MySQL Licensing

[Buddha]

Has anyone read MySQL lincensing lately? If not here you go: MySQL Licensing Policy

Looks like they want a cut of anyones commercial non-GPL application that uses MyQSL database backend? Maybe I'm just reading it wrong.

Guess their trying to encourging open source development. I'm now wondering how many commercial scripts or users there of are in violation of MySQL's license?

[Jonathan]

hmmm...scary; I didn't read it all,
I will in an hour or so

[rcohen]

Hah!

Come on!! THAT would be like trying to bust pot smokers at a greatful dead concert

[Buddha]

Come on!! THAT would be like trying to bust pot smokers at a greatful dead concert

ROFLMAO!

So true ... but it's not like SCO don't try it doing just that. Not that I want to compare the wonderful people at MySQL AB to those <self censor> at SCO. Like SCO/Linux thing user would be the last one's to be targetted anyway.

[kicker]

Further Reading

Disclaimer IANAL

After reading through several pages on the Mysql website, including the one linked above, I would conclude that no you do not have to buy a license if your application is Closed Source based on the following.

If you develop and distribute a commercial application and as part of utilizing your application, the end-user must download a copy of MySQL; for each derivative work, you (or, in some cases, your end-user) need a commercial license for the MySQL server and/or MySQL client libraries.

source: http://www.mysql.com/products/licens...l-license.html

If you are worried develop your application with a database abstraction layer so that the end-user can choose from multiple databases for the backend. It also sound as if this totally skirts shared hosting environments where the end-user doesnt have control over the server. ie they don't download any server software because they don't have the rights.

More convincing is this statement:

Free use for those who never copy, modify or distribute. As long as you never distribute (internally or externally) the MySQL Software in any way, you are free to use it for powering your application, irrespective of whether your application is under GPL license or not.

source: http://www.mysql.com/products/licens...e-license.html

Needless to say unless you spend some time reading all of this, and even if you do, it can be very confusing.

Again, I am not a lawyer and did not read the actual license.

[Buddha]

Disclaimer IANAL

After reading through several pages on the Mysql website, including the one linked above, I would conclude that no you do not have to buy a license if your application is Closed Source based on the following.

If you develop and distribute a commercial application and as part of utilizing your application, the end-user must download a copy of MySQL; for each derivative work, you (or, in some cases, your end-user) need a commercial license for the MySQL server and/or MySQL client libraries.

source: http://www.mysql.com/products/licens...l-license.html

If your saying, the burden can be shifted to the end-user to comply with MySQL license when you sell an application then I agree. However, I would think you would owe MySQL at least one license for use of their database software during development? (Hard to test without it.) There was a commercial intent in the applications development if your now selling it, wasn't there?

If you are worried develop your application with a database abstraction layer so that the end-user can choose from multiple databases for the backend. It also sound as if this totally skirts shared hosting environments where the end-user doesnt have control over the server. ie they don't download any server software because they don't have the rights.

More convincing is this statement:

Free use for those who never copy, modify or distribute. As long as you never distribute (internally or externally) the MySQL Software in any way, you are free to use it for powering your application, irrespective of whether your application is under GPL license or not.

source: http://www.mysql.com/products/licens...e-license.html

That was in the Open Source license so I'm not sure it has any application to commercial applications development what so ever.

If your using MySQL database in a shared hosting environment then I would think there is some distributing going on. In this case, the end-user may not be the one with the burden but the host. I think thats the intent of that paragraph.

Needless to say unless you spend some time reading all of this, and even if you do, it can be very confusing.

Again, I am not a lawyer and did not read the actual license.

Total agreement and I'm not a lawyer either.

[rcohen]

Anyone know where the shrums are?