How much is it to run Hipchat server? What licenses, equipment, software etc will I need?

[Joseph Mah]

I have been running Hipchat free version and now want to host a Hipchat server locally.

How much is it per user?  What software and/or licenses will I need?

I saw there is a Hipchat OVA for VMware.  Is that free to run without having to install an Operating System?

[AhmadDanial]

Hi, Joseph.

On top of the answer provided by Steven, you are also required to deploy external Redis, Shared file system, and a load balancer / proxy (This entirely depends on your set up, 3 node vs 1 node). It is important for you to go through the Deployment options and sizing guidelines for Hipchat Data Center page to understand your business requirement and decide which one suits you best. 

[Steven Meadows]

Hi Joseph,

As you are hosting on premise, you will need HipChat Data Center.

1-10 users is $10 monthly

11 - 25 Users is $1,800 monthly

26-50 Users is $3,300 monthly.

Further pricing can be found on:

https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/hipchat

The VMWare image actually comes with a '64-bit OS base on Ubuntu defaulting to 4GB RAM and 4 vCPU and 74GB of storage capacity' (this is open source and free).

(https://confluence.atlassian.com/hc/deploying-hipchat-server-609944387.html#DeployingHipchatServer-SystemrequirementsfordeployingtheOVAimage)

You will also need to configure an external datasource (Postgresql).

[David Maye]

Hi,

There are two products being referenced here:

- HipChat Server (which Steven linked a doc regarding the VM and default settings)
- HipChat Data Center (which Ahmad referenced with installing Redis, NFS4 share, etc)

Please note that these are two different products with two different use cases.

- HipChat Server is meant for small to medium sized teams (~2k users or less) and includes all of the database and file storage server software inside the appliance (whether it's OVA or via AWS). See: https://confluence.atlassian.com/hc/hipchat-server-documentation-331912671.html for documentation on HipChat Server.

- HipChat Data Center is geared towards enterprise environments and is much more technical and requires the admin to already have Redis/NFS4/LB/PSQL available for HipChat to hook into. See: https://confluence.atlassian.com/hipchatdc3/hipchat-data-center-documentation-907350408.html for documentation on HipChat Data Center.

As an additional note: HipChat Server will reach end of life in 2019 and no longer be supported by Atlassian. However, due to the perpetual licensing, you can run HipChat Server even after the EOL if you choose to, just with no support from us (but you can still use community!). 

Please be aware that after the license expires (or after EOL) that push notifications will no longer work, new users cannot be added and support will be no longer offered.

Hope this clarifies! 

Cheers,
-David
HipChat Server/Data Center Support Engineer | Atlassian

[Joseph Mah]

Thanks guys

It will definitely be a Hipchat SERVER not Datacenter product.   It looks like pricing is for Datacenter?  Is it the same as SERVER?  About $6000 for 150 users?

Is the license purchase an annual renewal?  Is it the same price every year regardless of whether it is a new purchase or a renewal?  

What happens after Hipchat Server if I fail to renew?  Does it still continue to work (but with no more support)?

What happens if I need to add more users than my original license after Hipchat Server EOL?

Is Stride the new product replacing Hipchat Server?

[AhmadDanial]

Hi, Joseph.

Allow me to address the questions that you have here.

• Since HipChat Server is moving towards the direction of Data Center, we have changed the licensing structure as mentioned in the What does Hipchat Data Center cost? page. For 150 users, it will cost US $12,000 as it falls within the 101 - 250 Users tier.
• It will be an annual renewal. Yes, it will be the same price regardless of the type of payment (renewal / new purchase) highlighted in the What does it cost to renew my Hipchat Data Center license?
• The limitations that apply when you are using an expired license on HipChat Server / Data Center are listed in the What happens when my license expires? page which includes:
  
  • You won't be able to add or create new users.
  • You won't be able to reactivate existing "disabled" user accounts.
  • Guest users will no longer be able to log in.
  • Mobile push notifications will no longer work. 
  • You won't be eligible for Atlassian Support. 
• The cost of upgrading your license seat is charged at a pro-rated amount for the remainder of the term license. For more information, please refer to the What does it cost to upgrade my Hipchat Data Center license? section
• They are 2 different products, mainly one being on the Cloud and the other self-hosted. Read up on the differences in the What is the difference between Hipchat Data Center and Stride? section

Hope that helps!

[Joseph Mah]

HI Ahmad

Thanks for your response.

I understand that the new pricing will reflect Datacenter now.  I meant to say 100 users not 150.  Hence the approx cost of ~$6000 or more. 

Few questions:

Is it absolutely mandatory to run a reverse proxy, Datastores host with redis, NFS4, postgres, etc in order to run HipChat Datacenter?  Because I am running the evaluation right now from the OVA and it works fine all in one package. 

Hipchat Server doesn't require those preexisting requirements but it will fall out of support very soon due to a shift toward Datacenter.   But I can still continue using HipChat Server so as long as the license is renewed annually.  The product will continue to function.  The only thing is support will only be available through community. 

Correct?

If so, final question is, does Stride support any sort of archiving (for purposes of maintaining compliance etc)? 

Also will Stride replace HipChat Datacenter?  Or that is just a totally different product? 
Because if Datacenter is going to get phased out one day soon (just like Server), would it make sense to go towards Stride?

[AhmadDanial]

Hi, Joseph.

You are welcome. Please refer to the answers below:

• The answer is yes as mentioned in the Deployment options and sizing guidelines for Hipchat Data Center page.
• HipChat Server will continue to be supported until May 30, 2019 - Atlassian Support End of Life Policy After that period, official support, development of new features and bug fixes will no longer be available. The product will continue to function nevertheless, yes.
• Archiving rooms is available as a feature in Stride as mentioned in the official documentation here - Archive rooms. Can you confirm if this is the archive feature that you were looking for?
• Since Stride is built for the Cloud platform, it is a different product from HipChat Data Center which is catered for user who prefer to host the application themselves. I am not entirely sure on the strategy moving forward but yet, it is a good thought.

Meanwhile, may I know if you have given Stride a try?