Search for an answer, and you can find plenty of folks who say “yes” to both.
At Percona, our answer is “no” to the MongoDB question — and “no” to the flat-Earth question. We’re equally convinced on both counts, but in this blog article, we’re focusing on why MongoDB is not open source. Let’s start with this:
MongoDB is accurately referred to as source-available software. Whereas many open source software offerings — like the community version of MySQL — use the GNU General Public License (GPL), MongoDB has been under the GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL) and more recently under the Server Side Public License (SSPL), introduced by MongoDB itself. Many open source proponents, including the Open Source Initiative (OSI), do not consider software under the SSPL to be open source.
To be clear, we are rock-solid in our stance that MongoDB is not open source. We agree with the OSI’s determination that any software under the SSPL cannot be open source. Further, it is our opinion that the SSPL has had a detrimental effect on the spirit of open source involvement. This blog article traces key developments that coincided with MongoDB’s move away from open source software, and it examines how SSPL influence might have lured others in the same direction.
Early years: Fueled by innovation and community-mindedness
Initially, the lines weren’t so blurred, and certainly, they weren’t muddied. MongoDB started out in 2007 as 10gen, a New York-based company looking to create a Platform as a Service (PaaS) solution. The founders were all-in about doing something different, about creating something better equipped to handle the rapidly evolving and escalating demands (in volume) of the online business world. They came up with a horizontally scalable NoSQL database. Instead of relational (SQL) databases defined primarily through a hierarchy of related sets via tables and columns, their non-relational structure used a system of collections and documents. It was welcomed by many, especially developers, whose language tends to be of objects and structures, not of rows and columns.
Co-founder Eliot Horowitz recounts ({coding}bootcamps.io): “MongoDB was born out of our frustration using tabular databases in large, complex production deployments. We set out to build a database that we would want to use, so that whenever developers wanted to build an application, they could focus on the application, not on working around the database.”
In those early years, the company reflected not only an innovative spirit but also a spirit of community-mindedness. In 2010, having seemingly gone all-in with the tenets of open source development, the company brought MongoDB to the market as an open source database server.
Here are other key developments in company history:
- 2013: 10gen changes its name to MongoDB, Inc. Around that time, the company introduces subscriptions and other offerings, including MongoDB Management Service (MMS).
- 2016: The company adds service-loaded MongoDB Professional to its mix. The company also releases MongoDB Atlas, promoting it as the most cost-effective way to run MongoDB in the Cloud. (Some might say this marked the beginning of MongoDB’s “cloud push” escalation.)
- 2017: MongoDB goes public, trading as MDB. (Since then, the stock price has increased more than 600%. Though still not “profitable” by many benchmarks, it’s a lot closer to being so, perhaps in a big way.)
- 2018: MongoDB announces that it is moving from GNU AGPLv3 licensing to the Service Side Public License (SSPL).
From reciprocal (AGPL) to anaconda-like licensing (SSPL)
MongoDB contended at the time that the SSPL was necessary because big companies were taking advantage of the AGPL license.
The SSPL requires a company that offers MongoDB as a service to publicly release code for all the software used to deliver that service (or have a license from MongoDB). Under the SSPL, a company can take MongoDB’s code and deploy it, but that company cannot offer it as a service.
But many observers with a stake in the game didn’t see it as MongoDB fending off the big players who were unfairly cashing in; they saw it as MongoDB Inc. looking out for MongoDB Inc. (and partners) and in the process, stifling the upstarts, the truly open source little folks dreaming big. The SSPL required anyone using MongoDB to not only make their modifications open source, but to make their entire service (tech stack) open source.
This part of the actual SSPL language speaks volumes:
If you make the functionality of the Program or a modified version available to third parties as a service, you must make the Service Source Code available via network download to everyone at no charge, under the terms of this License. Making the functionality of the Program or modified version available to third parties as a service includes, without limitation, enabling third parties to interact with the functionality of the Program or modified version remotely through a computer network, offering a service the value of which entirely or primarily derives from the value of the Program or modified version, or offering a service that accomplishes for users the primary purpose of the Program or modified version.
Notably, the Open Source Initiative (OSI) would not sign off on MongoDB’s SSPL, so MongoDB withdrew its application for approval.
Since then, the OSI has remained steadfast, repeating its declaration: The SSPL is Not an Open Source License. This definitive statement from the OSI Board of Directors (January 19, 2021, press release) follows that definitive headline:
We’ve seen that several companies have abandoned their original dedication to the open source community by switching their core products from an open source license, one approved by the Open Source Initiative, to a “fauxpen” source license. The hallmark of a fauxpen source license is that those who made the switch claim that their product continues to remain “open” under the new license, but the new license actually has taken away user rights.
