My organization is switching from HCL Domino to Microsoft Exchange, probably in the next month, because of some challenges with HCL Domino. My organization went with HCL Domino in the past because it's an IBM product. Many people prefer using products from IBM as it's a big brand.

How was the initial setup?

If you've been using HCL Domino for years, then setting it up will be easy. However, if you're new to it and you need to install it in your organization, the setup process would be complicated, particularly if you compare it to setting up Microsoft Exchange.

How much time it takes to deploy HCL Domino depends on your expertise. Some people could take two hours, while some could take two days. On the other hand, some people could take two months to deploy the solution.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

HCL Domino is costly, but it still depends on how your organization views it price-wise.

What other advice do I have?

I'm still using HCL Domino, but my organization plans to switch to another solution, Microsoft Exchange.

Close to three hundred people use HCL Domino within the organization.

If you're a new user of HCL Domino, it may take some time to understand it versus Microsoft Exchange. Everyone's familiar with Microsoft Exchange compared to HCL Domino.

From my personal experience, I'd rate HCL Domino as four out of ten. I cannot say it's a bad product, and I cannot say it's good, either. It's a mature product used by many companies, even big companies, but HCL Domino has some challenges. One challenge is the pricing versus the pricing offered by other solutions.

My organization is a customer of HCL Domino.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Buyer's Guide
HCL Domino
December 2024
Learn what your peers think about HCL Domino. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2024.
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Bogdan Chechlowski - PeerSpot reviewer
Kierownik Biura Informatyki at EIB SA
Real User
Top 5
Poor performance and we have trouble with special cases, but it's easy to start writing applications
Pros and Cons
  • "We have been able to set up a portal using a special XPage application that gives our customers access to this system."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are an insurance broker and use HCL Domino for our customer relationship management. We use it to write applications for use in our company.

    How has it helped my organization?

    We use this solution for our email, workgroup, and especially for customer relationship management. We have all of our documents in this system, and it stores information about all of our processes.

    What is most valuable?

    We have been able to set up a portal using a special XPage application that gives our customers access to this system.

    It is very easy to start writing applications.

    A big advantage that is very important to us is that the ACL access to the documents belongs to the records, as opposed to the kind of record.

    They update the features regularly and recently added multifactor authentication.

    The XPage programming capability should be improved because it is not as modern as the other languages that we work with.

    Recently, we have had a lot of trouble with the server.

    What needs improvement?

    The biggest problem for us is the performance. We have been working with this product for a long time and our database now contains approximately two million documents. It takes a very long time. We purchased super-fast storage with special disks and nothing helps the performance.

    We have problems developing special cases.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been working with HCL Domino for 22 years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    This is a stable solution, provided that the database is not very big. When we have a large database then there are problems with stability. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The database can scale to a certain size but after that, there are issues with reliability. Yesterday, for example, I worked with a database that contained 1.8 petabytes of data.

    We have approximately 200 users inside the company, and we have approximately 700 customers from outside that use it.

    We have two people that develop programs, two more for technical support, and I manage the team.

    How are customer service and support?

    We use technical support only when we upgrade. We do not contact them but rather, just visit the webpage.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is very easy. We have experience with it.

    It is installed in our own data center, and it takes a few hours to set it up well, with the proper configuration.

    What about the implementation team?

    We have three people in charge of deployment and maintenance.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    We chose to pay for our licensing fees annually.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We plan on switching to another solution because of the performance. That is the only complaint that we have about the product.

    What other advice do I have?

    This is a solution that I would recommend for a business that is just starting. I would not recommend it for big business because it gets slower over time, and we haven't seen any improvement in years. The only thing that changes is the version number, rather than the performance. To us, there's nothing new in that regard.

    I would rate this solution a five out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
    PeerSpot user
    CEO at Spectrum Works
    Real User
    Top 10
    Provides efficient insights and data encryption features
    Pros and Cons
    • "It is an excellent solution."
    • "They should provide its integration with other AI applications."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use the solution as a domain-specific framework to develop small applications to perform specific tasks.

    What is most valuable?

    The solution provides data encryption, valuable insights, and security for a specific group of users. Also, it enables ease of deployment, making the development process easier. We can work on the system remotely without online access as well.

    What needs improvement?

    They should provide the solution's integration with other AI applications. Also, its risk management feature needs improvement. In addition, its technical support could be better.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using the solution for more than ten years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    I rate the solution's stability a nine. We encounter system downtime issues sometimes.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I rate the solution's scalability a five out of ten. It could be better.

    How are customer service and support?

    The solution's customer service needs improvement.

    How was the initial setup?

    The solution's initial setup process is complicated. It requires building applications, installing servers, and testing them. It follows importing data as per users' requirements. Also, the time needed for deployment depends on the use cases. It takes a long time for financial systems with multiple data inputs. The process needs to be faster to keep the users engaged.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The solution is less expensive compared to other vendors.

    What other advice do I have?

    It is an excellent solution. I rate it a ten out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Tamer Baher - PeerSpot reviewer
    Professional Services Manager at Insight Technology
    Real User
    Secure and stable platform for application development and collaboration; has reasonable pricing
    Pros and Cons
    • "HCL Domino is an application development and collaboration platform with strong stability and security. Deployment of this platform is easy and takes only 10 minutes."
    • "HCL Domino needs to be more user-friendly."

    What is most valuable?

    The best feature of HCL Domino is that you can use Notes for messaging plus application, not just for messaging. It's not a main system only, okay?

    Another good feature is that the HCL Domino server is supported in all platforms, e.g. AIX, Windows, and Linux. Microsoft Exchange only works on the Windows server.

    In terms of stability and security on the server side and applications, I also find HCL Domino very strong in those areas.

    What needs improvement?

    HCL Domino needs to be more user-friendly, as end users prefer Outlook over it, because they find Outlook easier to use.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We've been working with HCL Domino for the past year.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    HCL Domino is strong, stability-wise.

    How are customer service and support?

    I find the technical support for HCL Domino very helpful.

    How was the initial setup?

    Deployment of HCL Domino is easy. You can deploy a Domino server in 10 minutes, e.g. no preparation, no domain preparation is needed. With Exchange and active directory, you need to extend the schema, but because HCL Domino has its own directory service, there is no need for this. It does not rely on Active Directory. You can integrate it with Active Directory, but you do not need to extend your Active Directory schema, and you do not need to add the object, unlike what you need to do with Exchange.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    HCL Domino has reasonable pricing. It's not expensive. If you compare its price with Exchange, they have the same product pricing. They are within the same range in terms of pricing, but Microsoft played it another way.

    Microsoft went to the customers and told them: "We can offer you ELA for a price agreement, and you can get Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft Dynamics for free," so the customers made the decision of reducing their investment in HCL Domino, for them to get Exchange for free. This is the reason why customers are willing to migrate from HCL Domino to Exchange, plus there's also more customer familiarity from Exchange than HCL Domino.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We were able to evaluate Exchange.

    What other advice do I have?

    We've been dealing with different HCL solutions: HCL Domino, HCL Notes, HCL Domino Volt, and HCL Basics. We're a partner of HCL. We're working with the latest version of HCL Domino: version 12.0.

    The HCL Domino market is very small, e.g. there's not a lot of customers, or the segment using it isn't large, because Microsoft recently went to the customers and told them IBM already sold the product, and internally, IBM will use Exchange. When you migrate the HCL Domino environment to Exchange, there's a new IBM ELA deal where you can get Exchange for free. The HCL Domino segment then shrunk, so the number of customers using it is very small. The big customers have now migrated to Microsoft Exchange, and the rest will migrate eventually.

    We don't have many support facilities in Egypt now, so customers transferred to a different product, e.g. Exchange for the market segment. It's really different, especially in an Office 365 model and Teams collaboration, e.g. using Teams, the competition was not fair.

    My suggestion to people planning on starting their use of HCL Domino is to mix it
    with other applications, rather than comparing it with Microsoft Exchange as a messaging tool, or just using it for messaging, because HCL Domino is a collaboration tool. With it, you can offer applications to different departments, build applications and share it with different departments, etc. It's more preferable to utilize HCL Domino plus messaging, than just using it for messaging only, then comparing it with Exchange.

    My rating for HCL Domino is a ten out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
    PeerSpot user
    SME at Varthacap
    Real User
    Easy to deploy with great security features and good reliability
    Pros and Cons
    • "We can scale it if we want to."
    • "The solution is expensive."

    What is most valuable?

    The security features are great. I like the ease of development. The workflow is pretty easy. These are the three main things I appreciate about the solution.

