Can use Suitecrm Free version to sell multiple client as cloud base ?

SuiteCRM Forum - English Language Licensing
1

Hi,

As SuiteCRM is Free and we can download and use it locally or on our server free for life time.

I wants to Use SuiteCRM as Product base by modifying Original SuiteCRM and wants to provide it on Cloud base to my differ Customer.

To sell that Suitecrm to other, Should i Require to buy any license ? or I can use it free of cost for any of my client?

Thanks,
Alpesh.

2

Hi Alpesh,

If you are looking to use SuiteCRM as a base for your SaaS offering you do not need to buy a license from us but you do need to make sure you obey the rules of the exisitng licence. SuiteCRM is released under AGPL and therefore if you are going to modify and release in a SaaS environment you still need to make the source available. (Anyone who is more savvy on the Lawyer front can provide more information)

Dale

3

You mean, I can use suitecrm for my cloud base crm feature and for that I dont have to purchase license from suiteCRm ok ?

4

You do not have to purchase an additional licence for SuiteCRM. However, if you do choose to use SuiteCRM for your cloud based solution you need to make your modified Source Code available. It still needs to remain open source.

5

Three questions:

  1. How do you differentiate between modified source code and paid extensions like what is sold through the extension listings on this site?
  2. Do the developers of these paid extensions have to provide their source code free to the community?
  3. If you are using extensions from other providers to make everything work and no source code is modified, is there any requirement to provide a source code other than what is already freely available online?
6

Hi Berry,
Did any one clarify your questions.

Thanks
Anil

7

Before any one person or organisation commences on any open source development work, whether it is building something from scratch or modifying existing open source software products, it is absolutely essential that they understand open source licensing.

Otherwise they may end up in hot water, in court or facing substantial financial losses.

SuiteCRM is licensed under the Affero General Purpose License 3 (AGPL).

The implications for anyone modifying SuiteCRM are:

  1. If you modify it for your own use or for the use of another individual party, then there is no obligation on you to share those modifications.

  2. If you modify a single line of SuiteCRM and distribute the code, whether through a paid cloud service or download, then you are obligated to provide all the changes and maintain a “download source” feature that would provide complete and corresponding source code.

In other words: You cannot simply take SuiteCRM, modify it, sell/distribute the modified version and keep it private. As soon as you start selling/distributing a modified version, you must provide a download facility where anyone (not just customers) can download the modified version. Failure to do so will find you in court. There are numerous examples of companies who have sought to gain advantage by modifying open source code or including existing open source code in their products without sharing the modifications. In each and every case the judgement has been to the detriment of the company at fault and has often resulted in large fines and the requirement to share the code.

So, the model is clear. This is open source. It is about sharing and collaboration. It is not about monetising private versions of SuiteCRM. That is not legal under the terms of the license.

Clear?

8

So just to be super clear – if one were to take the open source, add customized modules and features, wall it off and charge admission for others to use it, that person must offer all of those modifications to the public to download and use themselves… correct?

9

CORRECT AND UNAMBIGUOUS. THERE ARE NO GET OUTS, NO SPECIAL CASES. THIS IS THE OPEN SOURCE WAY. IT’S CALLED “OPEN” FOR A REASON!!

And appropriate. Private gain at public expense is antithetic to open source. If you innovate on the platform, then sharing innovation makes the entire project stronger. We all float higher on a rising tide.

10

What about modifying the interface, adding the client logo and colors, do you still have to make this available to the world?

11

It is the only model that works . Look sugarcrm now he has no open source release.
You must open your mind and share without fear. You and participate in improving the project SuiteCRM.

if you want to do business, offer services

12

I’m not sure which part of this you don’t understand:

If you modify SuiteCRM and distribute the modified code: You MUST make the modifications available for download. Distribute = either physically or over a network. So, you modify the interface and make it available as a hosted service to many different clients = Distribution = you need to make the code available to all.

If however, you modify SuiteCRM for an individual client (and do not distribute the modified code … i.e. only the client for whom modifications were made has access to the modified code), then you do not have to make the code available. It is private to that client.

This relates to any and all modifications. It’s how open source grows stronger.

13

I like the idea and it’s been around since the beginning. Where do you suggest to make the modified versions available?

14

Hi I was wondering if I do Suite CRM as saas I must always allow anyone one to download a free one user code right? To that end, who and where do you know I can get an enhancement or enhanced version myself to see what someone creative has already done with it ?

Thanks