Redgate Flyway is Redgate Software’s database migration and change management tool. It versions database changes as scripts and deploys them through CI/CD pipelines.[6] Flyway comes in three editions. Flyway Community is free. Flyway Teams and Flyway Enterprise are paid editions, which Redgate describes as “a superset of Flyway Community edition”.[3] The Flyway product page currently lists two editions: Flyway Enterprise and Community, the latter “a free database migrations tool for individual developers and education”.[6] Teams terms remain in the Product Specific Terms.[1] Catalog proof: Current Flyway product page lists Enterprise and Community editions.
All editions fall under the Redgate Master Subscription EULA, and the paid editions are subscriptions.[7][1] “Redgate Flyway Teams and Redgate Flyway Enterprise are licensed on a Per User basis.”[1] Catalog proof: Flyway Teams and Enterprise are licensed per user.
Editions
| Edition | Licence type | Schemas | What the bundle contains |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flyway Community | Freeware | Not stated | Flyway Community; Flyway Service as Preview Software |
| Flyway Teams | Per User (Per Schema if licensed before 2022-09-01) | Up to 100 unless the quote says otherwise | Flyway Engine, Flyway Desktop, Flyway Service, Autopilot, SQL Source Control, Source Control for Oracle |
| Flyway Enterprise | Per User | Unlimited | As Teams, plus SQL Compare Pro, SQL Data Compare Pro, Schema Compare and Data Compare for Oracle, SQL Change Automation |
Redgate’s FAQ also records the history. Before 2019, Flyway had paid “Pro” and “Enterprise” editions licensed per schema. With Flyway 7.0 both were folded into Flyway Teams, and existing customers moved across.[3] Redgate Deploy, licensed per user before 2022-09-01, bundled Flyway for unlimited schemas, SQL Clone and the comparison tools for use in Redgate Pipelines.[1] Flyway Community database releases are generally certified for 5 years from general availability. Teams extends this to 10 years, and Enterprise goes beyond that.[3]
Metrics
Flyway Per User license. The licensee is the person, not the database or the server. “The primary licensee is the end user contributing database changes to the pipeline. Any number of databases can be in the CI/CD pipeline without incurring additional licensing costs.”[4] The Product Specific Terms define two kinds of pipeline. A “Redgate Flyway Teams Pipeline” is any database environment in an automated change delivery process using Flyway Teams. A “Redgate Pipeline” is one using any other Redgate software, apart from Flyway Teams or Community.[1]
Per Schema (legacy). The licence covers changes to “a single Schema … in a production environment”. Development, test and staging schemas are “free and unlimited”.[1][3]
Counting / floors
Who must be licensed
“Each user that is contributing or inputting database changes to a Redgate Pipeline must have a license for Redgate Flyway Enterprise.” The terms add: “a developer or engineer who writes database code changes that are contributed to a Redgate Pipeline is considered a Flyway Enterprise user regardless of whether they directly use Flyway Enterprise.” The same rule applies to Flyway Teams Pipelines and Teams licences.[1] Redgate’s FAQ lists who counts: anyone who installs the Flyway tools for their own use, and anyone who directly or indirectly makes changes to a database in a Flyway Pipeline. It also lists who does not count: people who only read reports, people who set up, configure and maintain the pipeline, and a Service Account used to generate a token.[3] Catalog proof: Every contributor of database changes to a Redgate Pipeline needs Flyway Enterprise; Flyway report readers and pipeline administrators need no licence.
Commentary: the count is driven by everyone who authors database changes that reach the pipeline, not by Flyway installations. Source-control history of migration scripts is usually the best evidence of who those people are.
Service accounts
“If You are using a Service Account for either Redgate Flyway Teams or Redgate Flyway Enterprise, You are not required to obtain additional Per User licenses, provided that Your use is limited to a maximum of 5 Service Accounts.”[1] A Service Account is a non-human account used by software, scripts or automated tools in an automated process such as a CI/CD pipeline. The definition excludes any account “created, operated, or controlled by or on behalf of an artificial intelligence, machine learning, or other autonomous agentic system”.[1] Catalog proof: Up to five Flyway Service Accounts need no extra licences.
