DAViCal is a server for calendar sharing. It is an implementation of the CalDAV protocol which is designed for storing calendaring resources on a remote shared server. Although the events are stored in an SQL database the information between client and server is transferred in the iCalendar

ICalendar

iCalendar is a computer file format which allows Internet users to send meeting requests and tasks to other Internet users, via email, or sharing files with an extension of .ics...

 format.

Features

Administration of the Calendar server is through a web-browser based interface. This can be accessed locally or through a network.

Interface

Several interfaces have been used with the DAViCal server. These include the Mozilla Sunbird

Mozilla Sunbird

Mozilla Sunbird is a free and open source, cross-platform calendar application that was developed by the Mozilla Foundation, Sun Microsystems and many volunteers...

 calendar (or the Lightning calendar extension of Thunderbird), Chandler, Evolution, and Mulberry.

Content access

Events are stored on a server which can be accessed through a network, meaning that the calendar can be viewed from any location that has Internet access. In the case of a local user experiencing a hard drive failure, it also means that no data is lost. The application can import iCalendar calendars (.ics, the de facto

De facto

De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...

 open calendaring file format). Multiple calendars can be added and shared, allowing various levels of permissions for users. This enables collaboration and sharing of schedules between groups.

Each calendar can have individual permissions, or permissions of groups of users can be created.

Sharing calendars

DAViCal, when combined with an appropriate interface, allows multiple calendars to be created and shown in the same view. Each can be shared, either read-only or with full edit control, and either with specified people or with everyone (public calendars).

Device synchronization

Any device that is able to install one of the client interfaces and has network access can synchronize with the DAViCal server.

Compatibility

DAViCal supports CalDAV

CalDAV

Calendaring Extensions to WebDAV, or CalDAV, is an Internet standard allowing a client to access scheduling information on a remote server. It extends WebDAV specification and uses iCalendar format for the data. The protocol is defined by RFC 4791...

 and CardDAV

CardDAV

CardDAV is an address book client/server protocol designed to allow users to access and share contact data on a server.The CardDAV protocol was developed by the IETF and has been published as RFC 6352....

, with some backward compatibility features to support WebDAV

WebDAV

Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning is a set of methods based on the Hypertext Transfer Protocol that facilitates collaboration between users in editing and managing documents and files stored on World Wide Web servers...

 also. Required prerequisites include a webserver which can run PHP scripting language and a database (currently PostgreSQL 8.1 or greater).

.rpm packages for RedHat/Fedora/CentOS and derivative Linux distributions are available, as well as .deb packages for Debian/Ubuntu/Kubuntu and derivative Linux distributions. Source code is available for other Linux distributions or for compiling for Windows.

Supported clients

• Apple iCal
  ICal
  iCal is a personal calendar application made by Apple Inc. that runs on the Mac OS X operating system. iCal was the first calendar application for Mac OS X to offer support for multiple calendars and the ability to publish/subscribe calendars to WebDAV server....
  
  
• Apple iPhone
  IPhone
  The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
  
  
• GNOME
  GNOME
  GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
  
   Evolution
• Mozilla
  Mozilla
  Mozilla is a term used in a number of ways in relation to the Mozilla.org project and the Mozilla Foundation, their defunct commercial predecessor Netscape Communications Corporation, and their related application software....
  
  's Calendar Project
  Mozilla Calendar Project
  The Mozilla Calendar Project is the name for the Mozilla project that led to the development of Sunbird calendar application and the Lightning integrated calendar...
  
  s (both Sunbird and Lightning)
• Mulberry
  Mulberry (e-mail client)
  Mulberry is a formerly proprietary, now open sourced email client marketed by Cyrusoft from approximately 1995 to 2005. On October 1, 2005, Cyrusoft International, Inc./ISAMET, declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy and went out of business...
  
  
• OSAF
  Open Source Applications Foundation
  The Open Source Applications Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 2002 by Mitch Kapor whose purpose is to effect widespread adoption of free software/open-source software.-OSAF Mission:The mission of the OSAF is stated this way:...
  
  's Chandler
  Chandler (PIM)
  Chandler is a personal information management software suite described by its developers as a "Note-to-Self Organizer" designed for personal and small-group task management and calendaring. It is free software, previously released under the GNU General Public License, and now released under the...
  
  

See also

• KubuntuGuide -- installing DAViCal in Kubuntu
• UbuntuGuide -- installing DAViCal in Ubuntu