Legal · license & refunds

HardVps — License & Refund Policy

Last updated: 2026-08-03 · HardStacked · Contact: contact@hardstacked.net

These terms govern your use of HardVps (« the Software »). Payments are processed by Lemon Squeezy, our Merchant of Record, whose Buyer Terms govern the sale itself. The terms below govern how you may use the Software and our refund policy. By purchasing, installing or using the Software you agree to them; if you do not agree, do not install or use it, and request a refund within the refund window.

§ End User License Agreement (EULA)

1. License granted

HardStacked grants you a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to install and use the Software on one (1) server per license purchased, for personal or commercial purposes. Each license permits a single clean installation on one server (one activation). Additional servers require additional licenses.

2. Restrictions

You may not: (a) resell, redistribute, sublicense, rent, or lease the Software; (b) publish its source or make it available to third parties; (c) remove or alter its notices or HardStacked branding. These restrictions do not apply to the bundled Lynis component (section 8).

3. Authorized use only

You represent that you own, or have explicit authorization to modify, every server on which you run the Software, and that your use complies with the laws applicable to you. The Software modifies system configuration; running it against systems you are not authorized to administer is prohibited by this license and may be illegal. You are solely responsible for such use.

4. Intended use and your responsibility

The Software is intended for a fresh, clean Debian or Ubuntu server install. It modifies the configuration of a live operating system. Before use, you are solely responsible for:

taking and verifying your own full backup or provider snapshot of the target system;
confirming the installation is fresh and has not been modified;
verifying that applied changes are compatible with your workloads;
maintaining independent console/recovery access in case of misconfiguration.

Reversible tiers (e.g. « medium ») capture the original state of each changed file so it can be reverted — this is a convenience, not a substitute for your own backups. Aggressive or irreversible tiers require a full system snapshot taken by you before use; without it, changes may be unrecoverable. You assume the entire risk of using the Software. HardStacked guarantees no outcome.

5. Tested environment — no warranty

The Software is regularly tested on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, on a clean installation not modified beforehand. It is designed for Debian and Ubuntu servers and is reported to run on other versions of them, but those have not been through the same testing. Use on any other operating system or version, or on a system with pre-existing custom modifications, is at your own risk.

This section describes what we have tested. It does not restrict your right to a refund: see the refund policy below, which applies on any system.

As-is, no warranty

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED « AS IS », WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. HardStacked does not warrant that the Software will meet any specific security standard, achieve any specific Lynis score on your system, or be error-free. Scores are indicative and depend on the target system. No warranty is given outside the tested environment described in section 5.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or conditions; where such exclusions are prohibited, they apply to you only to the maximum extent permitted by the law of your jurisdiction, and nothing in these terms limits mandatory consumer rights you may hold under applicable law.

6. Not security advice — no compliance guarantee

The Software is a configuration tool. It does not constitute security consulting, auditing, or professional advice, and it does not guarantee that any system becomes secure, breach-proof, or compliant with any standard or regulation (e.g. PCI DSS, HIPAA, ISO 27001, SOC 2). Hardening reduces attack surface; it does not eliminate risk. Assessing whether the Software fits your security and compliance needs is your responsibility.

7. No high-risk use

The Software is not designed or licensed for use in systems where failure could lead to death, personal injury, or severe physical or environmental damage — including medical devices, life support, nuclear facilities, aircraft, or other safety-critical systems.

8. Third-party component — Lynis

The Software bundles Lynis, an independent auditing tool under the GNU General Public License v3 (GPLv3). Lynis is not covered by this EULA: it remains under GPLv3, its complete source is provided in the bundle, and your rights to it are governed solely by the GPLv3. The Software invokes Lynis as a separate process (no code linking); this EULA governs only the HardStacked-authored code.

9. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, HARDSTACKED SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES — INCLUDING DOWNTIME, DATA LOSS, LOST PROFITS, OR SERVICE INTERRUPTION — ARISING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY. TOTAL LIABILITY SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT PAID FOR THE SOFTWARE. THIS LIMITATION APPLIES TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED IN YOUR JURISDICTION AND DOES NOT EXCLUDE LIABILITY THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED BY LAW.

10. Indemnification

To the maximum extent permitted by law, you agree to indemnify and hold HardStacked harmless from claims, damages, and reasonable costs arising from your breach of these terms or your use of the Software on systems you were not authorized to modify.

11. Support

Support, where included with your tier, is provided on a reasonable-effort basis by email (contact@hardstacked.net), limited to the tested environment of section 5. No response-time or resolution guarantee is given.

12. Termination

This license terminates automatically if you breach any term. On termination, you must stop using and remove the Software.

13. Governing law and jurisdiction

This agreement is governed by the laws of the Province of Quebec, Canada, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Any dispute not subject to mandatory consumer-protection rules of your place of residence shall be brought before the courts of the Province of Quebec, Canada.

14. Severability — entire agreement

If any provision of these terms is held invalid or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the maximum extent permissible and the remaining provisions will remain in full force. These terms, together with the Lemon Squeezy Buyer Terms for the transaction itself, are the entire agreement regarding the Software and supersede prior discussions.

§ Refund Policy

Payments and refunds are handled by Lemon Squeezy (Merchant of Record). The following is our own refund policy, applied on top of their process.

Eligible: refunds are available within 14 days of purchase, on any operating system or version, whether or not you used the Software. We do not ask what distribution you run before issuing a refund, and the tested environment described in section 5 is information, never a condition of refund.
What a refund is not: it is not a support contract, and it does not undo changes you made to your own system. Section 5 still limits the warranty outside the tested environment; it never limits your right to a refund.
Reversible by design: every fix in the medium tier ships with a revert, and each file it restores is verified against its captured original (SHA-256). If it does not fit your setup, revert and request a refund within the window.
To request: write to contact@hardstacked.net with your order number. Lemon Squeezy also retains the right to issue refunds within 60 days to prevent chargebacks.

Nothing in this policy limits mandatory refund or warranty rights you may hold under the consumer law of your place of residence.