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HAPROXY's license - 2006/06/15
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Historically, haproxy has been covered by GPL version 2. However, an issue
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appeared in GPL which will prevent external non-GPL code from being built
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using the headers provided with haproxy. My long-term goal is to build a core
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system able to load external modules to support specific application protocols.
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Since some protocols are found in rare environments (finance, industry, ...),
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some of them might be accessible only after signing an NDA. Enforcing GPL on
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such modules would only prevent them from ever being implemented, while not
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providing anything useful to ordinary users.
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For this reason, I *want* to be able to support binary only external modules
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when needed, with a GPL core and GPL modules for standard protocols, so that
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people fixing bugs don't keep them secretly to try to stay over competition.
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The solution was then to apply the LGPL license to the exportable include
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files, while keeping the GPL for all the rest. This way, it still is mandatory
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to redistribute modified code under customer request, but at the same time, it
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is expressly permitted to write, compile, link and load non-GPL code using the
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LGPL header files and not to distribute them if it causes a legal problem.
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Of course, users are strongly encouraged to continue the work under GPL as long
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as possible, since this license has allowed useful enhancements, contributions
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and fixes from talented people around the world.
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The text of the licenses lies in the "doc" directory. All the files provided in
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this package are covered by the GPL unless expressly stated otherwise in them.
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Every patch or contribution provided by external people will by default comply
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with the license of the files it affects, or be rejected.
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Willy Tarreau - w@1wt.eu
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