Switch to a permissive MIT-based license

LICENSE.md

@@ -1,106 +1,36 @@
-Business Source License 1.1
+MIT License (with Attribution Requirement)
 
-Licensor: Xenne
+Copyright (c) 2026 Xenne
 
-Licensed Work: RustRconServerManager, meaning the source code authored by the Licensor and
-contained in this repository, excluding any third-party libraries, dependencies (including but
-not limited to packages under `node_modules/`, NuGet package caches, or vendored code), generated
-build artifacts, and any other files explicitly identified as being licensed separately from this
-License.
+Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this
+software and associated documentation files (the "Licensed Work"), to deal in the
+Licensed Work without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy,
+modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, host, and/or sell copies of the Licensed
+Work, and to permit persons to whom the Licensed Work is furnished to do so, subject to
+the following conditions:
 
-Additional Use Grant: You may use, copy, modify, self-host, and operate the Licensed Work - including
-on behalf of Rust game servers you do not personally own, such as for a community, clan, or hosting
-customer whose servers you administer directly - free of charge, including commercially, as long as
-those customers or end users interact with your own management of their Rust servers rather than
-operating the Licensed Work themselves as a product. For example: using the Licensed Work internally
-to run "managed Rust server hosting" for paying customers is allowed; repackaging or rebranding the
-Licensed Work itself and letting those customers log into their own instance of it is not.
+1. The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies
+   or substantial portions of the Licensed Work.
 
-What is not permitted without a commercial license from the Licensor is offering the Licensed Work
-itself (whether unmodified, modified, or repackaged/rebranded) as a hosted or managed product,
-platform, or service that third parties sign up for and operate themselves, in competition with the
-Licensor's own offerings. If you want to offer the Licensed Work as such a service, or are unsure
-whether your intended use qualifies, contact the Licensor to discuss a commercial license.
+2. Any use, deployment, or distribution of the Licensed Work or a modified version of it
+   must retain visible attribution to the original project, including a link back to the
+   original repository (https://github.com/Xenne93/RustRconServerManager), in any
+   user-facing interface (e.g. the panel's UI footer, About page, or setup wizard) and in
+   any accompanying documentation.
 
-Regardless of the above, any use, deployment, or distribution of the Licensed Work or a
-modified version of it must retain visible attribution to the original project, including a
-link back to the original repository, in any user-facing interface (e.g. the panel's UI footer,
-About page, or setup wizard) and in any accompanying documentation.
-
-Change Date: 2030-08-10
-Change License: Apache License, Version 2.0
-
-For information about alternative licensing arrangements for the Licensed Work,
-please contact the Licensor.
-
----
-
-Notice
-
-The Business Source License (this document, or the "License") is not an Open Source license.
-However, the Licensed Work will eventually be made available under an Open Source License, as
-stated in this License.
-
-License text copyright (c) 2017 MariaDB Corporation Ab, All Rights Reserved.
-"Business Source License" is a trademark of MariaDB Corporation Ab.
-
----
-
-Terms
-
-The Licensor hereby grants you the right to copy, modify, create derivative works, redistribute,
-and make non-production use of the Licensed Work. The Licensor may make an Additional Use Grant,
-above, permitting limited production use.
-
-Effective on the Change Date stated above, the Licensor hereby grants you rights under the terms
-of the Change License, and the rights granted in the paragraph above terminate.
-
-The Licensor may adjust the Change Date stated above at its sole discretion - postponing or
-bringing it forward - by publishing a revised version of this License. Any such adjustment takes
-effect from the date the revised License is published; it does not revoke or reduce rights
-already vested for a version of the Licensed Work that converted to the Change License before the
-revision was published.
-
-If your use of the Licensed Work does not comply with the requirements currently in effect as
-described in this License, you must purchase a commercial license from the Licensor, its
-affiliated entities, or authorized resellers, or you must refrain from using the Licensed Work.
-
-All copies of the original and modified Licensed Work, and derivative works of the Licensed
-Work, are subject to this License. This License applies to the Licensed Work as a whole,
-including all versions released by the Licensor, unless the Licensor publishes a version of the
-Licensed Work under a different Change Date or license.
-
-You must conspicuously display this License on each original or modified copy of the Licensed
-Work. If you receive the Licensed Work in original or modified form from a third party, the
-terms and conditions set forth in this License apply to your use of that work.
-
-Any use of the Licensed Work in violation of this License will automatically terminate your
-rights under this License for the current and all other versions of the Licensed Work.
-
-This License does not grant you any right in any trademark or logo of the Licensor or its
-affiliates (provided that you may use a trademark or logo of the Licensor as expressly required
-by this License).
-
-TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE LICENSED WORK IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS,
-WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
-LIMITATION, ANY WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS
-FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT WILL THE LICENSOR BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY
-KIND ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE LICENSED WORK, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
-LIMITATION, DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, EVEN IF
-THE LICENSOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
-
-MariaDB hereby grants you permission to use this License's text to license your works, and to
-refer to it using the trademark "Business Source License", as long as you comply with the
-Covenant included in this License, above.
+THE LICENSED WORK IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,
+INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE
+FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR
+OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE LICENSED WORK OR THE USE OR
+OTHER DEALINGS IN THE LICENSED WORK.
 
 ---
 
-Note: this License is adapted from the Business Source License 1.1 template. It is a
-source-available license, not a standard OSI-approved open source license - it restricts using
-the Licensed Work as a competing hosted service unless you have a commercial agreement with the
-Licensor, and it requires attribution back to the original project. Unlike the original BSL 1.1
-template, the Change Date above does not automatically shift earlier based on when any particular
-version was first published - it only changes if the Licensor explicitly publishes a revised
-License with a new date. This document is a starting point, not vetted legal text - have it
-reviewed by a lawyer before relying on it commercially, and fill in "Xenne" above with your actual
-legal name or entity if different.
+Note: this is a modified MIT License - it grants the same broad, permissive rights as
+standard MIT (including commercial use, hosting, and resale, with no restriction on
+competing with the original author), but adds condition 2 above, requiring visible
+attribution back to this project in any deployment, not just in copies of the source
+code. This document is a starting point, not vetted legal text - have it reviewed by a
+lawyer before relying on it commercially, and fill in "Xenne" above with your actual legal
+name or entity if different.

README.md

@@ -160,8 +160,7 @@ features and releases coming.
 
 ## License
 
-This project is source-available under the [Business Source License 1.1](LICENSE.md) - not
-an OSI-approved open source license. It's free to self-host and use, including
-commercially, but you may not offer it as a competing hosted/managed service without a
-separate commercial agreement, and any deployment must keep visible attribution back to
-this project. It converts to Apache 2.0 on the date specified in `LICENSE.md`.
+This project is licensed under a [modified MIT License](LICENSE.md). Anyone may use, modify,
+self-host, and even resell or offer it as a hosted service, free of charge - the only added
+condition is that any deployment must keep visible attribution and a link back to this
+project in the UI and documentation.