perpetual licensing

[BrutalBirdie]

@ccfu said in perpetual licensing:

But out of interest: How much would you be willing to pay for a perpetual license? And how much for an (optional) support contract?

I co-sign this question

[adisonverlice2]

first off, cloudron should do this because some people may not want to, or have the budget to pay monthly/yearly.
also, keeping in mind you're already paying for internet, possibly the cloud server you're using, and other factors.
second, I think cloudron accounts should be optional. also, not necessarily. cloudrons backup system can work so that the server/hardware is limited. alternatively, that server should only have to connect to an account once and be done with.
th8ird, i'd support paying around $500/or more. cloudron is pretty good, so I don't mind paying for things that run the way I want them to.

[WiseMetalhead]

IMHO, the current active licensing model fits Cloudron better. A smaller plan with five or ten apps would be great for enthusiasts like me while a one-time purchase would just open the door for some businesses to pay once instead of subscribing — and then forget about the product entirely. If anything happens to their Cloudrons, they can just browse the forum for free help.

And I’m saying this knowing that, where I live, one year of subscription costs around one third of an average monthly salary

[adisonverlice2]

@WiseMetalhead then let's leave the door to both opened. because for some, one-time purchase is better.
we can leave the door for yearly purchases opened, while also having this feature for prepetual licensing

[timconsidine]

One-time purchase is a really bad idea and makes no sense at all .... unless the one-time purchase gets you a one-time version, e.g. version 8.5.0 and you then stick with that, no upgrades (ok, well maybe one year).

There are some precedents in financial markets, taking into account present and future value of money, for a fat payment to be made up-front for continuing lifetime service.

But generally it's a silly idea to expect to get lifetime continuing service (current version, plus free future versions) for a single fee, unless the multiple is significant, 10x or 20x.

I think the Cloudron team have got enough to do without being distracted by this kind of suggestion.

[adisonverlice2]

@timconsidine in that case, how is negate able to do this?
keep in mind, they cell physical appliances with PFSense plus built right into the thing .you just login to your account, and boom. yo have lifetime updates for as long as the device is active.
you get updates, and commercial software for the price of 1 appliance.
same goes with unifi dream machine pro, you get the product, it works.
for both, it seams the only subscription comes from cloud based solutions, which you can do on your own anyway.
for example, if you wanna run netgate on your own hardware (I know that's not cloud) and/or you would like to use a cloud service, you have to pay up whatever that cost is.
and cloud identity management? yeah, I don'tk now if I need that, I can do that on my own.
cloudron could make optional subscription based moddles. for example, cloud, and/or other functions that require more effect on cloudrons part. the core functionality shouldn't have to be a manual thing, just a one-time purchase.
for example, you could provide a support contract which allows for commercial support (a direct call) that is as close to immediate as it can get. we can leave forum and email alone, it's fine as it is.
if netgate and ubiquiti is not having a problem doing this, I don't think cloudron will either.

[timconsidine]

@adisonverlice2 maybe you should address your questions to netgate

[adisonverlice2]

@timconsidine point being, if there are companies out there that are doing this exact thing, offering the core functionality (which in cloudrons case, would be downloading applications, allowing for openid, LDAP, user management, easy updates, etc) then I don't see why cloudron wouldn't be able to do that without perpetual licensing.
IMO subscription should only come from cloud installations where work has to be done on cloudrons part.
because of course, the cloud providers are getting money a month to run cloudron instances, so I can understand cloudron wanting a piece of that pi.
but if i'm hosting on prem, I shouldn't have to pay a hundred dollars a year just to install a few applications.
keep in mind, that person is already paying for internet, electricity, and a few other things around these parts.
they don't (or sometimes, can't) pay for another subscription on top of other payments.
gotta keep the lights going somehow...

[msbt]

@adisonverlice2 Cloudron is much more than just a convenient way to install apps - plenty of other platforms can do that. The real value is in the automation, maintenance, and reliability it provides over time.

Ultimately, it’s a simple calculation: if the time and effort you’d spend managing updates and maintenance yourself (or with other tools) is worth less than the Cloudron license, then it’s probably not the right fit for you.

[ccfu]

Comparing Cloudron with Netgate is hardly comparing like with like. The hardware appliance almost certainly has a huge markup and the software is forked from a free open source product. That is not a criticism, but essentially they have just one software product to keep updated, whereas Cloudron has many, and Cloudron is a dynamic platform not just a box hosting one app.

I understand the desire to save money but then maybe another solution would be a better choice.