What Self-hosted Bitrix24 is for and What Can Be Done with the Cloud

It often happens that the clients do not have a clear idea why they have to switch from a cloud version of a product to a self-hosted one, for realization of their demands and requests. The matter is that with Bitrix24 CRM (as well as with any other cloud CRM), this switch does not lead to any additional functionality of the already existing pages – no changes in the interface, no extra windows, scripts and pop-ups; simply speaking, no impact on what is already presented on the pages. This is due to the fact that a cloud, in this case, implies remote system files deployment. In other words, everything is Bitrix-hosted, and you neither have access to the initial CRM nor can you influence any components mentioned above.

The situation seems hopeless, but there is still a kind of way out. This is due to the possibility to create applications (not modules) with cloud Bitrix24 CRM. There are several types of such applications, and the main difference is that some of them should be hosted on a separate server with an onboard ssl certificate, while the others don’t need any hosting since they are implemented on 1C-Bitrix servers. Let’s have a look at two examples:

1. 1. server-hosted applications are used for functional enhancement by, for instance, adding new custom activities to business processes, such as constant messaging, addressing 3rd-party services, additional computations. Such applications are often used for integration with different services and for storage of additional (intermediate or linking) data between different systems.

2. 2. remote applications - these can be used for functionalities which do not need any 3rd-party resources and do not store any data. For instance, applications for building final graphs and task reports: you don’t need to store any data in this case, only to get data via REST API for whatever is needed.

Applications of both types mentioned may be presented as an extra system page which can be added to the menu, and here you can let your imagination do the work. With such pages, you may post whatever you like and embody any idea: apply completely new designs, change styles, add pop-ups, drop-down menus, and, of course, your own functionalities for all these things. As an example, such pages may be used for providing output from CRM (almost any, provided it is admitted by REST API) in any required format, generating custom reports, building graphs and schedules. Altogether, you may easily attach any additional computations, database processing, outside data storage. As another variant of such pages’ implementation, you may create a separate CRM management system built on the ground of custom editing/adding elements to different Bitrix24 entities. For instance, generation / amendment of leads with pulling up data from a 3rd-party source (such as city or street database), or non-standard task management, etc…

To sum up, the following should be said: if you are happy with an additional page in Bitrix24 CRM for implementing your intended functionalities – then, make sure you are in possession of a SSL hosting / server (not necessary for the 2nd-type applications). If not – you are welcome to switch to a self-hosted version.