Licensing
How licensing, activation, and your project files work in plain terms.
DNA is still in active development, so the exact commercial licence and activation flow aren't locked yet. This page covers what you can rely on today and what's still being decided.
Your files are yours
Everything you make lives in plain .dna project files on your own disk. There's no cloud lock-in: a .dna file you save today opens on any DNA build that's the same age or newer.
DNA reads its own older files automatically. When you open a project from an earlier version, it quietly upgrades the file to the current shape as it loads, so old work keeps opening on new builds. The only time a file won't open is when it was saved by a newer build than the one you're running — in that case, update DNA and try again.
Before sharing a project, you can bundle it with its media so the other person gets everything in one go. See Package & collect.
Opening files from other people
DNA treats projects you make yourself as trusted, and projects that arrive from the internet (a download, an email attachment) as restricted until you say otherwise.
A restricted project still opens and plays — but nodes that touch your machine (writing files, reaching the network, loading plugins) won't run until you explicitly trust the project. This protects you from a shared file that tries to do something it shouldn't behind your back.
You stay in control: inspect the project, then mark it trusted when you're happy. The full rules live in Trust & Permissions.
Plugins are always treated as restricted until you trust each one individually, even on a project you made. See Capabilities & trust.
Activation and commercial terms
The licence model — free vs paid tiers, activation, seats, and any offline grace period — is still being finalised and will be documented here closer to release. Nothing on this page is a commercial commitment.
The exported DNA Player (the desktop app that runs a finished .dna project) and the various export targets each have their own distribution story, which will be spelled out alongside the licence. For what ships today, see The player.
Reporting a security issue
If you find something that looks like a security problem — a project that escapes its sandbox, a plugin doing something it shouldn't — please report it through the project's security channel rather than posting it publicly. Reports are triaged on a best-effort basis, usually within a week.