At key crossroads, it was big business over community
Since licensing IS the determinant, the case against MongoDB being open source — in fact and in spirit — is a strong one. Consider the company’s decisions at licensing crossroads.
First, MongoDB added sharing requirements by going with the AGPL license over the GPL license.
That early decision was notable because whereas the GPL is applied if derivative work is distributed, the AGPL license applies both for distributed work and whenever end users interact with a program over a network.
Then came the coup de grace — the aforementioned stack-invasive SSPL. The effects have hit cloud vendors who can’t possibly compete with MongoDB. So if they can’t beat ‘em in the DBaaS space, they often feel like they have to join ‘em — to the tune of total stack sharing or some proprietary arrangement. In the end, just about all MongoDB users face or have to fend off vendor lock-in of some kind. That includes escalating prices in terms of lost intellectual property and pay-for-play software. The SSPL licensing twists/squeeze make “open source” that tenuous claim and perhaps a misnomer, as some claim.
There are plenty of indications, too, that MongoDB’s SSPL path not only runs contrary to the tenets of open source but also has affected the spirit of open source, maybe helping create a domino effect. For instance, Elastic announced the following (Elastic blog, Doubling down on open, Part II, January 2021):
“We are moving our Apache 2.0-licensed source code in Elasticsearch and Kibana to be dual licensed under the Elastic License and Server Side Public License (SSPL), giving users the choice of which license to apply. … This license change ensures our community and customers have free and open access to use, modify, redistribute, and collaborate on the code. It also protects our continued investment in developing products that we distribute for free and in the open by restricting cloud service providers from offering Elasticsearch and Kibana as a service without contributing back.”
Others — including CockroachDB, TimescaleDB, Redis, and Confluent — followed suit to some extent by changing licenses for key parts of their platforms from open source to source-available. It cannot be conclusively said that MongoDB provided the inspiration, but MongoDB’s path seems to have emboldened others.
Now, back to MongoDB itself. Maybe it’s not profitable yet, but it’s getting there, and it’s focused on business. Here’s an excerpt (The Motley Fool) from CEO Dev Ittycheria’s comments at a Q1 fiscal year 2023 earnings call:
“We generated revenue of $285 million or 57% year-over-year increase and above the high end of our guidance. Atlas revenue grew 82% year-over-year, representing 60% of revenue. And we had another strong quarter of customer growth, ending the quarter with over 35,200 customers. We are really pleased with our Q1 performance and see it as continued validation of the massive market we are pursuing, our strong product market fit, and our ability to execute.”
Nothing nefarious there. Just a positive outlook for investors. Transcripts show that the call is MongoDB Inc.-minded throughout, as you’d expect. But not exactly community-minded.
At your crossroads, consider Percona software for MongoDB
For those who can’t go it alone and also can’t afford the restrictions and high costs of vendor lock-in, there’s Percona software for MongoDB.
Built on MongoDB Community Edition, the software includes freely available enterprise-grade encryption, security, usability, backup, and scale features. With Percona, you can also have on-demand or round-the-clock expert support and services for MongoDB regardless of whether your infrastructure is on-premises, in the cloud, or in a DBaaS, bare metal, virtualized, or containerized environment.
Learn more about Percona Distribution for MongoDB
Watch Webinar: Maximize the Benefits of Using MongoDB with Percona Distribution for MongoDB
FAQ
The following are commonly asked questions and short answers about MongoDB. More detailed answers are presented in the article above.
Is MongoDB free to use?
The Community version of MongoDB is free to download. Usage, including requirements about sharing of code, is covered by the Server Side Public License (SSPL).
Is MongoDB open source or paid?
MongoDB is commonly referred to as source-available software. While the Community version is free to download, the SSPL requires a company that offers MongoDB as a service to publicly release code for all the software used to deliver that service (or have a proprietary arrangement with MongoDB).
Is MongoDB free for commercial use?
MongoDB Enterprise editions and MongoDB Atlas — which integrates with Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and the Google Cloud Platform (GCP) — are not free.
Is MongoDB an open source NoSQL database?
MongoDB is a non-relational (NoSQL), document-based database program that is commonly referred to as source-available. The Open Source Initiative (OSI) has consistently maintained that any software licensed under the SSPL is not open source.
