A content management system is an application that can be used to organise, publish and manage large amounts of content. This content can be images, documents, and other types of multimedia files. Content management systems typically offer:

•#Ability to import and develop content

•#Control of different versions of files

•#Detection of system users and assignment of roles

•#Alerts for developers if the content is altered

•#Publication of relevant content to a specific storage area

These systems are also intended to handle the logistics of collaborative document development.

Document management systems are one subset of content management systems. These can be used by organisations to trace and warehouse both electronic documentation and scanned versions of paper-based documents. These systems aim to simplify document retrieval, security, file management, archiving, distribution and workflow.