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Terms of Service

Last updated: July 17, 2026

These terms cover Orbitr (the software). For Pulsar cloud services, see the Pulsar Terms of Service and Pulsar Privacy Policy.

Orbitr Software

In Plain English You can use, modify, and self-host Orbitr for free under the ELv2 license. Friends splitting server costs? Great. Selling Orbitr hosting? Not allowed. No warranties.

Orbitr is source-available software, licensed under the Elastic License 2.0 (ELv2). You are free to use, modify, and self-host Orbitr in accordance with that license. You may not provide Orbitr to third parties as a hosted or managed service. Commercial entities may not offer Orbitr hosting, whether as a standalone product or as part of an existing platform. Personal use, community servers, and informal cost-sharing among friends are welcome. The software is provided as-is, without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

Self-Hosted Servers

In Plain English If you run a server, you are responsible for everything on it: content, security, legal compliance. Orbitr maintainers have zero access. You must not disable built-in user data rights (like account deletion).

When you run an Orbitr server, you are solely responsible for that server and everything on it. This includes:

  • The content posted by you and your users.
  • Compliance with applicable laws in your jurisdiction.
  • Securing your server, database, and network configuration.
  • Managing your users, enforcing your own rules, and handling disputes.

Orbitr's maintainers have no access to, control over, or responsibility for self-hosted servers or the data stored on them.

Server operators must preserve users' ability to delete their accounts and associated data. Disabling, circumventing, or refusing to honor built-in user data management features is a violation of these terms. Server operators are independently responsible for complying with privacy laws applicable to their users and jurisdiction.

Pulsar Services Pulsar

In Plain English Pulsar is a separate, optional cloud service with its own terms.

Pulsar (pulsar.orbitr.chat) is a separate, optional cloud service that provides convenience infrastructure for Orbitr server operators and users: identity backup (Pulsar Pulse) and invite-link resolution (the Pulsar Directory). Pulsar has its own Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Use of Pulsar is governed by those terms, not these.

Pulsar Pulse is an optional paid Pulsar product (cloud backup and multi-device sync for your encrypted identity). It is not part of Orbitr core; Orbitr works fully without it. If you subscribe to Pulse, your encrypted identity and related device metadata flow to Pulsar under Pulsar's Terms (§5b) and the Pulsar Privacy Policy.

Sponsorship & Donations

In Plain English Sponsorship is a thank-you. Subscriptions and donations help fund the project but do not buy any features. Cancellation is one click through Stripe: no retention prompts, no required reason, no win-back emails. Showing up on the public supporter wall is opt-in.

Orbitr's sponsorship tiers (Spark, Star, Supernova) and one-time donations are voluntary contributions to fund development, code-signing, and infrastructure. They are processed through Pulsar and Stripe under Pulsar's Terms of Service §5a and the Pulsar Privacy Policy.

No entitlement. Sponsorship grants no service-level guarantee, no feature unlocks, no premium support, and no priority access. Paid Pulsar services such as Pulsar Pulse are different. They do provide feature-tied entitlements and are governed by Pulsar's terms.

No-friction cancellation commitment. Cancellation through the Stripe Customer Portal is a single click. We commit, as a matter of policy, that the cancellation flow will not include retention prompts, mandatory cancellation reasons, or "are you sure" upsell screens, and we will not send automated win-back / "we miss you" emails. Sponsor subscription fees are non-refundable except as required by applicable law.

Sponsor wall display. Being listed on the public supporter wall is opt-in, default off. You can edit your display name or remove yourself from the wall at any time from Settings → Support in the Orbitr app or via your Pulsar account sponsorship page. Sponsor display names are user-supplied content; names that are abusive, harassing, illegal, or infringing may be removed.

Acceptable Use

In Plain English Do not use Orbitr or any forked or derivative work for illegal activity, spam, harassment, or to attack systems.

The following applies to all use of Orbitr and any forked or derivative work, including this website, GitHub repositories, community channels, and self-hosted instances:

  • Do not use Orbitr infrastructure to distribute illegal content.
  • Do not spam, harass, or abuse other users or contributors.
  • Do not attempt to circumvent rate limits, authentication, or security controls.
  • Do not use automated tools to scrape, crawl, or overload Orbitr services.

Content Moderation & Reporting

In Plain English Members can report messages, files, or other members to the people who run the server. The operator and their moderators decide what to remove and can permanently delete it. Operators handle illegal content under the laws that apply where they are.

Orbitr includes built-in tools that let members report content (messages, attachments, or other members) to the operator and moderators of the server they are on. Reports are delivered only to that server's operator and its authorized moderators. They are not sent to Orbitr's maintainers or to any central service.

Server operators may remove reported content at their discretion, including permanently deleting it. Operators are solely responsible for reviewing reports and for handling illegal content in accordance with the laws of their jurisdiction. Orbitr's maintainers do not receive reports, do not moderate content, and have no access to self-hosted servers.

Intellectual Property

In Plain English You can use the code, but you cannot use our name or logo to imply we endorse you.

The Orbitr name, logo, and brand assets are trademarks of the Orbitr project. The license grants you rights to the software code, but does not grant rights to use Orbitr trademarks in a way that suggests endorsement or affiliation without permission.

Limitation of Liability

In Plain English Orbitr is provided as-is. If something goes wrong, we are not financially responsible for the consequences.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Orbitr's maintainers and contributors shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the software or services, including but not limited to data loss, downtime, security breaches on self-hosted servers, or loss of profits.

The software is provided as-is. You assume all risk associated with running, configuring, and maintaining your own server.

Indemnification

In Plain English If someone brings a legal claim because of what is on your server or because you broke these terms or the law, you agree to cover the legal defense and any resulting costs.

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Orbitr's maintainers, contributors, and affiliates from and against any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or related to: (a) content hosted on or transmitted through your self-hosted server; (b) your violation of these terms or any applicable law; or (c) your infringement of any third-party rights. This obligation survives termination of your use of the software.

Governing Law & Jurisdiction

In Plain English These terms are governed by Pennsylvania law. Any dispute is handled in the courts of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

These terms and any dispute arising out of or relating to them or the software are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. You agree that any legal action or proceeding arising out of or relating to these terms or the software shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and you consent to the personal jurisdiction and venue of those courts.

Severability

If any provision of these terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that the remaining terms remain in full force and effect.

Age Requirement

In Plain English Orbitr is not for young children. Server operators are responsible for the age laws that apply to their server. Pulsar accounts separately require you to be at least 16.

Orbitr is not directed at children under 13. Because Orbitr is self-hosted, server operators are independently responsible for complying with age-related laws applicable to their server and its members (such as minimum-age and parental-consent requirements in their jurisdiction). Pulsar accounts have their own age requirement under the Pulsar Terms of Service.

Changes to These Terms

In Plain English We can update these terms. The date at the top tells you when they last changed. Because Orbitr does not collect user emails, we cannot notify you individually.

We may update these terms from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Changes are effective immediately upon posting. Because Orbitr does not collect user contact information, individual notice is not possible.

Contact

If you have questions about these terms, contact us at: