Licensing
LeonsDB is free for everyone who runs a Minecraft server, runs a network or writes plugins. Each part of this repository has the license that fits how it is used.
| Folder | License | In short |
|---|---|---|
/server |
Business Source License 1.1 | Free and source-available. Use it in production for free; only offering it to others as a hosted database service needs a commercial agreement. Each version becomes Apache-2.0 four years after its release. |
/connector |
Apache-2.0 | Open source. Use it in any plugin, including paid and closed-source ones. |
/proto |
Apache-2.0 | Open source, so anyone can write a client in any language. |
/bench |
Apache-2.0 | Benchmarks; reuse them freely. |
/scripts |
Apache-2.0 | Build and maintenance scripts. |
/docs |
CC-BY-4.0 | Share and adapt the documentation with attribution. |
/website |
All rights reserved | The leonsdb.com website, its text and design. |
Each folder has its own LICENSE file with the full text, and every source
file starts with an SPDX line naming its license.
What this means for you
I run a Minecraft server or network. LeonsDB is free. Install it on as many machines as you like, use it in production, and use it for servers, websites and apps that make money. You can read and modify the source code.
I write Minecraft plugins. The connector is Apache-2.0: depend on it freely, including in premium plugins sold on BuiltByBit, Polymart or anywhere else. You don’t have to publish your code.
I want to offer LeonsDB to others as a hosted service (for example a Minecraft host offering LeonsDB databases to its customers). This is the one use that needs a commercial agreement. Write to contact@leonsdb.com.
Why the server uses the Business Source License
The server is free for every server owner, network and plugin developer. The only thing the license reserves is selling LeonsDB itself as a hosted service, which funds the development of LeonsDB. Hosting companies that want to offer LeonsDB can do so through a partnership.
Each version of the server automatically becomes available under the Apache License 2.0 four years after its release, so no version can ever be locked away.
The Business Source License is “source-available”, not an open-source license as defined by the Open Source Initiative. The connector and the protocol are open source under Apache-2.0.
Paid products
LeonsDB Cloud (hosted LeonsDB) and LeonsDB Pro (extra features for self-hosted servers) are separate products. They are not part of this repository. A licensing problem with a paid product can never lock you out of your data: the free version always keeps working and your data always stays readable.
Contributions
Contributions are accepted under the Contributor License Agreement. See CONTRIBUTING.md for why it exists.
Trademark
The licenses cover the code, not the LeonsDB name or logo. See TRADEMARK.md.
Third-party software
LeonsDB uses open-source libraries under their own licenses. They are listed in NOTICE.