Schema limit for Teams
Flyway Teams per-user licences are limited to the schemas stated in the quote. If the quote states none, the limit is 100 database schemas. Flyway Enterprise covers “an unlimited number of Schemas”.[1] The FAQ explains how to count. Only production schemas whose changes Flyway has managed are counted, but every replica counts. Fifty schemas replicated across five SQL Server instances count as 250, which would require Flyway Enterprise.[3] Catalog proof: Flyway Teams is limited to 100 schemas unless the quote says otherwise.
Legacy per-schema licences
“As of September 2022, Flyway Teams is no longer available on a ‘per schema’ to new customers.” Existing per-schema customers discuss renewal with sales, and per-schema licences do not include Flyway Desktop.[3] Per-schema licences are subject to the annual True Up. The customer reports usage within 10 days of the end of each Subscription Period, and Redgate may suspend the licence until it receives the True Up.[1] Catalog proof: Flyway per-schema licences are not sold to new customers since September 2022; Redgate may suspend capacity or schema licences until the True Up is received.
Virtualization & partitioning
Flyway licensing is not tied to servers, cores or virtual machines. Per-user Teams and Enterprise rights “may be exercised in any hardware and software environment of Yours, for all currently known types of use”.[1] Database cloning inside Flyway is licensed differently: “Database cloning is licensed per terabyte, not per-user.”[4] Under the Clone add-on for Flyway Enterprise (licensed before 2023-11-16), the customer must also hold any third-party licences needed to run clones on its servers or cloud accounts.[1]
Cloud / BYOL
A per-user licence can be used in any cloud CI/CD system. Activation differs by environment. Desktop users sign in with a Redgate ID. CI/CD pipelines use a personal access token, which Redgate suggests tying to an account not linked to a particular person. Air-gapped systems use an offline licence permit. Legacy licence keys are deprecated.[2] Offline permits and legacy keys “expire in 365 days or the product subscription end date” and must be refreshed by hand. Online authentication refreshes itself.[2] A purchased licence appears in the Redgate portal in two parts: “Desktop tools” (Flyway Desktop and the comparison tools) and “Flyway Engine” (the command line and Docker image).[2] Catalog proof: Flyway offline permits expire after 365 days or at subscription end.
The optional Flyway Service is hosted by Redgate. It is subject to Schedule 2 of the Subscription EULA, and Redgate may delete uploaded data after six months of inactivity.[1]
Programs
- Evaluation Period. Flyway Enterprise can be trialled free for 28 days.[6] After a trial, the customer must buy a licence or move to Flyway Community.[3]
- Freeware. “Redgate Flyway Community is made available to You as Freeware.”[1]
- Subscription Period and renewal. Paid editions renew automatically for 12 or 36 months.[7]
Mixing editions and other tools
“Redgate only supports Flyway projects and pipelines that are licensed to the same Flyway edition.” All users and every Flyway instance called by a pipeline must use one edition. A pipeline that qualifies as a Redgate Pipeline “can’t be regarded as a Flyway Teams pipeline”.[4] A pipeline counts as a Redgate Pipeline if its Flyway CLI is licensed with Enterprise, or if Enterprise-only capabilities (generated migration or undo scripts, static data) contribute changes.[4] Standalone SQL Compare Pro and SQL Data Compare Pro “are not permitted to be used to process database changes for or within a Redgate Pipeline” unless the user also has Flyway Enterprise, Redgate Deploy or SQL Toolbelt.[1] Redistributing Flyway binaries outside the organisation needs Redgate’s agreement.[4] Catalog proof: All users and instances on a Flyway pipeline must use the same edition; SQL Compare Pro may not process changes in a Redgate Pipeline without Flyway Enterprise, Deploy or Toolbelt.
Out of scope
- The open-source history of Flyway before Redgate, and Flyway Community’s own code licence, which are not covered in the Redgate licensing documents cited here.
- Prices. No Flyway price is shown on the product page.[6]
- Third-party drivers (Devart dotConnect), licensed for use only with Redgate products.[1]