Confluent Platform subscription licensing covers how Confluent licenses its self-managed distribution. Confluent defines Confluent Platform as Confluent Software together with Apache Kafka and Apache Flink.[1] The Confluent Platform Agreement grants a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence for the subscription term in the Order. The licence lets the customer install and use the Confluent Software solely for its internal business operations.[2] Subscription fees are based on units of measure set out in the Confluent Platform Subscription Definitions and Rules. These are Nodes, Flink Nodes and, for Confluent Private Cloud, CPC Nodes.[1] Commercial components need an enterprise licence key, which expires with the subscription.[3]
Editions
| Package | Licensed software | Unit | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confluent Platform subscription | Commercial features (Confluent Server, Control Center, Operator, Replicator, MQTT Proxy, Secret Protection, RBAC, audit logs, Schema Validation, Multi-Region Clusters, Tiered Storage, Self-Balancing Clusters, Cluster Linking) plus community features; connectors, Health+, CSFLE and Flink if ordered | Node; Flink Node | [1] |
| Confluent Private Cloud | Confluent Platform plus Private Cloud Gateway, Intelligent Replication and CSFLE | CPC Node | [1] |
| Confluent Basics | Reduced list: includes Confluent Server, RBAC and Self-Balancing Clusters but not Structured Audit Logs, Schema Validation, Multi-Region Clusters, Tiered Storage or Cluster Linking | Node | [5] |
| Customer-Managed Confluent Platform for Confluent Cloud | Connect workers, commercial connectors, Control Center, Operator, Replicator, community features; only with Confluent Cloud | Add-on Node packages | [6] |
Confluent Basics comes with reduced support: up to six support requests per month, and target first responses of 90 minutes for P1 and six hours for P2. As a condition of the Basics price, the customer must keep Health+ telemetry enabled.[5] Catalog: Confluent Basics caps support requests and requires Health+ telemetry.
Add-on products include Connector Packs, premium connectors, Health+, ksqlDB add-on Nodes, Client-Side Field Level Encryption (CSFLE), Unified Stream Manager and Support Services for Kafka Streams.[1]
Metrics
Node. A Node is “each software instance of a Confluent Platform component” running on a physical or virtual computing machine. The components that count are Confluent Server, Kafka brokers, ZooKeeper or quorum controllers, Kafka Connect workers, Replicator, MirrorMaker, Operator, Control Center, Schema Registry, ksqlDB, REST Proxy and MQTT Proxy. The KRaft SKU does not include controllers as a component. From Control Center 2.0.0, one Control Center Node covers one instance each of Control Center, Prometheus and Alertmanager.[1] An application that uses only the client API, such as a Kafka producer or consumer, is not a Node.[1] Catalog: Confluent Platform is counted per Node, excluding client-only applications.
Flink Node. A Flink Node is a group of up to 8 CPU cores allocated to Confluent Platform for Apache Flink. Flink Nodes are bought separately and cannot be swapped for Nodes without an Order.[1]
Confluent Private Cloud Node. A CPC Node is a software instance on a machine that stays within 56 cores, 24 drives, 50 TB of capacity and 256 GB of RAM. Gateway Nodes are excluded from the fee count.[1]
Connector Pack. A Connector Pack licenses and supports up to five commercial connectors. Premium connectors are licensed one by one as named in the Order.[1] Catalog: A Connector Pack covers up to five commercial connectors.
Counting / floors
Quantity limit. The customer may not use the subscription, including Support Services, beyond the quantity it bought.[1] No minimum quantity is published. Catalog: Confluent Platform use may not exceed the purchased quantity.
Environment classes. The Order classifies each Node, Flink Node, Connector Pack or premium connector into one of four classes:[1]
| Class | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Production | Any use not in the other classes. Includes instances in Hot Standby Mode, meaning active-active mirroring of production. Excludes instances that are installed but not running. |
| Pre-Production | QA, staging, end-user testing and other non-development pre-production use. |
| Development | Developers testing code, or a sandbox not used by production users. |
| Disaster Recovery | Any standby mode other than Hot Standby, for example active-passive. |
The practical effect is that an active-active second data centre needs Production Nodes, while an active-passive replica can be licensed as Disaster Recovery.[1] Catalog: Hot standby instances count as Production.
Whole-cluster rule. If the customer uses Support Services on any Confluent Platform component in a cluster, every component in that cluster counts as a Node and must be under subscription. Support fees for connected add-ons, including Kafka Streams, are also due.[1] A partially subscribed cluster is therefore out of compliance as soon as support is used on it. Catalog: Supporting one component pulls the whole cluster under subscription.
Kafka Streams. A customer may not use Kafka Streams with Confluent Platform unless it has paid for Support Services for Kafka Streams. If it uses Kafka Streams without that add-on, it owes the then-current list rate. The add-on is priced on total Nodes under subscription, excluding ksqlDB add-on Nodes. It covers an unlimited number of Kafka Streams applications connected to the supported cluster.[1] Catalog: Kafka Streams with Confluent Platform requires the Kafka Streams support add-on.
Fixed allocations. ksqlDB add-on Nodes may only run ksqlDB.[1] CSFLE fees are charged on every Node and Flink Node in each cluster where CSFLE is deployed.[1] Multi-Region Clusters and Tiered Storage may not be used with Confluent Platform Edge deployments. Edge support covers five named individuals unless Confluent approves more.[1] Catalog: ksqlDB add-on Nodes cannot be reallocated; CSFLE add-on fees count every Node in the cluster; Multi-Region Clusters and Tiered Storage are not licensed for Confluent Platform Edge.
