[RESOLVED] Free version? Paid version?

[megs]

Hello,

we are currently using WAPT version 1.3.12.13, with the server hosted on a Windows Server 2012 Standard.
We plan to migrate to the Debian version.
What is the maximum version we can use for the new service while still keeping it free?

Some people have told me that beyond a certain version, the application becomes paid.
Can you tell me more about this?

[cfargues]

Good morning,

We are using WAPT version 1.3.12.13, whose server is hosted on a Win2012 server standard

That's a good thing, you'll find several improvements in the current version, a lot has changed since 1.3.12.13.

We plan to migrate to the Debian version.

Migrating to the current version is a bit more complicated than regular updates because it's a major update. You can perform the update yourself using to the update documentation If you wish, we can also offer you a migration service for €600 excluding VAT, which we consider a reasonable price and which also allows you to make a small contribution to WAPT's funding. Please contact us by phone at +33 2 40 97 57 55 for more information.

What is the maximum version we can use for the new service, while still keeping it free?

You can install the latest version of WAPT Community. We continue to maintain WAPT Community, which remains open source. It's free; we simply seek various funding sources to keep it running. That's why we can support you in using it by providing assistance and training.

Some people have told me that the application becomes paid after a certain version is released?
Can you tell me more about this?

This is the first time we've heard such a claim, and I can confirm that WAPT Community is free regardless of the version numberWAPT Community and WAPT Enterprise are clearly two distinct versions, corresponding to two different types of needs. If the Community version is sufficient for your use, we are delighted, as our initial promise was to make WAPT Community a simple and effective tool for basic application management. If your needs increase, I encourage you to Discover the Enterprise version on our website.
Furthermore, to prevent this idea from spreading, you can share this response with the people you mentioned, who I'm sure will be reassured to see that they can still use WAPT Community with complete peace of mind .

Hoping this answers your questions,
Good day,
Camille

[megs]

Thank you for your reply, and a big thank you to everyone involved in the project for their fantastic work.

Are there any limitations between the community version 1.3.x and the community version 1.6 that would make me regret upgrading? I can't risk deploying a formula that would, for example, be limited by the number of workstations or the number of updates per day... would I at least be able to achieve the same functionality as my current version?

[vcardon]

Thank you for your reply, and for the great work of all the project participants.

Are there any limitations between community version 1.3.x and community version 1.6 that would make me regret having updated? I can't risk deploying a formula that would, for example, be limited by the number of workstations or the number of updates per day... would I at least be able to achieve the same functionality as my current version?

The Community version respects the original promise that the WAPT developers made to the free software community in return for everything they took from it.

The original promise is and remains to provide system administrators with a free tool to help them deploy, update and remove software and configurations on a Windows environment.

Version 1.6 Community honors this original promise, so you shouldn't be afraid to upgrade.

Everything beyond the original promise is in the proprietary, paid Enterprise version. Current features that go beyond the Community version include: auditing, WSUS, separation of roles, AD integration, traceability, and reporting. Other desirable features are in development.

Finally, I'd like to remind everyone that the word "free" should be banned from this forum; use "open source" instead. Free access is an unintended consequence of the freedoms the GPL grants to end users and is undoubtedly the main reason for the failure of the open source movement today.

Sincerely.

Vincent

[megs]

Thank you for this important information.

Free access is an unintended consequence of the freedoms that the GPL grants to end users and is probably today the main cause of the failure of the free movement.

I'm not going to argue about the free and unintentional aspect, which apparently stings for-profit projects. Personally, I disagree with the "cause of the failure of the free movement" aspect. Among the proven causes are:

1 - The decline in the level of access to information, preventing the greatest number of people from flourishing and participating in the development of a common project (a result caused by the ideology that drives the current economic world). The free aspect Therefore, it is clearly not unintentional....

2- A free software mentality perverted by societal needs and capitalized to the extreme (everyone needs to eat and no one is to blame for that, and creating and maintaining software is very expensive (in terms of time and organization). Fortunately, the GLP is there to limit the damage... and allows communities to protect themselves against profiteers (who patiently wait for the community to work for them before making the product paid), and to leverage the source code to extend the free and community-driven nature of a project. Free access ensures that even the most disadvantaged can contribute. And often, these contributions, sometimes driven by a passion for this ideology of participatory exchange, make all the difference.

3- Making a product resulting from community work into a paid product inevitably generates feelings of betrayal and certainly a gloomy distancing from "free" practices. (Creating dependency and then, bam... charging...it's becoming increasingly common)

3- Loss of public confidence due to various media outlets that exacerbate the situation through ignorance, laziness, and likely bias... Yet, if we consider the most common bone today, we can only lament the number of problems it generates daily and the time spent solving them...

4- Mentalities are changing, becoming biased in the face of the reality of dependence on capital, and the increasingly oppressive economic reality that pushes everyone to devour each other before they devour us. Even within a small community, and this worsens over time.

These are, for me, the reasons for the "failure" of freeIt is a democratic ideology evolving within a system that is not democratic.

In my opinion, it's not a failure. Free software forces the capitalist faction to outperform it in order to survive... this is a major benefit... and it's for this reason that the capitalist side sometimes borrows heavily from community work and, above all, hopes to stifle it to reduce its research and development costs. This way, they can make us believe that a GUI change is a major OS change to make us pay for the update license.

Fortunately, there are still dedicated individuals like you and the Debian community who allow us to continue to obtain excellent community products. And an even better enterprise version.

Continue.
As a new WAPT user, I am still learning Python and am certain that I will be able to participate at least in the generation of packages in a little while.

With all my thanks and encouragement.

[cfargues]

Hello,
For everyone's benefit, as Vincent mentioned, we are not removing any features from the Community version. Therefore, you won't have any unpleasant surprises when upgrading. Our primary focus is, and always has been, to help system and network administrators manage their application portfolio.
Thank you for sharing your analysis, and especially thank you for your encouragement.
Good luck with your Python learning; I'm sure we'll see your WAPT packages arrive very soon!

Have a good day,