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| <h2>Licenses</h2> |
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| <div class="summary"> |
| <h3 class="no-display">Table of Contents</h3> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="#Evaluation">Evaluating Licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#CommonResources">Common Resources for our Software Licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#GPL">The GNU General Public License</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#LGPL">The GNU Lesser General Public License</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#AGPL">The GNU Affero General Public License</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#FDL">The GNU Free Documentation License</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#Exceptions">Exceptions to GNU Licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#LicenseURLs">License URLs</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#UnofficialTransl">Unofficial Translations</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#VerbatimCopying">Verbatim Copying and Distribution</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#FSLicenses">List of Free Software Licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#WhatIsCopyleft">What Is Copyleft?</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#OtherWorks">Licenses for Other Types of Works</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| <hr class="no-display" /> |
| </div> |
| |
| <p> |
| Published software should be <a href="/philosophy/free-sw.html">free |
| software</a>. To make it free software, you need to release it under |
| a free software license. We normally use the <a href="#GPL">GNU |
| General Public License</a> (GNU GPL), specifying version 3 or any |
| later version, but occasionally we |
| use <a href="/licenses/license-list.html#SoftwareLicenses">other free |
| software licenses</a>. We use only licenses that are compatible with |
| the GNU GPL for GNU software. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Documentation for free software should be |
| <a href="/philosophy/free-doc.html">free documentation</a>, so that |
| people can redistribute it and improve it along with the software |
| it describes. To make it free documentation, you need to release |
| it under a free documentation license. We normally use the |
| <a href="#FDL">GNU Free Documentation License</a> (GNU |
| FDL), but occasionally we use |
| <a href="/licenses/license-list.html#DocumentationLicenses">other free |
| documentation licenses</a>. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p>If you've started a new project and you're not sure what license to |
| use, <a href="/licenses/license-recommendations.html">“How to |
| choose a license for your own work”</a> details our |
| recommendations in an easy-to-follow guide. If you just want a quick |
| list reference, we have a page that names |
| our <a href="/licenses/recommended-copylefts.html">recommended |
| copyleft licenses</a>.</p> |
| |
| <p>We also have a page that discusses <a href="/licenses/bsd.html">the BSD License Problem</a>.</p> |
| |
| <h3 id="Evaluation">Evaluating Licenses</h3> |
| |
| <p>If you come across a license not mentioned in our |
| <a href="/licenses/license-list.html">license list</a>, you can ask us |
| to evaluate whether it is a free license. Please email a copy of the |
| license (and the URL where you found it) |
| to <a href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org">licensing@fsf.org</a>. Our |
| licensing experts in the staff and the board of directors will review |
| it. If the license has some unusual conditions, they may pose |
| difficult philosophical problems, so we can't promise to decide |
| quickly.</p> |
| |
| <h3 id="CommonResources">Common Resources for our Software Licenses</h3> |
| |
| <p>We have a number of resources to help people understand and use our |
| various licenses:</p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| |
| <li><a href="/licenses/gpl-faq.html">Frequently Asked |
| Questions about the GNU licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/gpl-howto.html">How to use GNU licenses for your |
| own software</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/gpl-violation.html">What to do if you see a |
| violation of a GNU license</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/license-compatibility.html">License Compatibility |
| and Relicensing</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/license-list.html">List of Free Software Licenses</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/philosophy/university.html">Releasing Free Software if |
| you work at a university</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/why-assign.html">Why the FSF gets copyright |
| assignments from contributors</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/graphics/license-logos.html">GNU license logos</a> to use |
| with your project</li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing">The FSF Licensing & Compliance Lab</a></li> |
| <li><a |
| href="/licenses/license-list.html#LicensingEmailAddress"><licensing@fsf.org></a> for general licensing help |
| </li> |
| |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="GPL">The GNU General Public License</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| The GNU General Public License is often called the GNU GPL for short; |
| it is used by most GNU programs, and by more than half of all free |
| software packages. The latest version is version 3. |
