geek Sharing bits and pieces of technology and life.
Tag

# database

6 posts
MongoDB: The Database That Invented the SSPL and Pushed the World to FerretDB — A Deep Dive Into the License That Started the Wave
Open Source

MongoDB: The Database That Invented the SSPL and Pushed the World to FerretDB — A Deep Dive Into the License That Started the Wave

MongoDB switched from AGPL to the Server Side Public License in 2018, and in doing so launched the modern open-source license controversy. It never got a code fork — instead it got FerretDB, an Apache-licensed layer that speaks the MongoDB wire protocol on top of PostgreSQL. This deep dive covers the SSPL, why it is not open source, what Debian and the CNCF did about it, how FerretDB works, real costs, where your documents actually live, and an honest verdict.
2026-10-06 175 views
CockroachDB: The Distributed SQL Database That Went BSL and Then Private — The License Wave's Darkest Ending
Open Source

CockroachDB: The Distributed SQL Database That Went BSL and Then Private — The License Wave's Darkest Ending

CockroachDB began as an open-source distributed SQL database, moved to the Business Source License in 2019, and then in 2024 took the step no other major project in this wave took: it stopped publishing new source code at all. This deep dive covers the BSL, the Cockroach Community License, the move to private source, why no community fork gained traction, real costs, where your data actually lives, and an honest verdict for a sovereignty-minded operator.
2026-10-06 171 views
Redis: The 67k-Star Cache That Changed Its License and Split in Two — A Deep Dive Into the Valkey Fork
Open Source

Redis: The 67k-Star Cache That Changed Its License and Split in Two — A Deep Dive Into the Valkey Fork

Redis powered half the internet's caches under a permissive BSD license for fifteen years. Then in March 2024 it went source-available, and within a week the Linux Foundation forked it into Valkey. This deep dive covers the relicensing, the fork, the wire-compatible migration, the Redis 8 AGPL olive branch, real self-hosting costs, and where your data actually lives.
2026-10-03 58 views