Directus: The Database-First Backend — and the License You Must Read Before You Commit
Directus is a 37k-star platform that wraps any SQL database in instant REST and GraphQL APIs, a no-code Studio, and field-level RBAC. A 5,000-word teardown of the database-first model, its Flows and MCP server, the hard cost of its 2026 license change to the source-available MSCL 1.0 (free under $5M revenue, commercial beyond), and exactly where your data lives.