The Linux Foundation has welcomed the adoption of doCumentdb, an open documentary-oriented database created by Microsoft, into its community. The project, which is licensed under the MIT license, offers an alternative to Mongodb following Mongodb’s switch to more restrictive licensing conditions. The emergence of Documentb stemmed from Mongodb’s decision in 2018 to move away from a free license and opt for the Server Side Public License (SSPL), which compelled cloud providers to disclose their source code, leading to industry backlash and prompting the search for other solutions.
Development of doCumentdb began in 2024, with the project offering a set of postgreSQL extensions for working with BSON data models and supporting operations compatible with Mongodb. By combining the relational foundation of postgreSQL with the flexibility of the NOSQL approach, Documentb aims to provide a versatile database solution for developers.
Upon the official release of doCumentdb in January, Microsoft highlighted the project’s freedom under the MIT License, stating that users are not obligated to return changes and can freely use, modify, and distribute the tool. The initiative aligns with a larger trend in the database industry, as evidenced by startups like Ferretdb, which introduced a postgreSQL alternative to Mongodb, leading to the establishment of the dokumbase community for document database standardization.
Microsoft Vice President Kirill Gavrilyuk emphasized Documentb’s ability to merge the reliability of postgreSQL with the convenience of documentary storage, noting widespread community support for the project. Meanwhile, Mongodb contends that Documentb, built on postgreSQL, lacks the inherent structure of a true document base but maintains a cooperative stance with Microsoft in fostering open development practices.