Customer-managed packages. In Customer-Managed Confluent Platform for Confluent Cloud, Development Nodes do not count towards the add-on Node quantity. The packages may not support self-managed Kafka brokers.[6] Catalog: Customer-Managed Confluent Platform for Confluent Cloud cannot support self-managed brokers.
Virtualization & partitioning
Nodes are counted per software instance, so a virtual machine or Kubernetes pod running a component counts the same as a physical server.[1] Core counts matter only for Flink and Confluent Private Cloud. For Flink, a CPU Core is a Kubernetes cpu unit. One CPU equals 1 AWS vCPU, 1 GCP core, 1 Azure vCore, or 1 hyperthread on a bare-metal processor with hyperthreading enabled.[1] A machine larger than the CPC Node caps counts as more than one CPC Node. Catalog: Flink Nodes are sized in vCPUs or hyperthreads, up to 8 per Flink Node; A Confluent Private Cloud Node is capped by cores, drives, capacity and RAM. See processor and core licensing and virtualization and partitioning.
Licence keys
The commercial components each need a valid licence key to start. They then read the latest key from a shared licence topic on the Kafka cluster. By default this topic is _confluent-command; older deployments use _confluent-license.[3] An enterprise licence is a paid subscription that expires at the interval set by the contract, and the software ceases to function after it expires.[3]
| Component | Behaviour on restart after expiry |
|---|---|
| Control Center, MQTT Proxy, security plugins | Fail to start[3] |
| Replicator, connectors | Shut down or fail to start with an exception[3] |
| Confluent Server | Starts, but logs frequent errors until a new key is provided[3] |
| Confluent for Kubernetes | Needs no licence and is not affected[3] |
Since version 8.2, Confluent Private Cloud disables its enterprise-only capabilities at startup if no valid key is present. Confluent’s documentation therefore says to apply the key before upgrading from 8.1.[3] The Customer-Managed Confluent Platform for Confluent Cloud key works only with components connected to Confluent Cloud.[3] Catalog: Commercial components stop working when the enterprise licence key expires.
Programs
Developer License. Commercial features may be used free of charge for an indefinite duration, on one or more clusters with a single broker each. The licence is for evaluation in development and testing only, not production.[4] Adding a broker starts a 30-day trial licence, and the cluster cannot go back to the developer licence. Commercial connectors may be used without limit on single-broker clusters.[3] Catalog: Developer licence is limited to single-broker clusters.
Evaluation License. The Evaluation Term is 30 days from download unless Confluent sets another period in writing.[4] The trial licence allows commercial features to be tested in a production setting. When it expires, the software stops working.[3] Catalog: Evaluation licence lasts 30 days from download.
Support Services. Gold support targets a first response within 60 minutes for P1 and 4 hours for P2; Platinum targets 30 minutes and 2 hours.[7] Platinum adds a Customer Success Technical Architect. It also adds Extended Support: three years from general availability instead of two, limited to deployments that exist when the standard window ends.[7] End-of-support dates apply to a minor version and every maintenance version that follows it. Platinum is not offered for Confluent for Kubernetes.[8] Catalog: Platinum adds a third year of support per minor version. See software maintenance and support.
Partner License. Confluent partners may use the software free of charge. The use is limited to internal development, testing and training, and external demonstrations, and comes without support or warranty.[9] Catalog: Partner licences are for internal development, training and demonstrations only.
Contract terms
Use restrictions. Customers may not use the Confluent Software for third-party training, software-as-a-service, time-sharing or service bureau use. They also may not reverse engineer the parts not provided in source form, or try to access its source code.[2] Affiliates may use the software if combined use stays within the Order limits. Third-party service providers may run it to provide outsourced services to the customer.[2] The customer may make copies as reasonably needed, plus a reasonable number of backup copies.[2] Catalog: Confluent Software may not be used for SaaS, time-sharing or service bureau use; Affiliate and outsourcer use counts against the customer quantity.
Orders and payment. Orders are non-cancelable and non-refundable. If an invoice goes unpaid, Confluent may suspend the licence immediately on notice. Assignment needs consent, except to an affiliate or to a successor to the business.[2]
Versions of the terms. Each update to the Definitions and Rules applies only to Orders entered into after its Effective Date. Earlier versions in Confluent’s archive keep governing older Orders.[1] Catalog: Definitions and rules apply by Order date.
Audits and compliance
Section 1.5 of the Confluent Platform Agreement gives Confluent two tools. First, on written request, the customer must certify that it complies with all use limits. An officer of the customer must sign the certification. Second, Confluent may audit usage and compliance on prior notice, during normal business hours. If the customer certifies non-compliance, or the audit finds use above the limits, the customer must pay the amounts due immediately. Interest of 1.5% of the underpayment per month is added, or the highest rate permitted by law if that is more. If the underpayment exceeds 5% of the cumulative fees already paid, the customer also reimburses the reasonable cost of the audit.[2] Customers can turn telemetry off. Health+ and Confluent Basics are the exceptions, because their provision or pricing depends on telemetry.[1][5] An effective licence position should count Nodes by component and environment class for every cluster, add Flink cores and connector counts, and check that every cluster under support is fully subscribed. Catalog: Confluent Platform audit: officer certification, interest and cost shift above 5%. See software license audit and effective license position.
Out of scope
- Prices: Confluent Platform has no public price list.
- The Confluent Europe Limited and Malaysia versions of the subscription agreement, and negotiated agreements.
- Unified Stream Manager billing in detail; it uses a consumption commitment similar to Confluent Cloud.
- Community and Apache 2.0 components, covered in Confluent Community License and open-source components.