Terms of Service
Last updated: April 2026
1. Overview
SparkBox is self-hosted software. You install it on your own hardware — a VPS, NAS, or local machine. We (Tom Spark, an individual, not a corporation) provide the SparkBox software and a free personal-use license key for activation. That is the extent of what we provide. Your server, your data, your responsibility.
2. License
- SparkBox is free, forever. Every app and module is included at no cost, and you never need a license to install, run, or update it — auto-updates with one-click rollback are free for everyone. Backing the project is optional: the $49 Legend supporter tier is a one-time donation that adds the Tom AI assistant and a few thank-yous (details on the backer page). It is not required to use SparkBox.
- A Legend supporter key covers up to 3 installations — generous enough for hardware migrations, reinstalls, and backup boxes.
- Personal, family, and small-business use only. You may not run SparkBox as a managed service for paying third parties or otherwise resell it.
- No redistribution. You may not redistribute, resell, sublicense, or create derivative works of SparkBox for distribution.
- No tampering. You may not remove or circumvent license checks, branding, or affiliate disclosures.
3. Supported Platforms
- Officially supported: UGREEN NASync (DXP2800, DXP4800), Windows WSL2, and major Debian-, RHEL-, and Arch-based Linux distributions (Ubuntu, Debian, Mint, Pop!_OS, Raspberry Pi OS, Rocky, AlmaLinux, Fedora, Arch, and more) — see the docs for the full tested list.
- Other platforms may work but are not officially supported or tested by us.
- Support is best-effort and primarily delivered through the SparkBox community on d/sparkbox.
4. Payment
- SparkBox is free — no payment is required to install, run, or update it.
- The $49 Legend supporter tier is optional — a one-time, non-refundable donation (no subscription, no recurring charge) processed through Stripe. It funds full-time development and adds Tom AI plus a supporter badge.
- No tiers, no per-app upcharges, no paywalled modules. Everything in the SparkBox bundle is free; the only optional paid extra is the $49 Legend tier.
- Founding Members: users who purchased a paid-beta license before the free-beta pivot retain their key, lifetime access, and a Founding Member badge. Refund inquiries via legal@tomsparkbox.com.
5. Your Responsibilities
Because SparkBox runs on your hardware, you are responsible for:
- Your own hardware, network configuration, and internet connectivity.
- Backups of your data. We cannot recover data from your server.
- Providing your own VPN subscription if you use the media module (SparkBox does not include a VPN service).
- Configuring any indexers, trackers, or content sources you use with the bundled *arr applications (Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr). SparkBox does not pre-populate or recommend any. See Section 6 (Lawful Use).
6. Lawful Use & Anti-Piracy
SparkBox is general-purpose, self-hosted infrastructure software. The bundled application modules (Jellyfin, Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr, qBittorrent, Seerr, Immich, Nextcloud, etc.) are open-source third-party software included for the convenience of users running their own personal media, photo, file, and document servers.
- SparkBox does not provide, host, distribute, or recommend any media content, indexers, trackers, or sources of any kind. We do not include or pre-configure any indexer, tracker, or content source.
- We do not endorse, encourage, condone, or facilitate copyright infringement, piracy, or any other unlawful use of the software, in any jurisdiction.
- You are solely responsible for the legality of any content you store, stream, download, share, or otherwise process using your SparkBox installation, and for compliance with all applicable laws (including but not limited to copyright, computer-misuse, telecommunications, and data-protection laws) in every jurisdiction in which you or your users are located.
- We strongly recommend using SparkBox only with content you legally own (e.g. ripped from physical media you own), content in the public domain, or content licensed to you by its rightsholder.
- Where local law restricts certain types of network traffic (including but not limited to VPN traffic, peer-to-peer file sharing, or operation of certain server software), you are responsible for compliance with your jurisdiction's laws. SparkBox does not provide a VPN service; if you choose to use a third-party VPN, your relationship and obligations are with that VPN provider, not with SparkBox.
- If you receive a takedown notice, DMCA notice, or any legal claim relating to content on your SparkBox installation, that notice is between you and the claimant. SparkBox is not the host, publisher, or distributor of your content.
- We reserve the right to terminate licenses (without refund) for any user found to be using SparkBox to facilitate piracy at scale, distribute malware, operate command-and-control infrastructure, or otherwise abuse the software.
7. No Warranty / Limitation of Liability
SparkBox is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, express or implied.
- We are not liable for data loss, downtime, security breaches on your hardware, or any damages of any kind.
- Self-hosted means you control the server. We cannot access, monitor, or recover your data.
- We are not liable for any unlawful use of SparkBox by any user, in any jurisdiction. See Section 6 above.
- Our maximum liability for any claim of any kind is limited to the amount you paid for SparkBox (zero, for free personal-use licenses; the original paid-beta price for Founding Members).
- To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we disclaim all implied warranties including but not limited to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.
8. Privacy
- SparkBox runs entirely on your hardware. We don't track you, profile you, or run ads, and nothing from your self-hosted apps ever leaves your box. The software sends an anonymous release-health ping when you update (which version, did it succeed — no identifier), plus optional, off-by-default crash reporting. See the Privacy Policy for specifics.
- Communication with our servers is limited to: update checks + the anonymous release-health ping, license key validation, and — only if you use the optional Tom AI assistant — sanitized diagnostic conversations (see the Privacy Policy).
- We store your email address for license delivery only. Support is provided through the public d/sparkbox community forum, not over email.
- We do not sell or share your information with anyone.
9. Updates
- SparkBox includes automatic updates for the software and module configurations when activated with a valid license key (paid or free personal-use).
- We do not guarantee updates on any specific schedule.
- Updates are delivered as new releases — your server pulls them when available.
10. Termination
- Your license is perpetual — it does not expire.
- We reserve the right to revoke licenses for abuse, license violations, or use that contradicts Section 6 (Lawful Use).
- If a license is revoked, the existing installation continues to work but loses auto-updates.
11. Changes to Terms
- We may update these terms from time to time. Continued use of SparkBox after changes constitutes acceptance.
- Material changes will be communicated via the website.