The difference between the gpl and the lgpl is that with the lgpl, the entire work doesnt have to have the same license. The most important one is the gnu general public license, but there is also the gnu lesser general public license and the gnu affero general public license. The article describes how during the gpl v3 discussions, there was a move to close the saas loophole by including some of the provisions of the affero general public license or agpl. Since gpl requires providing access to source code, and agplv3 section is an additional condition specifically added to plug the loophole in saas like software, does not it imply that agplv3 also requires providing source code access, irrespective of whether it is modified or not. However, under one strong copyleft license, the affero general public license agpl, the reciprocity or sharealike requirements are triggered not only if the software is distributed to others, but also if the software is provided on a hosted i. This license which was chosen because we wanted to share our software. Aug 28, 2014 gnu librarylesser general public license lgpl the above copyleft license didnt work for many software libraries because no one who was releasing any type of software commercially or under an alternative license would use them, which was the whole purpose of releasing the libraries.
A lesser general public license is used to license free software so that it can be incorporated into both free software and proprietary software, and is often referred to as the weaker sibling of gpl. Traditional software licensing model global software vendors are starting to feel the disruptive effects of the software as a service business model saas. Software as a service and gnu gpl licensing is not complex, the motto of the license is for disallowing the softwares to control the users and modify, distribute, develop, use the softwares with full freedom along with the other points written in the license. The software is delivered online via a browser and is hosted by the. Gpl requires you to release the source code of your application if you choose to use and distribute the gpl licensed open source software. Today, distribution can be a thornier question for businesses that deploy software through the internet, cloud, or a saas model.
Software as a service saas license agreement sample. Lgpl lesser gnu public license is more lenient than gpl. The gnu lesser general public license lgpl is a free software license published by the free software foundation fsf. If you do that, then youd be distributing the software. Basic differences between saas, subscription and traditional perpetual licenses. As long as you dont distribute your binaries, there is no problem with using gpl libraries or other code in an otherwise closedsource project. Also, theres nothing preventing you from selling an open source app on the microsoft app marketplace. Some experts said it wasnt really needed, while others wondered whether it served the commercial giants of software over the open source community and smaller, younger businesses. And because legal person includes a corporation, there is no distributionand therefore no risk of violating a licenses termsif software is merely transferred between employees of the same company. The gnu affero general public license3 agpl is a special license in the family of open source licenses, creating risks and opportunities that do not exist with most other open source licenses. Software as a service model is user friendly and incurs comparatively lower cost. The license allows developers and companies to use and integrate a software component released under the lgpl into their.
Hi guys, i would like to know if odoos lgpl v3 license gives me the permission to develop a product on top of odoo community edition and to be sold as saas or as independent product. These are significant changes from the traditional software model where you store your data locally and your enterprise licenses the software it uses. Yes, you can distribute your software without making the source code public and without giving recipients the right to make changes to your software. What you need to know this post is an effort to explain and answer common questions about the lgpl, like how it can be used, how contagious it is, and other useful information. May 12, 2015 software as a service and gnu gpl licensing is not complex, the motto of the license is for disallowing the softwares to control the users and modify, distribute, develop, use the softwares with full freedom along with the other points written in the license. The saas loophole in gpl open source licenses whitesource. See the gnu lesser general public license for more details. The question and answer no longer available on linkedin are reproduced, in slightly edited form, below. The first version of the affero general public license agplv1, was published by affero, inc. You only have to contribute back if you add to that library. We frequently draft and negotiate data license agreements, software asaservice saas agreements, website terms and other services agreements in which data is the core subject of the license. A traditional software license described above does not apply to softwareasa service saas contracts because the customer does not download or install copies of the software. In a license, the customer gets rights to copy and use software, while in a services contract, the customer gets a service, like tech support or it consulting. Lgpl allows you to use and distribute the open source software with your application without releasing the source code for your application.
How can saas companies ensure that they are complying to their open source. Most open source licenses have no conditions for saas use. As far as the regular gpl and lgpl are concerned, providing access to use your software over a network like in saas is not considered distribution. The opensource hardware wikpedia page mentions that. The lgpl license allows you to distribute these mariadb client libraries freely with any application. What are the risks of launching a free saas without incorporatingsole prop. Derivatives works including modifications or anything statically linked to the library can only be redistributed under lgpl, but applications. Lgpl v3 odoo community license to be used in a commercial. Mpl mozilla public license is a little more lenient than lgpl as it only covers the files to which the license is applied. Frequently asked questions about the gnu licenses gnu project. The apache software foundation uses various licenses to distribute software and documentation, to accept regular contributions from individuals and corporations, and to accept larger grants of existing software products.
