When comparing phpBB vs PHPBack, the Slant community recommends phpBB for most people. In the question“What are the best web forum software packages?” phpBB is ranked 6th while PHPBack is ranked 12th. The most important reason people chose phpBB is:
Source code is available on GitHub under GNU General Licence.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Open source
Source code is available on GitHub under GNU General Licence.
Pro Premium extensions
There are many great developers creating premium extensions to make it go to the next level. With those premium extensions phpBB goes far beyond any other.
Pro Extensible
Is built to be extensible and flexible.
Pro Huge extension repository
Its the forum software with the most ready to go extension repository.
Pro Multi-language support
It has been already translated to Spanish and they are adding support for more languages.
Pro Easy setup
PHPBack is very easy to setup, all you need is a server with PHP5 and MySQL installed.
Pro Open Source
PHPBack is open source, uses GPLv3 license.
Cons
Con Outdated look and feel
Even the latest version of the software looks like the typical '90s forums which is now pretty outdated.
Con Slow (phpBB 3.0)
phpBB 3.0 was not optimized for slow connections.
Con Poor community communication
There is a release lifecycle, but it is not adhered to. Migrations and updates cannot be planned.
Con Small community
PHPBack is fairly young (first stable version was releases in July 2015). Currently the community is small, which may make it more difficult to find help/support.
However, the developer is active on the github page and generally responds quickly.