Bonita Processes Licenses
Not true,
The license for your software is your concern and not the second parties. Why would you even have to give them the Source? When you deploy a BAR file for uploading at the customers site, there is no source. It is compiled and not reversible. Believe me I've checked with Bonitasoft myself.
If you are delivering source code to the client who has a subscription model then they will have knowledge of licenses etc. If they insist then discuss with them about Escrow holding. This is where a lawyer or Escrow company for example (yes they exist) holds the source in the interest of both parties such that should your business fail, the company can then gain access for support purposes etc.
In my case I'm allowing companies to purchase without-source and with-source product. But the license is very clear - no reselling if my code or product. It is only for their use inside the company, and not even affiliates (partner companies) can gain access.
You should talk to a lawyer who is knowledgeable about software licensing who will help you through this.
regards Seán
Comments
Hi Sean
Thanks for the detailed answer, since Bonita states in their page the software has a GPLvs2 license, which is known as the viral license since any work derived from it automatically becomes GPLed thus youre forced to deliver the sources and human readable code , i dont know if this apply to a bar file, if a bar is consired a derivate work from the bonita core, in my case for example it would be impossible to track and prevent the user to resell the software without a internal code control mecanism , if i deliver the code, they would simply delete the control lines from the code, or i dont know if this GPL stuff doesnt apply to the companies with a subscription model, or if i as a user with subscription model can sell it to companys with no subcription model, symply put, its a bar file considered a derivated work from the bonita core and inherits its license, or its a independent piece of work or inherits the license from the bonita core it is installed.
Regards
.
Yes, I see where you are coming from, however....
Processes are Self-Art, they are not derivative code. If you changed, for example, Bonita Community Portal Code to support LDAP then yes you would have to issue this code under the terms of the viral license (nicely put by the way).
But if you are writing processes that are pure with no changes to the Bonita Software itself these are not part of the Bonita Software.
Imagine if, taking it to the extreme, software developed under Eclipse™ or Microsoft® Visual Studio® were considered derivatives of the programming environment, all software would then be under the control of Eclipse and Microsoft. And that is where BonitaSoft Studio itself comes in, it is a development platform for works to be produced, just like Eclipse or Visual Studio.
In this case you can consider the BAR file to be an EXE file...
When issuing your BAR file though, if you include other JAR files for example, you MUST include the relevant licenses etc. applicable. In my case I use Postgresql and an encryption jar. Postgresql I do not send with my software, because it comes with the database and in the installation manual tells the installer to copy the necessary jar from location X to location Y.
With the encryption jar though, I am allowed to redistribute it for use within my software as long as I include their license of use in the documentation, and make sure they are acknowledged as the true owners of that piece of work.
Now, as previously said, BARs are not able to be disassembled (or the effort required would be very difficult) so companies would not be able to remove your "Control Lines", and they cannot be exported from the portal, I've already had this discussion with Bonitasoft and assured it will never happen, they want to protect their IP also.
This is where you are getting into the problem of software hacking, piracy etc. This is your company problem to address and resolve. Every software company has it. Bonitasoft has it, Microsoft has it, I have it. In all cases the lawyers win... :) Shock horror!! It comes down to, if you wish, the morals and ethics of the people you are dealing with and if you suspect they will "thieve" your software, why do business with them?
How you distribute your software will become a large part of this, Installation System, flat files with BARs etc. that is up to you, will you have a licensing mechanism like Naperion built in, or do something like Microsoft's Software Activation? These are things only you can decide. I would also be interested to hear your thoughts on this, off the forums though.
I've recently had various discussions with Bonitasoft and have just released my software on the market (kickstarter, see here ) and the issue of what are BARs never comes up, they are simply seen as independent pieces of work and are subject to MY Companies licensing, not GPL nor Bonitasoft's, and they do not inherit any other license whether Community or Subscription. It is my software that is running, it is my license that applies.
If you need more on this, feel free to contact Bonitasoft direct and ask for an Account Manager to discuss some of these things, they are very helpful and more than happy to help.
As previously stated though you should talk to a lawyer who is knowledgeable about software licensing who can help you through this. It is a minefield.
Best regards Seán