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(mysql.info)Licensing policy

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MySQL Licensing Policy
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The formal terms of the GPL license can be found at Note: GPL license.
Basically, our licensing policy and interpretation of the GPL is as
follows:

Note that older versions of MySQL are still using a more strict license
(http://www.mysql.com/support/arrangements/mypl.html).  See the
documentation for that version for more information. If you need a
commercial MySQL license, because the GPL license doesn't suit your
application, you can buy one at `https://order.mysql.com/'.

For normal internal use, MySQL costs nothing.  You do not have to pay
us if you do not want to.

A license is required if:

   - You link a program, that is not free software, with code from the
     MySQL server or clients that has the GPL copyright. This happens
     for example when you use MySQL as an embedded server in your
     applications or when you add not free extensions to the MySQL
     server.  In this case your application/code would also become GPL
     through the GPL license that acts as a virus.  By licensing MySQL
     server from MySQL AB under a commercial license you will avoid
     this problem.  See `http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl-faq.html'.

   - You have a commercial application that ONLY works with MySQL and
     ships the application with the MySQL server.  This is because we
     view this as linking even if it is done over the network.

   - You have a distribution of MySQL and you don't provide the source
     code for your copy of the MySQL server, as defined in the GPL
     license.

A license is *NOT* required if:

   - You do not need a license to include the client code in commercial
     programs.  The client part of MySQL licensed with the LGPL `GNU
     Library General Public License'.  The `mysql' command-line client
     includes code from the `readline' library that is under the `GPL'.

   - If your use of MySQL does not require a license, but you like
     MySQL and want to encourage further development, you are certainly
     welcome to purchase a license or MySQL support anyway.

   - If you use MySQL in a commercial context such that you profit by
     its use, we ask that you further the development of MySQL by
     purchasing some level of support.  We feel that if MySQL helps
     your business, it is reasonable to ask that you help MySQL.
     (Otherwise, if you ask us support questions, you are not only
     using for free something into which we've put a lot a work, you're
     asking us to provide free support, too.)

For circumstances under which a MySQL license is required, you need a
license per machine that runs the `mysqld' server.  However, a
multiple-CPU machine counts as a single machine, and there is no
restriction on the number of MySQL servers that run on one machine, or
on the number of clients concurrently connected to a server running on
that machine!

If you have any questions as to whether or not a license is required for
your particular use of MySQL, please read this again and then contact
us.  Note: Contact information.

If you require a MySQL license, the easiest way to pay for it is to use
the license form on MySQL's secure server at
`https://order.mysql.com/'.  Other forms of payment are discussed in
Note: Payment information.