| </p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li>The GNU General Public License is available in these formats: |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.html">HTML</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.txt">plain text</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.odt">ODF</a>, |
| Docbook <a href="/licenses/gpl.dbk">v4</a> or |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.xml">v5</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.texi">Texinfo</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.tex">LaTeX</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.md">Markdown</a>, and |
| <a href="/licenses/gpl.rtf">RTF</a>. |
| These documents are not formatted for standalone publishing, and |
| are intended to be included in another document.</li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/quick-guide-gplv3.html">A Quick Guide to |
| GPLv3</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/old-licenses/old-licenses.html#GPL">Older |
| versions of the GNU GPL</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="LGPL">The GNU Lesser General Public License</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| The GNU Lesser General Public License is used by a few (not by any means |
| all) GNU libraries. The latest version is version 3. |
| </p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li>The GNU Lesser General Public License text is available in |
| these formats: |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.html">HTML</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.txt">plain text</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.dbk">Docbook</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.texi">Texinfo</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.md">Markdown</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.odt">ODF</a>, and |
| <a href="/licenses/lgpl.rtf">RTF</a>. |
| These documents are not formatted for standalone publishing, and |
| are intended to be included in another document.</li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/why-not-lgpl.html">Why you shouldn't use |
| the Lesser GPL for your next library</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/old-licenses/old-licenses.html#LGPL">Older |
| versions of the GNU LGPL</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="AGPL">The GNU Affero General Public License</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| The GNU Affero General Public License is based on the GNU GPL, but has an |
| additional term to allow users who interact with the licensed software over |
| a network to receive the source for that program. We recommend that people |
| consider using the GNU AGPL for any software which will commonly be run |
| over a network. The latest version is version 3. |
| </p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li>The GNU Affero General Public License text is available in |
| these formats: |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.html">HTML</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.txt">plain text</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.dbk">Docbook</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.texi">Texinfo</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.tex">LaTeX</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.md">Markdown</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.odt">ODF</a>, and |
| <a href="/licenses/agpl.rtf">RTF</a>. |
| These documents are not formatted for standalone publishing, and |
| are intended to be included in another document.</li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/why-affero-gpl.html">Why the Affero GPL</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="FDL">The GNU Free Documentation License</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| The GNU Free Documentation License is a form of copyleft intended |
| for use on a manual, textbook or other document to assure everyone |
| the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without |
| modifications, either commercially or non-commercially. The latest version |
| is 1.3. |
| </p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li>The GNU Free Documentation License text is available in these formats: |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.html">HTML</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.txt">plain text</a>, |
| Docbook <a href="/licenses/fdl.xml">v4</a> or |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl-db5.xml">v5</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.texi">Texinfo</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.tex">LaTeX</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.md">Markdown</a>, |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.odt">ODF</a>, and |
| <a href="/licenses/fdl.rtf">RTF</a>. |
| These documents are not formatted for standalone publishing, and |
| are intended to be included in another document.</li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/why-gfdl.html">Why publishers should use |
| the GNU FDL</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/fdl.html#addendum">How to use |
| the GNU FDL for your documentation</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/fdl-howto.html">Tips on using the GNU FDL</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/fdl-howto-opt.html">How to use the optional |
| features of the GNU FDL</a></li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/old-licenses/old-licenses.html#FDL"> |
| Older versions of the GNU FDL</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="Exceptions">Exceptions to GNU Licenses</h3> |
| |
| <p>Some GNU programs have additional permissions or special exceptions |
