BPO comes in two versions, a Windows desktop application which is to be discontinued by the end of 2027 and a cloud-based version.
The cloud version runs as a C# Blazor application against a Postgresql database. Users access the system through any modern Browser.
It can be hosted in one of three ways:
On your own infrastructure
The application and database are hosted on servers owned and managed by your organisation. You will be responsible for backups, hardware and networking support and configuring for remote access if needed.
Directly through Render.com
Your organisation creates and manages its own Render.com account and pays Render.com directly for hosting services.
Through hosting managed by us
We arrange and manage the hosting environment on your behalf. This provides a simpler arrangement by giving you a single point of contact for the application and its hosting but at a slightly increased cost over Render’s base pricing. Hosting includes:
Deployment
Updates
Backups
Troubleshooting
Technical support
Disaster recovery
Account ownership and billing
Runtime: ASP.NET Core 10 (net10.0), easiest via the Dockerfile: aspnet:10.0 with libgssapi-krb5-2 added, which Npgsql needs.
Hosting: Any Docker host or a Windows/Linux server with .NET 10. It listens on port 8080, and HTTPS needs a reverse proxy (as Render provides).
Database: PostgreSQL, preloaded with the database schema.
File storage (logos, invoices): A Cloudflare R2 bucket.
Email: An SMTP server using STARTTLS on port 587 (port 465 doesn’t work).
WhatsApp: The Web/Desktop method needs nothing; the Meta method needs a Meta Business account.
Build: .NET SDK 10.0.100 or later.
SQL Server Express 2014 or higher (Standard version recommended for multi-branch setups)
See SQL Server 2014 installation requirements
Computer: PC with a 1.0GHz processor.
Peripherals: Mouse or pointing device.
Memory: 1 GB (4GB or higher recommended).
Hard disk space: 50 MB for the Best Practice - Optical program files, the database will require a minimum of 1GB and see above for the SQL Server requirements. The more free space the better.
Video: 1024 x 768 (absolute minimum resolution), 1280 x 1024 or higher recommended.
Operating system: Windows 7, Windows 8/8.1, Windows 10 and Windows Server 2003/2008/2012/2016.
BPO stores its data in a SQL Server Database (it has been tested with SQL Server 2012 and 2014 but should work in 2016 and 2017 as well)