> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.baryon.live/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Plans & licensing

> Free Listener Mode, the 10-day Baryon Pro trial, subscription and Founder licenses for live use, and Commercial/OEM licensing for embedding.

Baryon Desktop is free to download and explore. A 10-day Baryon Pro trial lets
you evaluate the performance toolkit. A subscription or Founder License keeps
Baryon Pro available for live use. Embedding or redistribution needs a separate
Commercial/OEM license.

## The plans

### Baryon Desktop — Free

Download and run the app with no account. Free covers exploring the instrument and
personal, non-commercial use:

* the full real-time cymatic visualizer and core visual controls
* live audio from a file, a microphone, or system audio
* a starter set of presets

### Baryon Pro trial — 10 days, included

Every install includes one 10-day Baryon Pro trial. Start it from the
**License** panel (in the app menu) or from any Pro gate — no account, no
credit card required. Starting the trial requires a network connection so
Baryon can apply machine and network issuance controls before signing the trial.
After that first activation, the signed trial works offline. While it runs,
Performer Mode, program output, OSC/MIDI controls, and professional
live-performance rights are unlocked. That includes paid shows, festivals, and
client performances. When the trial ends, the app returns to Free; nothing is
taken away from Listener Mode. If another person has already started a trial on
a shared network, contact support for help activating yours.

### Baryon Pro subscription — paid

Unlocks professional, live-use capability:

* **Performer Mode** with show-safe controls
* **program output** to another display on macOS or Windows, through Syphon on
  macOS, or through Spout on Windows
* **local OSC and MIDI parameter automation** for show-control and hardware
  control-surface workflows
* **commercial performance rights** — use Baryon as your instrument in paid shows,
  festivals, and client gigs
* **two active devices** per license

The subscription includes all Desktop updates while it is active. After 12 paid
months, it converts to a perpetual Baryon Pro license and keeps the latest build
covered by its update window.

### Founder License — perpetual

The Founder License provides lifetime Baryon Pro desktop access on two active
devices. It includes one year of feature updates from activation. After that
window, you can keep using the newest eligible build or renew updates for
another year. Baryon also offers the newest eligible archived installer when a
newer build falls outside the license's update window.

### Commercial / OEM — separate

A separate license, not the Baryon Pro license, is required to **embed or
redistribute** Baryon — shipping it inside another product, an installation,
hardware, a hosted service, or a redistributed app. Contact
**[licensing@baryon.live](mailto:licensing@baryon.live)**. This is the same boundary that governs the open engine;
see the [engine licensing](https://github.com/BaryonOfficial/Baryon/blob/main/LICENSING.md)
for how the source-available license and commercial use fit together.

## Free versus Pro at a glance

| Capability                                     | Free | Pro (incl. trial) |
| ---------------------------------------------- | :--: | :---------------: |
| Real-time cymatic visualizer and core controls |   ✓  |         ✓         |
| Audio input: file, microphone, system audio    |   ✓  |         ✓         |
| Starter presets                                |   ✓  |         ✓         |
| Personal, non-commercial use                   |   ✓  |         ✓         |
| Performer Mode and show-safe controls          |   —  |         ✓         |
| Program output (Display, Syphon, or Spout)     |   —  |         ✓         |
| Local OSC and MIDI parameter automation        |   —  |         ✓         |
| Commercial performance rights                  |   —  |         ✓         |

An active Baryon Pro trial includes commercial live-performance rights for its
10-day term. After the trial ends, continued professional use requires a
subscription or Founder License.

## How licensing works

The Baryon Pro license is designed to stay out of your way during a show:

* **No account required.** Your purchase creates an entitlement on our side;
  the app holds a signed, locally verifiable proof of it. Activation is a
  link or a token — never a login.
* **Verified locally.** The app checks the signed proof on your own machine,
  so a network outage at a venue never blocks a performance. Offline grace is
  built in.
* **Online only when it helps.** Connectivity is used for activation, moving
  your license between machines, revocation, and updates — never to run a set.
* **Subscriptions refresh, they don't reissue.** While billing is active the
  entitlement stays active and the app quietly refreshes its local proof.
  Your license is not replaced every month, and a short outage never
  interrupts a show.
* **Perpetual licenses retain eligible builds.** Founder and converted
  subscription licenses keep Performer access for builds inside their update
  window. Update renewal extends that window by one year.

License terms are presented at the time of purchase.