Moodle vs ILIAS

Hosting is paid to your cloud provider, data center or hardware budget, and it recurs every month or year for as long as the platform runs. For Moodle, the database choice matters most: the 5.3 minimums are PostgreSQL 17, MySQL 8.4, MariaDB 11.4 or SQL Server 2019 or later, and Oracle Database is no longer supported from Moodle 5.0. Costs rise with concurrent users, file storage, backup retention and whether you run a separate test environment. ILIAS hosting depends on the PHP and database versions its current release requires, so ask the ILIAS Society or your hosting partner to confirm the exact stack. In a written quote, request a line-item breakdown of compute, database, storage, backup and any licensed database software, with the assumed user load stated.

A PHP or database upgrade is a one-time project cost each time the minimum versions change, plus testing effort that recurs with every major release. Moodle 5.3 requires 64-bit PHP 8.3 or later and sites must run Moodle 4.4 or later to upgrade, so a site still on an older release may need intermediate steps. Moodle 5.1 also moved the web server document root to the new /public directory, which is a configuration change that must be tested. ILIAS 11 was presented in May 2026, and its main repository lists support for PHP 8.3 to 8.4. Ask for the upgrade path from your current version, who tests custom code and plugins against the new PHP version, and whether database migrations are included.

Both platforms are PHP applications that need a team comfortable with web server configuration, database administration, cron jobs, backups and version upgrades. Moodle has a large community of administrators, developers and partners, which makes hiring and outside help easier to find, though the skills needed depend on how much you customize. ILIAS is run mainly in higher education and public administration, so the internal skill base may be concentrated in specific organizations. In either case, a small team should confirm who can apply security patches, restore from backup and handle a failed upgrade without the original implementer on hand. Ask any vendor or partner to document the runbook they will leave behind.

Every plugin you add becomes code you must test and patch, and each Moodle major release can break plugins that were not updated. Moodle core ships authentication plugins for LDAP, LTI, OAuth 2, Shibboleth and other methods, so you may need fewer third-party additions than you expect, but integrations such as SAML2 usually come from the Moodle plugin directory. Check each plugin's supported Moodle versions before you commit, and confirm who owns the maintenance when the author stops updating it. For ILIAS, confirm which extensions your institution needs and whether they are maintained by the core team, a partner or your own staff. Request a plugin inventory with versions and an agreed owner for each item in the quote.

Managed hosting shifts infrastructure, patching and some backup work to a provider, so the recurring cost becomes a subscription or service fee instead of staff time and cloud bills. Moodle offers MoodleCloud and managed hosting through Moodle Partners, while ILIAS is supported through hosting partners listed by the ILIAS Society. Managed plans can limit plugin installs, user counts and custom configuration, so they are not a like-for-like substitute for self-hosting. Self-hosting keeps control of data location and plugins but moves those costs onto your team. Compare the total over your planning horizon, including exit costs, and ask each provider what is excluded from the fee.

A support contract or retainer is a recurring fee paid for response time, upgrades, troubleshooting or ongoing hardening, and it is separate from the software, which is free under the GPL. DeployOpen plans, implements, hardens, backs up, upgrades, documents and supports self-hosted open-source platforms inside the client's own infrastructure, and ongoing support, upgrades and continuous testing are available as retainers. Most engagements are fixed-scope, with scope, deliverables and timelines agreed in writing before work starts. Ask any provider which Moodle or ILIAS versions they support, what response targets they commit to in writing, and what happens at the next major release.

Patching is recurring work: security releases, minor point updates and major upgrades each need testing, change control and sometimes downtime. Moodle publishes minor point releases every two months and major releases in April and October, and its LTS releases carry security support for a defined period, which lets you plan the cadence. Staff time grows with the number of plugins, customizations and environments. A written quote should state the upgrade cadence, who performs patching, who tests in staging, who owns backups and restore tests, and how responsibility is split between your team and the provider. Ask for those responsibilities in writing before signing.

One-time costs include initial installation, data migration, integration with identity and student systems, customization, and the first security hardening and documentation. Recurring costs include hosting, licensed database software if you use one, support or retainers, plugin maintenance, staff time for patching and backups, and the cost of each major upgrade. Migration costs can recur when you change platforms later, so note how data export and content portability are handled. Ask for the one-time and recurring costs as separate lines in any quote, with the upgrade assumptions stated, so you can compare the two platforms on the same basis.

