Excitement for GPL enforcement at Linux Plumbers
by on October 3, 2024
We were excited and very happy to participate in Linux Plumbers Conference this year, which happened last month (Sep 18-20) in Vienna. As one of the premiere programs using a software right to repair license (GPLv2), Linux is crucial for the future of software freedom in our devices, from those we use to develop and write new code, to the phones many of us carry with us, to the many appliances and even cars that bring conveniences to our lives. And so we were delighted to discuss Linux and its role in our connected future with Linux kernel developers and other enthusiasts who attended this technical conference.
We hosted a BoF, Let's talk about GPL and LGPL enforcement!, which brought dozens of developers together to discuss the hard questions of how we can ensure that Linux's license is enforced so people can get the code they're entitled to, and the current state of GPL and LGPL enforcement across the board. After some discussion of how often companies use software under the GPL and LGPL without honoring the license terms (it's unfortunately very very common), we fielded some questions about source candidates that people had received. The first example that a participant provided as a positive example of a company meeting its obligations turned out to actually be from a company that SFC had sued in the past, showing that SFC's prior enforcement efforts were helping to change behavior, causing companies to provide GPL/LGPL source code when they hadn't before.
The discussion moved on to how we can bring the next generation of developers into the Linux community, so they can keep improving the Linux kernel in the coming decades. It was noted that a lot of new computer users aren't getting the same computing environment that most Linux developers grew up with. In particular, most Linux developers today started computing with desktop or laptop computers that gave them a wide range of software options, and easy ways to switch operating systems and other key software. However, today most new computer users are getting less capable devices, not because they are less powerful, but because the devices don't have the same malleability and accessibility as they did two decades ago, which is due in part to GPL violations where the user is prevented from reinstalling modified Linux or other software onto their device.
This really struck me, as I had many conversations in the "hallway track" where I asked people how they got into FOSS, and the responses were invariably a version of "to do more interesting things with my computer". It was clear that the computing devices of the 90s and early 2000s really promoted this developer mindset, and that we would have to keep the momentum going to ensure that new developers would have the same opportunities. This leaves us with a mission to make sure that as computing platforms change, we retain the freedoms that enabled the current generation of technology to flourish.
While GPL enforcement isn't the only factor in ensuring people can access developer tools and make meaningful changes to their devices, it is certainly an important piece of the puzzle, given everything we heard at Plumbers this year. With large percentages of Linux devices still distributed without giving users the freedoms that Linux's license is designed to give them, GPL enforcement is immensely important, as our discussions at Plumbers and elsewhere remind us.
The feedback from the BoF was overwhelmingly positive, and we were so happy to be able to take questions, share information, connect with longtime contributors and meet newcomers with such a keen interest in copyleft and enforcement. As always, we invite feedback about this work. You can email us anytime at compliance@sfconservancy.org, and we'll be scheduling some synchronous sessions later in the year.
In the meantime, we are proud to continue the work to ensure that everyone can repair and modify the software on their Linux devices, and everything else using software right-to-repair licenses, for current and future generations of software users and developers.
Please email any comments on this entry to info@sfconservancy.org.