    The deployment process is very easy.

    It's a reliable, stable product.

    We can scale it if we want to. 

    What needs improvement?

    We'd like to see the speed of the Domino server improve. My customers keep on complaining about the speed of connectivity, irrespective of the bandwidth we use. Sometimes it is very slow.

    The solution is expensive.

    The ease of using the HDP server could be better. Currently, we can run an HDP server and install Domino. However, I would like an easy interface to integrate any HDP server with Domino. 

    The client is pretty heavy. It should be made a bit lighter.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I am a SME on Domino. I've been working on Domino for the last 20 or 22 years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It has been stable so far. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    We find the solution to be very scalable. 

    We have about 45 people using the product in our company.

    How are customer service and support?

    Technical support is not ideal. The actual website is pretty complex. You never know where to go if you need something. 

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Neutral

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We used to use SharePoint. The licensing and file sharing was good on it. Most users had used SharePoint at some point and we didn't really have to do any training when we used it. That said, we found Domino to be better.

    How was the initial setup?

    The solution is very simple to deploy. It's not complex at all. 

    Right now, I control the infrastructure of Domino. I do the development and handle the administration. Therefore, an organization only really needs one person to maintain everything. 

    What about the implementation team?

    We handle the deployment ourselves. It shouldn't take more than half an hour to install the server. 

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The licensing of Domino is expensive. One user license is $100. Compared to SharePoint, which is free when you buy the server, Domino is a lot. 

    What other advice do I have?

    We're end-users.

    We never upgraded to HCL 11. We are still on IBM Domino 9. Although we have the license, we didn't go for the upgrade since we are comfortable with IBM Domino 9.

    I'd advise potential users to keep the application simple. Don't try to make things complicated. 

    I would rate the solution eight out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Private Cloud
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    AlessandroGrillea - PeerSpot reviewer
    Senior System Architect at Quattroemme Consulting S.r.l.
    Real User
    The best product from a security point of view that can be used for vertical applications
    Pros and Cons
    • "HCL Domino is the best product from a security point of view."
    • "HCL Domino could have a better interface."

    What is our primary use case?

    Our customers have many servers that work with HCL Domino.

    What is most valuable?

    HCL Domino is the best product from a security point of view. HCL Domino can be used for office protocol management, vertical applications, and data entry.

    What needs improvement?

    HCL Domino could have a better interface.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We have been a business partner with HCL Domino for thirty years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    HCL Domino is a stable solution.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I rate HCL Domino a nine out of ten for scalability.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    HCL Domino's pricing depends on the number of users, but its license is not cheap.

    What other advice do I have?

    HCL Domino is a product that doesn't have a modern framework or structure from the point of system architecture. However, from a security point of view, it is a very good solution that protects your data in a way that other products cannot.

    Overall, I rate HCL Domino an eight out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
    PeerSpot user
    Project Manager
    Real User
    Integrates well with our mobile solutions
    Pros and Cons
    • "The full-text searching capabilities are great."
    • "From the Domino side, it should support DKIM and DMARC."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use this solution to save contact information and upload files.

    Within our organization, there are roughly 100 employees using this solution.

    What is most valuable?

    The full-text searching capabilities are great. 

    Domino integrates well with our mobile solutions. It's integrated with our scheduling system, meeting room, and our electronic meeting room indicator.

    What needs improvement?

    From the Domino side, it should support DKIM and DMARC. This is useful if you are using e-mail and other third-party e-mail gateways. 

    I'd also like to see better integration with third-party collaboration platforms like Microsoft teams.

    Otherwise, Domino is watertight — it has a lot of great features. 

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    HCL Domino is very stable. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    You can install an additional server at any time. If there are any new users, you can move them to the new server — the scalability is great.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    The technical support is always cooperative and nice. Once we create a ticket, they are always quick to respond. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was very straightforward. This solution works very well straight out of the box; we have no plans to customize it. Overall, deployment took less than 10 minutes. 

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    Our license is on a yearly subscription. You can sign a contract with HCL that will cover up to 100 users. This also includes technical support and all of the latest software updates.

    We're happy with the price of our license — it's pretty standard.

    What other advice do I have?

    If you're interested in using this solution, be sure to take a look at the Domino trial version first. It covers all of the new features which is very useful.

    Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give this solution a rating of nine. 

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
    PeerSpot user