In the agpl license, saas is considered distribution and requires. Sep 12, 2011 most it contract drafters know the difference between a software license agreement and a technology services contract. The gnu lesser general public license, also known as the lgpl, is a more permissive version of the gpl the gnu general public license. The affero general public license affero gpl and informally affero license is a free software license. The lgpl license explicitly allows such usages of librariespackages released under that license. You may copy, distribute and modify the software provided that modifications are described and licensed for free under lgpl. In fact, the two models for software licensing open source and. The gnu affero general public license version 3 agplv3 is a copyleft license nearly identical to the gplv3. I recently answered a linkedin question about whether providing software as a service saas is considered a distribution under the opensource gnu general public license.
Either way, the software functionality remains the same. What is the difference between gpl, agpl and lgpl licenses. If your software is a combinedderivate work withof apache2 software, you cannot license that software under the gpl2 and therefore cannot license it under the lgpl 2. Jun 06, 2017 it is often referred to as the library gpl. Jun 24, 2008 open source, gpl and saas one of them is the ability to make good use of gpled software. It allows you to call a library covered by lgpl without having. How saas deals differ from software license deals mark grossman. The incompatibility of apache2 and gpl2 is well documented.
Both licenses have the same copyleft scope, but materially differ in one important way. Lgpl lesser gnu public license, as a larger work, ok. In a similar fashion id like to use them for my opensource hardware projects gpl for schematic and pcbs, lgpl for schematic symbols and pcb modules. Among the two gpl is the basis of open source software for programmers. It allows you to call a library covered by lgpl without having to open source your code. The saas developers ubershort guide to using open source. Jul 12, 2007 linux magazines article the gpl has no networked future recognizes a point that ive been making for years.
From the start cura has been developed and shared under the agpl licence affero general public license. First, there are a number of licenses, most notably the agpl, that. In the saas model, you simply pay for what you use, as you go. Ive checked that there are similar products like \this one management software. The only major threat to open source software license models like the gpl is the spread of cloud computing and software as a service saas business models. This means that there is no problem with using lgpl libraries in a closedsource saas project. Software as a service saas is a model where software is hosted in one place but licensed by subscription for use by customers.
In a nutshell, the idea of lgpl d projects usually libraries is that you are free to use them as you wish in your own application, be it open or closed source, free or proprietary as long as you publish the source code of the lgpl d part if you modify the lgpl d part, you must publish the modified sources, under lgpl. Mar 05, 2010 i recently answered a linkedin question about whether providing software as a service saas is considered a distribution under the opensource gnu general public license. The mariadb client library included with the mariadb server is also gpl version 2, but has a floss exception that allows you to combine it with most other open source software, without conflicting. However, saas companies still need to be concerned about software licensing. When the copyleft agpl was first published, many leaders in the open source community had something to say about the issue of a supposed loophole in the gpl open source license that allowed saas companies to integrate gpl open source libraries without sharing their code. The saas developers ubershort guide to using open source projects. Lesser general public license is sometimes referred to as library gpl or gnu libraries, and some associate it with the idea of. The above post is the conclusion of an essay i had to write for my university, titled. The importance of the technology model to contract drafting written by kristie prinz on friday, january 30th, 2015 when i am first retained by a software company, i inevitably have a conversation with my contact at the company about their technology model.
Is hosting a software as a saas offering considered as distribution under gpl. Gpl and lgpl open source licensing restrictions stack. If a library is released under the gpl not the lgpl, does that mean that any software which uses it has to be under the gpl or a gplcompatible license. The businessmens guide to open source licenses software. Revised versions of the gnu lesser general public license. The customer remotely logs into the vendors system to access and use the software. The importance of the technology model to contract drafting written by kristie prinz on friday, january 30th, 2015 when i am first retained by a software. You should have received a copy of the gnu lesser general public license along with this library. Many softwareasa service saas contracts grant a license to use the vendors software. Using full gpl libraries in software as a service saas models. That mobile app needs some sort of license granting agreement, like the enduser license agreement.
