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Comment by dmtroyer | Hacker News Reader

bitwarden_rs is especially good if you're looking to self host. https://github.com/dani-garcia/bitwarden_rs

I saw something on the Bitwarden site about needing a paid license if you wanted to self host and use sharing features and got confused as to how “free” it is. Do you know more about this?

So you can self host for free. Most of the older premium features are included in the open source server - it does have a license check, which loads a license file you're provide by Bitwarden if you purchase one. These older premium features and the license check are themselves AGPL licensed last time I looked. Alternatively, you can use bitwarden_rs, a re-implementation of the server under GPLv3. Many of the premium features (such as yubikey support) are implemented in bitwarden_rs out of the box so you don't need a license for those.

Some of the newer premium features, such as SSO integration are under the Bitwarden license, which is more of a visible source license.

Thank you for taking the time to provide more clarity on this. I’ll take a look at bitwarden_rs.

Im really curious as to why you wont want to pay for a license for bit warden its very cheap and adds a lot of value. Any way you can self-host on free tier https://bitwarden.com/pricing/

My point and question was not about me not wanting to pay. It was about what's meant by "free" and "open source" if you have to pay to use it on your own running costs if you want certain features (the sharing feature is one example I mentioned).

If you read through the link you posted and also the FAQ, you'd see that you can only self host the free tier features for free. If you wish to have some premium features or a family sharing feature and want to self host, you still have to pay. My question was about what the OP was using/hosting and the licensing model.

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