[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: making a non-GPLed module
- To: Gilad Ben-Yossef <gilad(at-nospam)benyossef.com>
- Subject: Re: making a non-GPLed module
- From: Shlomo Matichin <shlomom(at-nospam)cs.huji.ac.il>
- Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 07:49:40 +0200 (IST)
- cc: <linux-il(at-nospam)linux.org.il>
- Delivered-To: linux.org.il-linux-il@linux.org.il
- In-Reply-To: <1006800471.2285.25.camel@gby.benyossef.com>
- Sender: linux-il-bounce(at-nospam)cs.huji.ac.il
hi gilad,
| Binary only kernel modules are a clear violation of the GPL (since they
| "link" to the kernel image, much like linking is done with a loadable
| run time library). However, Linux Torvalds have expressed his
| "agreement" for the existance of binary only kernel modules as long they
| load ageinst an unmodified kernel (which is why MOSIX had to release
| their stuff under the GPL too). Mind you, he still thinks (or at least
| said so) that it's "immoral" and there's doubt that you will be cast
| away by Saint IGNUcious from the one true church (of EMACS, of course
| ;-) but he allows it.
We in the MOSIX team did not violate any copyright or do anything illegal:
It is true that parts of our software did not comply with the GPL,
but there was no reason they should have.
The software we released in the first versions of MOSIX for Linux-2.2.x
could be divided to 5 different categories:
1) Some user sources - GPL (although they didn't have to be so);
2) Modifications to existing Linux kernel files - GPL;
3) New kernel files that #include or even borrow a few lines
from the Linux kernel - GPL;
4) New kernel files, mainly header-files (#include) that do not #include
or otherwise use a single character from the Linux kernel -
These had a dual-license:
a) GPL for the world
b) private for our own use as authors
5) Binary code (eg. module) derived from our sources and contained no
single character from GPL-code and did not even #include any GPL'd
file, only headers from category #4 used in our private/owner
capacity.
Since our binary module did not contain anything from Linux, we could
issue it in any way we pleased: we did not even need to consider the GPL
or obtain any license or permission from anybody whatsoever.
regards,
Shlomo.
--
-------------------------------------------
Shlomo Matichin shlomom@cs.huji.ac.il
The Mosix Group www.mosix.org
=================================================================
To unsubscribe, send mail to linux-il-request@linux.org.il with
the word "unsubscribe" in the message body, e.g., run the command
echo unsubscribe | mail linux-il-request@linux.org.il