Effort depends on whether your own team runs the stack or an implementer does it under a written scope. Both platforms are PHP applications that you host in your own infrastructure, so the work covers the web server, PHP runtime, database, file storage, backups, monitoring and patching. For Moodle 5.3, the minimums are 64-bit PHP 8.3 or later with PostgreSQL 17, MariaDB 11.4, MySQL 8.0 or Microsoft SQL Server 2019, and from Moodle 5.1 the web server document root must point to the /public directory. The ILIAS main repository indicates support for PHP 8.3 to 8.4. Confirm the database and web server combinations against your own standards and the current install documentation. DeployOpen plans and implements self-hosted installs as fixed-scope work, and ongoing operations can be covered by a retainer.

No supplied source gives a migration duration, so the timeline has to come from your own inventory. The main drivers are the volume of courses and learner records, how much history you must keep, the number of custom themes, plugins and integrations, and how closely your assessment and gradebook rules must be reproduced. Mapping course types, roles and assessments is usually the largest item, followed by test migrations against a copy and user acceptance testing before cutover. Ask any implementer to show how they will map your course types, which content and grade data they will carry over, and what they will leave behind. DeployOpen agrees migration scope and deliverables in writing before work starts, so the schedule follows the inventory.

Many university teams can run either platform in-house if they have Linux, PHP and database operations skills and a fixed upgrade calendar. The recurring work is what usually strains small teams: applying point releases, retesting plugins or extensions after each upgrade, and keeping backups, monitoring and access control working. Moodle ships major releases in April and October and minor point releases every two months, which makes planning predictable. For ILIAS, check its release process and extension ecosystem on the project site before you commit. Decide who holds on-call duty, who signs off upgrades and whether an outside party will hold a retainer for testing and upgrades during peak academic periods.

Moodle has a defined hosted and partner route: MoodleCloud is Moodle HQ's own hosted option, and Moodle can also be run as managed hosting through Moodle Partners. ILIAS is coordinated by the ILIAS open source e-Learning e.V. (the ILIAS Society), but the research for this page does not list ILIAS hosting or service partners, so confirm them directly with the Society and its published resources. To verify any partner, ask for references you can contact, the platform versions they operate, their upgrade record across the last two major releases and written evidence of any vendor credentials they claim. DeployOpen is not an official partner, reseller or certified provider of either project, so judge our role by the written scope we would deliver.

The supplied facts do not settle this, so the fit depends on your hosting, controls and documentation rather than on the license alone. Self-hosting keeps learner records in infrastructure you select, which is the main lever for public administration. Check where databases, backups and logs are stored, how access is controlled, and how long logs are kept. Moodle core includes LDAP, LTI, OAuth 2 and Shibboleth authentication, and SAML2 single sign-on is available as a marketplace plugin, so confirm which federation method your identity provider supports for each candidate. DeployOpen prepares systems, controls and evidence for compliance assessments, but independent auditors and certification bodies issue audit reports and attestations. Have your data protection officer review the design before build.

Support windows depend on the release you run, so plan upgrades around them. Moodle 4.5 is an LTS release with security support until October 4, 2027. Moodle 5.3 is the next LTS, with general support until October 4, 2027 and security support until October 1, 2029. Moodle 5.1 has general support until October 5, 2026 and security support until April 19, 2027, and Moodle 5.3 can only be upgraded from Moodle 4.4 or later. Map each planned jump to a release that is still supported at cutover, retest plugins at each step and schedule regression testing. For ILIAS, check its release and support policy on ilias.de before you set an upgrade calendar, because the supplied facts do not state its support windows. ILIAS 11 was presented on May 5, 2026.

Start from the minimum versions in each platform's current release notes, then add your own standards. For Moodle 5.3, plan for 64-bit PHP 8.3 or later, with 8.4 also supported, and one of PostgreSQL 17, MariaDB 11.4, MySQL 8.0 or Microsoft SQL Server 2019 as a minimum. Oracle Database is no longer supported from Moodle 5.0. The ILIAS main repository indicates PHP 8.3 to 8.4, but confirm its database minimums in its installation documentation before you size the environment. Pin PHP and database versions in configuration management, build a staging environment that matches production, and record which versions each upgrade path requires. Ask any implementer to state the versions they will test against in writing.