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License ethics discussion aside, this is going to cause mayhem! :D I know of at least one massive global company using vault in production, for free as a backe

License ethics discussion aside, this is going to cause mayhem! :D I know of at least one massive global company using vault in production, for free as a backend to their own password manager frontend. My own $dayjob was just going to set it up actually, I guess we'll have to re-evaluate that now. I can't even imagine how many companies use vault in production.

tensor 3y ago
On the plus side they don't need to panic, they can keep using the last open source version and patch it themselves if needed.
wlonkly 3y ago
But the license prohibits competitive use, not commercial use, right? So using Vault in production is no problem if you're using it as part of the infrastructure of a company that isn't competing with Hashicorp. Using it as a backend for a password manager... more of a grey area, but Hashicorp doesn't offer a password manager.
- deadbunny 3y ago
  But what if they do in X years? Suddenly that company is out of compliance with the BSL.
  - wlonkly 3y ago
    Oh, for sure, and if you're a developer tooling/devopsy-stuff company that would give me pause (or convince me to plan a migration, or to use an alternative, etc.) But if you're, say, fashion retail, or something, then the risk is pretty low.
    - iavael 3y ago
      > then the risk is pretty low And then Amazon buys Hashicorp.
- INTPenis 3y ago
  The very first lines of the license text say that you're permitted to use the software for "non-production use".
  - ednxzu 3y ago
    https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/blob/main/LICENSE#L8-L11 https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/blob/main/LICENSE#L8-L11 Clearly states that you can use it in a production setup.
    - INTPenis 3y ago
      Thanks for pointing that out, so this must have been added by Hashicorp then.
      - ezekg 3y ago
        That's the point of the BUSL. It defaults to non-production, use, but the licensor adds an Additional Use Grant that allows production use, which typically covers everything except competing with the licensor's cloud offering.

tensor 3y ago

On the plus side they don't need to panic, they can keep using the last open source version and patch it themselves if needed.

wlonkly 3y ago

But the license prohibits competitive use, not commercial use, right? So using Vault in production is no problem if you're using it as part of the infrastructure of a company that isn't competing with Hashicorp. Using it as a backend for a password manager... more of a grey area, but Hashicorp doesn't offer a password manager.

deadbunny 3y ago
But what if they do in X years? Suddenly that company is out of compliance with the BSL.
- wlonkly 3y ago
  Oh, for sure, and if you're a developer tooling/devopsy-stuff company that would give me pause (or convince me to plan a migration, or to use an alternative, etc.) But if you're, say, fashion retail, or something, then the risk is pretty low.
  - iavael 3y ago
    > then the risk is pretty low And then Amazon buys Hashicorp.
INTPenis 3y ago
The very first lines of the license text say that you're permitted to use the software for "non-production use".
- ednxzu 3y ago
  https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/blob/main/LICENSE#L8-L11 https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/blob/main/LICENSE#L8-L11 Clearly states that you can use it in a production setup.
  - INTPenis 3y ago
    Thanks for pointing that out, so this must have been added by Hashicorp then.
    - ezekg 3y ago
      That's the point of the BUSL. It defaults to non-production, use, but the licensor adds an Additional Use Grant that allows production use, which typically covers everything except competing with the licensor's cloud offering.