Saas use of opensource software is not distribution who. There is a reasonable description at gnu affero general public license wikipedia and the actual license text is available at gnu affero general public license but to make a long story. You can use it too, but we suggest you first think carefully about whether this license or the ordinary general public license. The only major threat to open source software license models like the gpl is the spread of cloud computing and software as a. Open source software rules for startups, part ii lot network. The gnu project has two principal licenses to use for libraries. Dont use license agreements for software as a service tech. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. Saas use of opensource software is not distribution who gnu. How can i legally use lgpl javascript in a commercial web site. At a regular closedsource software company, you cant include any software in your products that you get from the web which carries the gpl gnu public license, because this license requires all derived works to also use the gpl and be open source. Rather than creating a new license, some opensource hardware projects simply use existing, free and opensource software licenses. Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files the software, to deal in the software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, andor sell copies of the software, and to permit. The fsf is a charity with a worldwide mission to advance software freedom.
Gplv3 and software as a service free software foundation working together for free software skip to. As far as the regular gpl and lgpl are concerned, providing access to. Agreement sample assumes no liability for the content of this document or for any action or inaction taken as a result of it. Even if you provide something as saas over the internet, some parts of your software javascript. Heres how spotify handles addressing both its subscription service and its mobile app. The lgpl license allows an application that references the binaries to remain closedsource. Software licensed with any gnu license can be used and modified everywhere. In this blog entry we will only consider version 3, the current version of these licenses. A lesser general public license lgpl is a license for opensource software that allows for provisions for including elements of free software in either free or proprietary software. The free software foundation has published a family of software licenses. Can i use an lgpllicenced library in my commercial app. What you have to watch out for are libraries that have an agpl affero gpl licence. The gnu lesser general public license lgpl is a freesoftware license published by the free software foundation fsf.
The free software foundation may publish revised andor new versions of the gnu lesser general public license from time to time. Saas is a service, as the name implies, and it doesnt need a license. Software as a service saas is just a software enabled service that is offered on the web, on a month to month subscription or on a pay per use basis, rather than having to purchase or license the software 12. This license, the lesser general public license, applies to some specially designated software packagestypically librariesof the free software foundation and other authors who decide to use it. Some of the other licenses that can raise such issues include the open software license 3. Software as a service saas license agreement sample this document is intended for informational and self educational purposes, to illustrate the diversity of written agreements.
Ive checked that there are similar products like \\this one management software for automobile after sales. Cloud computing saas licenses is agpl the solution. Also if you know other saas services made on top of odoo community edition i would like to know about. But software as a service saas seems to throw a wrench into the. We also advise technology clients on big data issues that arise in outsourcing, joint venture and other transactional matters. Mar, 2017 a traditional software license described above does not apply to software asaservice saas contracts because the customer does not download or install copies of the software. Gplv3 and software as a service free software foundation working together for free software skip to content, sitemap or skip to search. Gplv3 and software as a service free software foundation.
Why you shouldnt use the lesser gpl for your next library. The license allows developers and companies to use and integrate a software component released under the lgpl into their own even proprietary software without being required by the terms of a strong copyleft license to release the source code of their own components. Gpl requires you to release the source code of your application if you choose to use and distribute the gpl licensed open source software with your application. The customer remotely logs into the vendors system to access and use the software, usually through the internet. In contrast to lgpl, gpl requires that you provide the code for all changes made to the software. Using the ordinary gpl for a library gives free software developers an advantage over. Some poeple will love your software but distrust the saas idea. As far as the regular gpl and lgpl are concerned, providing access to use your software over a network like in saas. Saas providers will often get asked to create onpremise versions of their software. Originally known as the gnu library general public license, it was drafted by the free software foundation fsf to provide a weaker or lesser form of copyleft for use in certain specific circumstances. The saas model is growing at an annual rate of 15%20% and will likely represent approximately 25% of the overall software market in the next 5 years. Companies are slowly starting to accept the model of saas, and in some cases actually prefer it.
You mention that it is licensed under the lgpl, with reference to the full license. Using full gpl libraries in software as a service saas. Lgpl software used only as a dynamically linked library. Understanding the difference a license purchase is a fairly straightforward way of acquiring software. Why you shouldnt use the lesser gpl for your next library gnu. Saas vs local distribution and gpl implications licensing.
How cloud computing and software as a service are affecting licenses. Enterprises are increasingly willing to rely on data storage in the cloud and software as a service saas solutions. You can therefore only license code under the lgpl 2. Jul 24, 2018 the gpl saas loophole made headlines around the time the agpl was released. Mar 29, 2007 gplv3 and software as a service by brett smith contributions published on mar 29, 2007 09. Differences between gpl and lgpl when using licensed software. Lgpl is weaker because it allows dynamic linking to other proprietary code. Its the price you pay for free access to some awesome software. Dont use license agreements for softwareasaservice.