| to specific terms in one of the main licenses. Since some of those |
| are commonly used or inspire a lot of questions on their own, we've |
| started collecting them on |
| our <a href="/licenses/exceptions.html">exceptions page</a>.</p> |
| |
| <h3 id="LicenseURLs">License URLs</h3> |
| |
| <p>When linking to our licenses, it's usually best to link to the latest |
| version; hence the standard URLs such as |
| <code>http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html</code> have no version number. |
| Occasionally, however, you may want to link to a specific version of a |
| given license. In those situations, you can use the following links |
| [<a href="#urlskip">skip links</a>]:</p> |
| |
| <dl> |
| <dt>GNU General Public License (GPL)</dt> |
| <!-- Please keep these links absolute. I'm depending on that for the |
| XSLT to generate pages on fsf.org. Thanks. -brett --> |
| <dd><a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html">GPLv3</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html">GPLv2</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-1.0.html">GPLv1</a></dd> |
| |
| <dt>GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL)</dt> |
| <dd><a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl-3.0.html">LGPLv3</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl-2.1.html">LGPLv2.1</a></dd> |
| |
| <dt>GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL)</dt> |
| <dd><a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/agpl-3.0.html">GNU |
| AGPLv3</a> (The <a |
| href="http://www.affero.org/oagpl.html">Affero General |
| Public License version 1</a> is not a GNU license, but it was |
| designed to serve a purpose much like the GNU AGPL's.)</dd> |
| |
| <dt>GNU Free Documentation License (FDL)</dt> |
| <dd><a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.3.html">FDLv1.3</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.2.html">FDLv1.2</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.1.html">FDLv1.1</a></dd> |
| </dl> |
| |
| <p><a name="urlskip"></a>Stable links to each license's alternative |
| formats are available on its respective page. Not every version of |
| every license is available in every format. If you need one that is |
| missing, please <a href="mailto:licensing@gnu.org">email us</a>.</p> |
| |
| <p>See also the <a href="old-licenses/">old licenses page</a>.</p> |
| |
| |
| <h3 id="UnofficialTransl">Unofficial Translations</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| Legally speaking, the original (English) version of the licenses is what |
| specifies the actual distribution terms for GNU programs and others that |
| use them. But to help people better understand the licenses, we give |
| permission to publish translations into other languages provided that |
| they follow our regulations for unofficial translations: |
| </p> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li> |
| <a href="/licenses/translations.html">List of unofficial translations</a> |
| </li> |
| <li><a href="/licenses/translations.html#rules">How to create an unofficial |
| translation</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| <h3 id="VerbatimCopying">Verbatim Copying and Distribution</h3> |
| |
| <p>The standard copyright terms for GNU web pages is now the <a |
| href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">Creative |
| Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 4.0 International License</a>. It used to |
| be (and for a few pages still is):</p> |
| |
| <blockquote><p>Verbatim |
| copying and distribution of this entire article are permitted worldwide, |
| without royalty, in any medium, provided this notice is |
| preserved.</p></blockquote> |
| |
| <p>Please note the following commentary about this |
| “verbatim license” by Eben Moglen:</p> |
| |
| <blockquote><p> |
| “Our intention in using the phrase ‘verbatim copying in |
| any medium’ is not to require retention of page headings and |
| footers or other formatting features. Retention of weblinks in both |
| hyperlinked and non-hyperlinked media (as notes or some other form of |
| printed URL in non-HTML media) is required.” |
| </p></blockquote> |
| |
| <h3 id="FSLicenses">List of Free Software Licenses</h3> |
| |
| <ul> |
| <li> |
| <a href="/licenses/license-list.html">List of Free Software Licenses</a> |
| |
| <p> If you are contemplating writing a new license, please contact the |
| FSF by writing to <a |
| href="mailto:licensing@fsf.org"><licensing@fsf.org></a>. The |
| proliferation of different free software licenses means increased work |
| for users in understanding the licenses; we may be able to help you |
| find an existing Free Software license that meets your needs. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| If that isn't possible, if you really need a new license, with our |
| help you can ensure that the license really is a Free Software license |
| and avoid various practical problems. |
| </p> |
| |
| </li> |
| </ul> |
| |
| |
| <h3 id="WhatIsCopyleft">What Is Copyleft?</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| <a href="/licenses/copyleft.html"><em>Copyleft</em></a> is a general |
| method for making a program free |
| software and requiring all modified and extended versions of the |
| program to be free software as well. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| The simplest way to make a program free is to put it in the |
| <a href="/philosophy/categories.html#PublicDomainSoftware">public |
| domain</a>, uncopyrighted. This allows people to share the program |
| and their improvements, if they are so minded. But it also allows |
| uncooperative people to convert the program into |
