Can I use JBoss EAP 6 without a support license?

Question

JBoss Application Platform has 2 distributions, a community and an enterprise release, community releases are like Beta releases of enterprise releases, JBoss 7.0 is then actually EAP 6 beta 1, 7.0.1 is beta 2, 7.1.0 is beta 3 and 7.1.1 is rc 1.

What happens with JBoss AS 7.1.2 and 7.1.3? this is a very informative link: http://henk53.wordpress.com/2013/01/09/the-curious-case-of-jboss-as-7-1-2-and-7-1-3/

So my question is: Can I use JBoss EAP 6 without a support license?

Downloads are available from access.redhat.com/downloads, from which you have to click on "Evaluations and Demos", and then on "JBoss Enterprise Application Platform Evaluation".

I have read that JBoss EAP is still open source and you can use it freely, but only if you compile it from source, which is not an easy task nor they want it to be.

So if I use in production the version I have downloaded from "Evaluations and Demos", is this illegal?

Answer 1

TLDR; yes, you can use without a support subscription, but no, if you just download the latest EAP binary, you're not allowed to use it in production.

Three cases here to consider how you can run JBoss EAP without a support subscription, two of which also allow production use:

1. Development use

You can use any JBoss EAP binary version for development purposes without a paid subscription. You won't get patches or support that way, and you can't run it in production. From "Downloads for Development Use":

To download JBoss EAP you must have an account. You also need to accept the terms and conditions of the JBoss Developer Program which provides $0 subscriptions for development use only.

2. EAP 6.x alpha versions

All alpha versions, such as JBoss EAP 6.1 Alpha, are free to use in any way or form, also in production. From this message:

The 6.1 Alpha binary is made available for free (both for development and production use) to the entire community.

And this thread:

This development restriction, however, does not apply to EAP alpha releases. EAP alpha releases may be ran in production if you so desire. As to their quality, 6.1.0.Alpha is of equivalent quality to a community final release. However, the Alpha is where the extensive testing and hardening begins, so we recommend GA or later for production if you are interested in using EAP.

This is also confirmed by entry in JBoss FAQ, saying

Q: If EAP 6.1.0.Alpha is the same as community 7.2.0.Final, why is it called Alpha? A: EAP has a much more conservative and rigid release hardening process, including extensive quality testing and partner certification. Historically every EAP release starts from our most recent community final, and then releases in stages as this hardening work is performed. The first EAP stage Alpha is of equivalent, or better, quality to a community Final release.

Q. Are there any restrictions on how I can use EAP 6.1.0 Alpha? A. No – it has the same license and terms as AS releases however as it's an Alpha release we don't recommend using it in production.

And these two redhat knowledgebase articles confirming that EAP 6.3.Alpha is also available for all to run in production (only visible for paid subscribers):

• "Red Hat JBoss EAP 6.3 Alpha Availability"
• "Using JBoss EAP alpha version in production without support subscription"

Edit: and now John Doyle, Senior Manager responsible for Red Hat JBoss EAP 6, confirmed that

The earlier statements about EAP 6.1 Alpha apply to all EAP 6 Alpha releases. They can be run in production.

3. Self-compiled versions

EAPs are also available as source distributions, and if you compile them yourself, removing any Red Hat trademarks, it should be legal to run them in production. Of course, you are completely on your own on supporting them. To make compiling easier, there is a script on this github account, and using that script building your own EAP is as easy as

git clone git://github.com/hasalex/eap-build.git cd eap-build ./build-eap.sh 

See the project readme for details. There's also extended discussion on one of its issues about the legal status of the build, which refers to statement by Jason Greene, WildFly project lead, saying one of the ways to legally use the product is

3. Self build and support EAP - You get some of the benefits of the enterprise releases (e.g. patches to older major versions and so on), but you have to invest time and energy to build and maintain/verify your app server distribution bits.

Answer 2

I think the answer is: sort of. You can obtain the binary version of the latest JBoss EAP 6.1.0.Alpha if you agree to a $0 developer license and agree to use it only for development purposes. You do not get patches or support, however.

Also, it's open sourced under the LGPL in which case you don't have to agree to anything beyond the LGPL. But then the trick is getting the source. And you won't be getting the patched source. An important consideration here is that the binary package is configured carefully (e.g. with respect to security defaults) whereas you're on your own if you compile it from available source.

Bottom line: buy a license if you are using it for any important commercial purpose so as not to be at some arbitrary fixed point in the source's evolution.