PHP Module requires an extra license for production?

[Former Member]

Following the installation instructions for a Linux based server that must use the PHP module for SQLAnyWhere I found a production licensing issue... the real DB server that uses SQLAnyWhere is in other server (enterprise private host)... but we are building a web application that must access that server using the PHP module... I know that SyBase allow a free usage of ODBC but in must Linux servers ODBC is not an option so PHP Module (due it is a PHP based web application) is the "right" choice... the problem is that the PHP module ask for the core library distributed with the server... now the questions are:

Will the free developer distribution be suitable to be used in a production server just to allow the PHP module uses its labrary?

Why the PHP Module distribution doesn't provide the required libraries so it can work as stand alone like ODBC?

Please help me with this questions as soon as possible... it is not logic to pay two license when only one server is really used.

[MarkCulp]

See Eric's and Phil's answers for your answer, but neither of them mentioned that the free Developer Edition is meant for development and its license does not allow you to use it in production. Since you appear to be developing a web application (using PHP), the free Web Edition may be suitable - its license does allow you to use it in production but it has some restrictions: all end-user interaction with the application (and database), either direct or indirect, must be from a browser.

[Former Member]

The exact details of how to do this depends on which version of the software you are using, and which license method (per user vs per CPU), but you are allowed to do this in all cases. This is specifically allowed in the SQL Anywhere Product License Agreement.

Taken from the SQL Anywhere 11 Product License Agreement:

Per User: "Per-seat editions authorize you to install and Use SQL Anywhere Client Software, on up to the number of Seats licensed, to access the SQL Anywhere Server components"

Per CPU "A CPU License permits you to access the SQL Anywhere server components from an unlimited number of Seats, and may include internal Users within the Customer’s organization, and external Users outside of the Customers organization accessing the Program via the Internet...You may also install the SQL Anywhere Client Software on these networked Seats"

If it is prior to version 12, you can take the original SQL Anywhere installer to the machine that will be running PHP, and install only the client libraries. Starting with version 12 we created a client-only installer that contains only the client components. You can download the client installer for version 12 at http://www.sybase.com/detail?id=1087327

[Former Member]

Eric answered your question about licensing (i.e. it is okay). As to your second question, the reason the client libraries are not shipped with the PHP driver is really about maintenance as well as licensing.

For licensing, our PHP driver is released under the Apache License, Version 2 while our client libraries are released under our own license. Our own license has restrictions wrt distribution (i.e. you need to agree to the license before you can distribute the file), whereas the Apache License has more of an implicit agreement. So installing the various files have different requirements. We could just make you agree to our license to install the PHP module (in a way we do because we distribute the PHP module with the SQL Anywhere installation), but we've chosen not to do that for the stand-alone downloads because we want to minimize duplication of our files around your file system for space as well as maintenance reasons.

For maintenance, we frequently release updates to the SQL Anywhere client library with bug fixes and new features. Our PHP module is much less active. We encourage you to use a client library that is at least as new as the newest server to which you are connecting. However, we don't want you to have to reconfigure PHP every time we update the client libraries. In situations where the database server and the web server are on the same machine (which is quite common), it is sufficient to just update your SQL Anywhere installation once. Your situation requires you to update 2 installations, but that's certainly no more work than updating a SQL Anywhere installation and a PHP installation.

[Former Member]

Another (original) goal of the division was to be able to distribute the PHP module with PHP. The folks at PHP are evidently not interested, though.

[Former Member]

Hi

Thanks for your answers, all good... just a brief note to resume the licensing topic...

If a CPU license is used in my client's server, then I can just install the client's libraries freely and use it's licensed server without worry about licensing.

If per user... then the web app is counted as a user or each web users?

PD: Mark Culp, could you set the link to the "free Web Edition" you did mention in your post.

[VolkerBarth]

Here you are: SQL Anywhere Web Edition Download