License handling
Hello all,
this is to raise your attention to some small but important change in the way we're dealing with software licenses in U-Boot.
Don't be afraid - the licensing itself does not change at all, we just change the way how we express the license terms in the source code.
Please see commit
eca3aeb 2013-07-24 09:44:16 -0400 Licenses: introduce SPDX Unique
Lincense Identifiers
What does that mean:
- New files being added to U-Boot should no longer include a multi-line license header; instead, they shall contain a single line Unique Lincense Identifier, i. e. a line like this:
SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+
For details, please see http://www.denx.de/wiki/U-Boot/Licensing
- Any help in cleaning up the remaining files (replacing existing license headers by Unique Lincense Identifiers) is welcome - but note that this is a task that needs to be done carefully - fully automatic editing is not really an option, as for example some files were found that included not one, but two (and incompatible!) license headers, so it really needs careful consideration how to resolve such issues.
To all custodians: please have a special look at any new code being added, and help guiding users to this new policy of using Unique Lincense Identifiers.
Thanks for all your help!
Best regards,
Wolfgang Denk
Signature · 5 lines
DENX Software Engineering GmbH, MD: Wolfgang Denk & Detlev Zundel HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de Let the programmers be many and the managers few -- then all will be productive. -- Geoffrey James, "The Tao of Programming"
Quoted 32 lines · Wolfgang Denk
Hello all,
this is to raise your attention to some small but important change in the way we're dealing with software licenses in U-Boot.
Don't be afraid - the licensing itself does not change at all, we just change the way how we express the license terms in the source code.
Please see commit
eca3aeb 2013-07-24 09:44:16 -0400 Licenses: introduce SPDX Unique
Lincense IdentifiersWhat does that mean:
- New files being added to U-Boot should no longer include a multi-line license header; instead, they shall contain a single line Unique Lincense Identifier, i. e. a line like this:
SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+
For details, please see http://www.denx.de/wiki/U-Boot/Licensing
- Any help in cleaning up the remaining files (replacing existing license headers by Unique Lincense Identifiers) is welcome - but note that this is a task that needs to be done carefully - fully automatic editing is not really an option, as for example some files were found that included not one, but two (and incompatible!) license headers, so it really needs careful consideration how to resolve such issues.
Quoted 3 lines
To all custodians: please have a special look at any new code being added, and help guiding users to this new policy of using Unique Lincense Identifiers.
ARM-related repo custodians in particular, note that u-boot-arm/master has merged current u-boot/master and that, at this time, there is no stray licence comment block remaining in there. Please make sure your PRs to ARM do not (re)introduce any.
Quoted 1 line
Thanks for all your help!
What Wolfgang said. :)
Quoted 3 lines
Best regards,
Wolfgang Denk
Amicalement,
Signature · 1 line
Albert.
Hello, Wolfgang.
Quoted 5 lines
- New files being added to U-Boot should no longer include a multi-line license header; instead, they shall contain a single line Unique Lincense Identifier, i. e. a line like this:
SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+
I have a question about this.
Does this rule apply to files imported from other projects?
For example, when adding files that originate from the Linux Kernel with modification for U-Boot, should we replace the legacy license block with SPDX-License-Identifer?
Or can we keep the license block untouched?
Best Regards
Masahiro Yamada
Dear Masahiro Yamada,
Quoted 2 lines · In message <[email protected]> you wrote:
Does this rule apply to files imported from other projects?
Yes, it does. The whole process only makes sense when all files in the U-Boot source tree can be identified based on the SPDX ID strings.
Quoted 3 lines
For example, when adding files that originate from the Linux Kernel with modification for U-Boot, should we replace the legacy license block with SPDX-License-Identifer?
Yes, please do.
Best regards,
Wolfgang Denk
Signature · 5 lines
DENX Software Engineering GmbH, MD: Wolfgang Denk & Detlev Zundel HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de Real programmers don't comment their code. It was hard to write, it should be hard to understand.
Hi Masahiro
Quoted 10 lines · Masahiro Yamada
Hello, Wolfgang.
Quoted 5 lines
- New files being added to U-Boot should no longer include a multi-line license header; instead, they shall contain a single line Unique Lincense Identifier, i. e. a line like this:
SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+
Quoted 7 lines
I have a question about this.
Does this rule apply to files imported from other projects?For example, when adding files that originate from the Linux Kernel with modification for U-Boot, should we replace the legacy license block with SPDX-License-Identifer?
Or can we keep the license block untouched
I kind of raised this before - SPDX is not only a way of simplifying the license text, but also to provide a 'chain of authenticity'.
The idea would be to reduce the license text in U-Boot to just the SPDX-License-Identifier, but we should also provide details on where the original file came from. I guess this is the next (harder) step.
Wolfgang: How do you think this should be best handled? I still haven't found a definitive reference for the use of SPDX-License-Identifier - are there other identifiers which can be used to specify the original source of the file?
Regards,
Graeme
Dear Graeme Russ,
Quoted 4 lines · In message <CALButCK063=8_5pW8fdkHgo8v4Wc7SukDoLpAsOvS-doP_KwRg@mail.gmail.com>…
The idea would be to reduce the license text in U-Boot to just the SPDX-License-Identifier, but we should also provide details on where the original file came from. I guess this is the next (harder) step.
Full agreement here. But actually this has been a requirement for some time already, see section "Attributing Code, Copyrights, Signing" (and especially bullet # 4 there) at [1]
[1] http://www.denx.de/wiki/view/U-Boot/Patches#Attributing_Code_Copyrights_Sign
OK, this records such information in the git history, but that's better than nothing.
Quoted 4 lines
Wolfgang: How do you think this should be best handled? I still haven't found a definitive reference for the use of SPDX-License-Identifier - are there other identifiers which can be used to specify the original source of the file?
Well, in my (definitely limited) understanding of the SPDX specification the "sourceInfo" property appears to be the best fit for such information - so we could for example define entries "SPDX-Source-Info" which could contain this - in a T.B.D. format ?
Best regards,
Wolfgang Denk
Signature · 5 lines
DENX Software Engineering GmbH, MD: Wolfgang Denk & Detlev Zundel HRB 165235 Munich, Office: Kirchenstr.5, D-82194 Groebenzell, Germany Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. - Mark Twain