4 ms·

Can I ask why you chose GPL for Ansible? This makes it more challenging to integrate or embed Ansible in many types of commercial or non-GPL projects. Chef [1]

by csears 13y ago

Can I ask why you chose GPL for Ansible? This makes it more challenging to integrate or embed Ansible in many types of commercial or non-GPL projects. Chef [1] and Puppet [2] both chose the Apache license. Salt did as well. If you were worried about competitors offering hosted versions of Ansible, I could understand going AGPL, but not GPL3. Thanks! [1]: http://www.opscode.com/blog/2009/08/11/why-we-chose-the-apache-license/ http://www.opscode.com/blog/2009/08/11/why-we-chose-the-apac... [2]: https://puppetlabs.com/apache/ https://puppetlabs.com/apache/

mpdehaan2 13y ago
I come from Red Hat and I like the GPL, because it ensures the software remains free. I view GPLv3 as largely a language improvement on GPLv2, which makes it easier to understand and define how it applies. Ansible being GPLv3 doesn't affect folks much. Your library modules can be licensed in any way you like, and it's fine to shell out and call ansible-playbook. AWX also exists as a nice API layer if you need a web services interface that abstracts you from the license question, so folks looking to do commercial integrations can tap into the REST layer. AGPL is more restrictive than GPL, in some ways, as you can't use things in a hosted service. We didn't want to be that restrictive.
- e12e 13y ago
  While AGPL certainly is more restrictive (that is the whole point of the AGPL after all) -- it does of course not prevent the use in a hosted service, it just has a requirement that the end user still has access to the source code (while with GPL you could change large parts of the Free code, and never contribute that back to the users, if you so chose). As long as there is a REST bridge/layer, any service shouldn't be considered a derived work -- only changes to "core" Ansible would be "covered" by the AGPL. I'm sure you know this, but it is an important point (just like the GPL never dictates that you have to contribute changes upstream, just to "your" users (which of course might include upstream, and most people feel it is more constructive to give back in the more general sense...)). I've seen some strange (imnho incorrect) interpretations of the AGPL, hence this comment.
  - mpdehaan2 13y ago
    Right! It would prevent people from being able to use it in hosted services that didn't share the source, and we wanted to make sure people could easily use it in those things without any problems.

by csears 13y ago

mpdehaan2 13y ago

I come from Red Hat and I like the GPL, because it ensures the software remains free. I view GPLv3 as largely a language improvement on GPLv2, which makes it easier to understand and define how it applies. Ansible being GPLv3 doesn't affect folks much. Your library modules can be licensed in any way you like, and it's fine to shell out and call ansible-playbook. AWX also exists as a nice API layer if you need a web services interface that abstracts you from the license question, so folks looking to do commercial integrations can tap into the REST layer. AGPL is more restrictive than GPL, in some ways, as you can't use things in a hosted service. We didn't want to be that restrictive.

e12e 13y ago
While AGPL certainly is more restrictive (that is the whole point of the AGPL after all) -- it does of course not prevent the use in a hosted service, it just has a requirement that the end user still has access to the source code (while with GPL you could change large parts of the Free code, and never contribute that back to the users, if you so chose). As long as there is a REST bridge/layer, any service shouldn't be considered a derived work -- only changes to "core" Ansible would be "covered" by the AGPL. I'm sure you know this, but it is an important point (just like the GPL never dictates that you have to contribute changes upstream, just to "your" users (which of course might include upstream, and most people feel it is more constructive to give back in the more general sense...)). I've seen some strange (imnho incorrect) interpretations of the AGPL, hence this comment.
- mpdehaan2 13y ago
  Right! It would prevent people from being able to use it in hosted services that didn't share the source, and we wanted to make sure people could easily use it in those things without any problems.