A RipeMD-160 hash is performed on every key sent to an Aerospike Server. AerospikeClient uses GNU Crypto's RipeMD-160 hash algorithm by default due to its superior performance over Bouncy Castle's algorithm. The overall AerospikeClient performance difference is much less noticeable because the hash is only one of many factors that determine performance.
GNU Crypto uses a GPL based license with a "library exception" which permits its use as a library in conjunction with non-Free software (See GNU Crypto License). Even with this explicit exception, some organizations still choose to ban applications that link with the GNU Crypto library (See APACHE).
AerospikeClient can now be configured to use either GNU Crypto or Bouncy Castle. Bouncy Castle uses a MIT based license.
Usage:
./set_crypto gnu | bouncycastle
Examples:
./set_crypto gnu
./set_crypto bouncycastle