| <a href="/philosophy/categories.html#ProprietarySoftware">proprietary |
| software</a>. They can make changes, many or few, and distribute the |
| result as a proprietary product. People who receive the program in |
| that modified form do not have the freedom that the original author |
| gave them; the middleman has stripped it away. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| In the <a href="/gnu/thegnuproject.html">GNU project</a>, our aim is |
| to give <em>all</em> users the freedom to redistribute and change GNU |
| software. If middlemen could strip off the freedom, we might have |
| many users, but those users would not have freedom. So instead of |
| putting GNU software in the public domain, we “copyleft” |
| it. Copyleft says that anyone who redistributes the software, with or |
| without changes, must pass along the freedom to further copy and |
| change it. Copyleft guarantees that every user has freedom. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Copyleft also provides an |
| <a href="/philosophy/pragmatic.html">incentive</a> |
| for other programmers to add to free software. |
| Important free programs such as the GNU C++ compiler exist |
| only because of this. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Copyleft also helps programmers who want to contribute |
| <a href="/software/software.html#develop">improvements</a> to |
| <a href="/philosophy/free-sw.html">free software</a> get permission to |
| do that. These programmers often work for companies or universities |
| that would do almost anything to get more money. A programmer may |
| want to contribute her changes to the community, but her employer may |
| want to turn the changes into a proprietary software product. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| When we explain to the employer that it is illegal to distribute the |
| improved version except as free software, the employer usually decides |
| to release it as free software rather than throw it away. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| To copyleft a program, we first state that it is copyrighted; then |
| we add distribution terms, which are a legal instrument that gives |
| everyone the rights to use, modify, and redistribute the program's |
| code <em>or any program derived from it</em> but only if the |
| distribution terms are unchanged. Thus, the code and the freedoms |
| become legally inseparable. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Proprietary software developers use copyright to take away the users' |
| freedom; we use copyright to guarantee their freedom. That's why we |
| reverse the name, changing “copyright” into |
| “copyleft”. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Copyleft is a general concept; there are many ways to fill in the |
| details. In the GNU Project, the specific distribution terms that we |
| use are contained in the GNU General Public License, the GNU Lesser |
| General Public License and the GNU Free Documentation License. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| The appropriate license is included in many manuals and in each GNU |
| source code distribution. |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| The GNU GPL is designed so that you can easily apply it to your own |
| program if you are the copyright holder. You don't have to modify the |
| GNU GPL to do this, just add notices to your program which refer |
| properly to the GNU GPL. Please note that you must use the |
| entire text of the GPL, if you use it. It is an integral whole, and |
| partial copies are not permitted. (Likewise for the LGPL, AGPL, and FDL.) |
| </p> |
| |
| <p> |
| Using the same distribution terms for many different programs makes it |
| easy to copy code between various different programs. Since they all |
| have the same distribution terms, there is no need to think about |
| whether the terms are compatible. The Lesser GPL includes a |
| provision that lets you alter the distribution terms to the ordinary |
| GPL, so that you can copy code into another program covered by the GPL. |
| </p> |
| |
| <h3 id="OtherWorks">Licenses for Other Types of Works</h3> |
| |
| <p> |
| We believe that published software and documentation should be |
| <a href="/philosophy/free-doc.html">free software and free documentation</a>. |
| We recommend making all sorts of educational and reference works free |
| also, using free documentation licenses such as the |
| <a href="#FDL">GNU Free Documentation License</a> (GNU FDL). |
| </p> |
| |
| <p>For essays of opinion and scientific papers, we recommend |
| either the <a |
| href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/us/">Creative |
| Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License</a>, or the |
| simple “verbatim copying only” license stated above.</p> |
| |
| <p> |
| We don't take the position that artistic or entertainment works must |
| be free, but if you want to make one free, we recommend |
| the <a href="//directory.fsf.org/wiki/License:Free-Art-L-v1.3">Free Art |
| License</a>.</p> |
| |
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| mission to promote computer user freedom. We defend the rights of all |
| software users.”</strong></p> |
| </blockquote> |
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| <p>This page is licensed under a <a rel="license" |
| href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">Creative |
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| |
| <p class="unprintable">Updated: |
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| $Date: 2020/07/09 11:25:40 $ |
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