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> My understanding is that they have to provide clear instructions on where to get the source. No. Only when they distributed their software to you (the Linux

by mpol 10y ago

> My understanding is that they have to provide clear instructions on where to get the source. No. Only when they distributed their software to you (the Linux kernel under the GPL) then you can request the sourcecode for that under the GPL. If you never had any code being distributed by them to you, they have no obligation to you.

mjg59 10y ago
This is a common misunderstanding. You have two choices when distributing GPLv2 software commercially: you can either provide the source code alongside the binaries (section 3(a)), or you can provide a written offer to provide the source code on request to any third party (section 3(b)). Non-commercial distribution can forward on a 3(b) offer rather than making their own.
- infinite8s 10y ago
  Exactly. Except that if you as third party do not receive the the Program (or a work based on it, under Section 2) in object code or executable form, then you have no rights under section 3. So a company that sells GPL'd software is only required to provide the source to any of their purchasers (however, those purchasers are not restricted in any way and can give the source to someone else). So the only way I could get the source code from that company is if I purchase their product.
  - tzs 10y ago
    > So a company that sells GPL'd software is only required to provide the source to any of their purchasers (however, those purchasers are not restricted in any way and can give the source to someone else). So the only way I could get the source code from that company is if I purchase their product. That's not correct. The text of the license says: > Accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three years, to give any third party, for a charge no more than your cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be distributed under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for software interchange; or, It say any third party. There is nothing in there that limits it to only those who purchased it from the company. If the company elects to go with the written offer approach and I buy a copy from them, and then I give you a copy, they are obligated to give you source code if you ask even though you did not purchase from them. As explained in the GPLv2 FAQ: > What does this “written offer valid for any third party” mean? Does that mean everyone in the world can get the source to any GPL'ed program no matter what? > If you choose to provide source through a written offer, then anybody who requests the source from you is entitled to receive it. > If you commercially distribute binaries not accompanied with source code, the GPL says you must provide a written offer to distribute the source code later. When users non-commercially redistribute the binaries they received from you, they must pass along a copy of this written offer. This means that people who did not get the binaries directly from you can still receive copies of the source code, along with the written offer. > The reason we require the offer to be valid for any third party is so that people who receive the binaries indirectly in that way can order the source code from you. Also relevant from the FAQ: > My friend got a GPL-covered binary with an offer to supply source, and made a copy for me. Can I use the offer myself to obtain the source? > Yes, you can. The offer must be open to everyone who has a copy of the binary that it accompanies. This is why the GPL says your friend must give you a copy of the offer along with a copy of the binary—so you can take advantage of it.
    - infinite8s 10y ago
      OK, I stand corrected. However, it sounds like technically you must possess a copy of the binary to request source code, although the GPL doesn't require you to furnish proof that you have such a binary. IE there must be a chain of transferring the written offer from company to purchaser to third party. Or in other words you must have a copy of that written offer in order to request the source code (and the text of the FAQ seems to support that).

by mpol 10y ago

mjg59 10y ago

This is a common misunderstanding. You have two choices when distributing GPLv2 software commercially: you can either provide the source code alongside the binaries (section 3(a)), or you can provide a written offer to provide the source code on request to any third party (section 3(b)). Non-commercial distribution can forward on a 3(b) offer rather than making their own.

infinite8s 10y ago
Exactly. Except that if you as third party do not receive the the Program (or a work based on it, under Section 2) in object code or executable form, then you have no rights under section 3. So a company that sells GPL'd software is only required to provide the source to any of their purchasers (however, those purchasers are not restricted in any way and can give the source to someone else). So the only way I could get the source code from that company is if I purchase their product.
- tzs 10y ago
  > So a company that sells GPL'd software is only required to provide the source to any of their purchasers (however, those purchasers are not restricted in any way and can give the source to someone else). So the only way I could get the source code from that company is if I purchase their product. That's not correct. The text of the license says: > Accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three years, to give any third party, for a charge no more than your cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be distributed under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for software interchange; or, It say any third party. There is nothing in there that limits it to only those who purchased it from the company. If the company elects to go with the written offer approach and I buy a copy from them, and then I give you a copy, they are obligated to give you source code if you ask even though you did not purchase from them. As explained in the GPLv2 FAQ: > What does this “written offer valid for any third party” mean? Does that mean everyone in the world can get the source to any GPL'ed program no matter what? > If you choose to provide source through a written offer, then anybody who requests the source from you is entitled to receive it. > If you commercially distribute binaries not accompanied with source code, the GPL says you must provide a written offer to distribute the source code later. When users non-commercially redistribute the binaries they received from you, they must pass along a copy of this written offer. This means that people who did not get the binaries directly from you can still receive copies of the source code, along with the written offer. > The reason we require the offer to be valid for any third party is so that people who receive the binaries indirectly in that way can order the source code from you. Also relevant from the FAQ: > My friend got a GPL-covered binary with an offer to supply source, and made a copy for me. Can I use the offer myself to obtain the source? > Yes, you can. The offer must be open to everyone who has a copy of the binary that it accompanies. This is why the GPL says your friend must give you a copy of the offer along with a copy of the binary—so you can take advantage of it.
  - infinite8s 10y ago
    OK, I stand corrected. However, it sounds like technically you must possess a copy of the binary to request source code, although the GPL doesn't require you to furnish proof that you have such a binary. IE there must be a chain of transferring the written offer from company to purchaser to third party. Or in other words you must have a copy of that written offer in order to request the source code (and the text of the FAQ seems to support that).