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Worked example
Real numbers from this tool, line by line.
Six Liquibase FSL ties turned up in a 38-line pom.xml that a Java platform engineer checked before moving a Spring Boot service from Liquibase to Flyway: three errors and three warnings, on six different lines.
| Line | Liquibase line | Flyway fix |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | <liquibase.version>5.0.1</liquibase.version> | <flyway.version>13.10.0</flyway.version> |
| 15 | <artifactId>liquibase-core</artifactId> | <artifactId>flyway-core</artifactId> |
| 28 | <artifactId>liquibase-maven-plugin</artifactId> | <artifactId>flyway-maven-plugin</artifactId> |
| 31 | <changeLogFile>db/changelog/db.changelog-master.yaml</changeLogFile> | <location>filesystem:src/main/resources/db/migration</location> |
| 32 | <contexts>prod</contexts> | one location per environment (db/prod) |
| 33 | <rollbackCount>1</rollbackCount> | forward fix migration V<n+1>__revert.sql |
What changed and when
Liquibase Community 5.0.0 reached Maven Central on 2025-09-30. The 5.0 release notes say: "Liquibase Community is now licensed under the Functional Source License (FSL)." The liquibase-core POM now names its licence FSL-1.1-ALv2. The last Apache-2.0 release is 4.33.0, published 2025-07-09.
FSL is not an OSI open-source licence. It converts each release to Apache 2.0 two years after that release is made available. So 5.0.1, published 2025-10-03, becomes Apache-2.0 on 2027-10-03, and every new 5.x release restarts the clock. For a team whose policy says "Apache-2.0 or MIT only", a single Dependabot bump from 4.33.0 to 5.0.x is enough to break the rule.
The three errors
Line 10 pins liquibase.version to 5.0.1. Lines 15 and 28 pull liquibase-core and liquibase-maven-plugin through that property. Those are the lines that put FSL code in the build. Flyway Community replaces them one for one: flyway-core plus the database module (flyway-database-postgresql for PostgreSQL), and flyway-maven-plugin. Flyway Community 13.10.0 is on Maven Central under Apache-2.0.
The three warnings
- changeLogFile points at a master changelog. Flyway has no master file. It reads versioned SQL files (V1__baseline.sql, V2__add_orders.sql) from the folders listed in locations.
- contexts selects changesets per environment. Flyway has no per-changeset contexts. Give each environment its own folder and list it in locations.
- rollbackCount relies on Liquibase rollback. Flyway undo migrations are a Teams and Enterprise feature, not part of Community. In Flyway Community you write a forward fix migration instead.
Why a chatbot misses it
mvn dependency:tree prints versions, not licences. A chatbot rewrites the pom.xml you paste but does not know the cut-off is 5.0.0 or that undo is missing from Flyway Community.
Checking every line at once
Flyway Migration Check reads pom.xml, build.gradle, liquibase.properties, Spring Boot application files, Dockerfiles and changelogs against 12 rules. Each finding names the line and its Flyway replacement. The migrated pom.xml returns 0 findings.
The check takes an as-of date. Under FSL a version is Apache-2.0 from its second anniversary, so 5.0.0 drops to info on 2027-09-30 while 5.0.4 stays an error until 2028-08-20.
Order of work
Export the schema once as V1__baseline.sql with baselineOnMigrate, swap the dependency and plugin, move contexts into per-environment locations, and replace rollback with forward fixes.
The free check covers every rule on the open file.
15 seconds — what it actually does
Questions people ask
What does Flyway Migration Check do?
It reads pom.xml, build.gradle, liquibase.properties, Spring Boot application files and Liquibase changelogs line by line and flags every Liquibase tie: 5.x versions under FSL-1.1-ALv2, liquibase-core and the Maven or Gradle plugin, changelog paths, contexts, rollback settings and LPM extensions. Each finding names the line and the Flyway Community line that replaces it, with the source document linked.
Who is Flyway Migration Check for?
Java and Spring Boot teams whose legal or open-source policy accepts Apache-2.0 but not the Functional Source License, now that Liquibase Community 5.0.0 (released 2025-09-30) ships under FSL-1.1-ALv2. It suits platform engineers and tech leads who must move services from Liquibase to Flyway Community, or prove a repo no longer pulls Liquibase 5.
Why not just ask a chatbot or run mvn dependency:tree?
mvn dependency:tree prints versions, not licences, and says nothing about the Flyway replacement. A chatbot rewrites the pom.xml you paste but does not know that Liquibase went FSL at 5.0.0 while 4.33.0 stayed Apache-2.0, or that Flyway undo migrations are a Teams and Enterprise feature, so a Liquibase rollback setting needs a forward fix migration in Flyway Community.
What is free and what needs a key?
Free, with no key: all 12 rules on the open file in VS Code or in the web page, every finding with its Flyway line, as often as you like. The $29 key scans the whole workspace into one Liquibase-to-Flyway migration plan. A team key adds a dated licence exposure report across projects and a CI gate that fails builds adding new Liquibase 5 use.
What does the alternative cost?
Staying on Liquibase with a commercial licence means Liquibase Secure, which liquibase.com/pricing sells only on quote (Starter, Team, Business and Enterprise plans). Flyway Community is Apache-2.0 and free. Mapping a service by hand means reading every build file and changelog; the check lists the six ties in the 38-line example pom.xml at once.
When does the Liquibase licence situation change next?
Under FSL each release turns Apache-2.0 two years after it is published. Liquibase 5.0.0 was released on 2025-09-30, so it becomes Apache-2.0 on 2027-09-30; 5.0.4 (2026-08-20) follows on 2028-08-20. Every new 5.x release restarts that two-year clock, which is why the check uses the as-of date.
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