What is ArchLinux license?

pinchoonet · 2022-07-07 12:47:49

Hi,

I cannot find any license topic on ArchLinux official web site.
What is ArchLinux license particularly in order to install it on a laptop sold to or used for customers?
Thanks in advance for your response

Regards,
Pascal

Allan · 2022-07-07 12:57:31

There are many. This is a question for a lawyer if you are going to be selling to customers.

pinchoonet · 2022-07-07 13:14:00

My lawyer cannot answer me as there is no information about ArchLinux licenses.

Last edited by pinchoonet (2022-07-07 13:14:37)

Scimmia · 2022-07-07 13:15:30

There is, each package has it listed.

twelveeighty · 2022-07-07 14:39:12

pinchoonet wrote:

My lawyer cannot answer me as there is no information about ArchLinux licenses.

Find a different lawyer that has experience with (re)distributing Linux-based products, since the #1 thing to deal with is the fact that there are typically many, sometimes very different, licenses involved. Arch is 'just' a distribution of upstream developed and licensed/copyrighted software packages. You could argue that pacman is the closest to 'being' Arch, but it's still packaged and licensed under its own license agreement. Some of the packages are under 'commonly well understood' licenses, such as the kernel - assuming you are using linux from [core]. Others are much more open to interpretation and therefore risk and then there is the dog's breakfast of licenses for packages in the AUR, which (commercially speaking) range from 'Ok to use' to 'never ever'.

Last edited by twelveeighty (2022-07-07 14:40:45)

Trilby · 2022-07-07 15:24:36

1. To accentuate the main point: "Archlinux" is not a piece of software and as such does not have a license. Period.

2. As noted in previous posts, every actual bit of software you install on these systems will have their own license.

3. Selling computers to unsuspecting victims with archlinux preinstalled is a horrible disservice to them, to this community, and in the end to your own reputation. Do not do this.

4. Reread #3 a couple dozen times.

(edit: fixed a very silly spelling error ... clearly I should have had my coffee before posting)

Last edited by Trilby (2022-07-08 00:57:21)

schard · 2022-07-07 16:30:45

While Arch Linux is not a software per se, it sure has a license, which is even listed on its homepage:

archlinux.org wrote:

Copyright © 2002-2022 Judd Vinet, Aaron Griffin and Levente Polyák.
The Arch Linux name and logo are recognized trademarks. Some rights reserved.
The registered trademark Linux® is used pursuant to a sublicense from LMI, the exclusive licensee of Linus Torvalds, owner of the mark on a world-wide basis.

For details you might want to contact the license holders listed above.

Scimmia · 2022-07-07 16:57:12

schard wrote:

While Arch Linux is not a software per se, it sure has a license, which is even listed on its homepage:
archlinux.org wrote:

Copyright © 2002-2022 Judd Vinet, Aaron Griffin and Levente Polyák.
The Arch Linux name and logo are recognized trademarks. Some rights reserved.
The registered trademark Linux® is used pursuant to a sublicense from LMI, the exclusive licensee of Linus Torvalds, owner of the mark on a world-wide basis.
For details you might want to contact the license holders listed above.

That's for the page and the trademark, it has nothing to do with Arch as software.

loqs · 2022-07-07 17:30:19

You can find a packages license in /usr/share/licenses/$pkgname/ if that directory does not exist the package will be using a common license distributed in licenses package.
You can also query a packages license using pacman, it is listed in the output of `pacman -Qi $packagename`.

schard · 2022-07-07 20:54:27

Scimmia wrote:

schard wrote:
While Arch Linux is not a software per se, it sure has a license, which is even listed on its homepage:
archlinux.org wrote:

Copyright © 2002-2022 Judd Vinet, Aaron Griffin and Levente Polyák.
The Arch Linux name and logo are recognized trademarks. Some rights reserved.
The registered trademark Linux® is used pursuant to a sublicense from LMI, the exclusive licensee of Linus Torvalds, owner of the mark on a world-wide basis.
For details you might want to contact the license holders listed above.
That's for the page and the trademark, it has nothing to do with Arch as software.

If you want to resell Arch Linux to end users, as op intends to, they need to comply with those trademarks and licenses. So my quote is very applicable to the issue in this thread.

Last edited by schard (2022-07-07 20:54:43)

pinchoonet · 2022-07-08 07:14:15

I don't want to resell ArchLinux, just use or sell a laptop with ArchLinux installed on.

jasonwryan · 2022-07-08 07:21:42

pinchoonet wrote:

I don't want to resell ArchLinux, just ...sell a laptop with ArchLinux installed on.

That's the same thing...

seth · 2022-07-08 07:43:33

I'd ask a lawyer about the local situation, but it seems possible that one could sell the hardware and the installation service, but not the actual software (ie. keep those contracts exclusive to the customer)
Doesn't though change anything about

Trilby wrote:

3. Selling computers to unsuspecting victims with archlinux preinstalled is a horrible disservice to them, to this community, and in the end to your own reputation. Do not do this.

bulletmark · 2022-07-08 08:17:34

pinchoonet wrote:

sell a laptop with ArchLinux installed

Surely it would make much more sense if the laptop "comes the latest Ubuntu installed" which most people are more familiar with and would prefer? Would be a better selling point.

Also, any Arch aficionado purchaser would most likely do what I would do, i.e. completely wipe the disk and re-install Arch myself.

pinchoonet · 2022-07-08 09:02:08

1985 on french TV, conversation between the King of France (without crown) and Léo Ferré, french poet, singer and anarchist:
- the King of France: "Monarchy is Anarchy +1"
- Léo Ferré: "No, Monarchy is Anarchy -1"

PS: sometimes, it's better to say nothing...

Last edited by pinchoonet (2022-07-08 09:03:18)

pinchoonet · 2022-07-08 09:35:47

Thanks all for your responses

seth · 2022-07-08 14:41:08

Monarchy is Anarchy of one.

Assuming you understand the legal nature of "arch isn't one thing - you might be able to sell some packages, but not others" and in general:
Please always remember to mark resolved threads by editing your initial posts subject - so others will know that there's no task left, but maybe a solution to find.
Thanks.

pinchoonet · 2022-07-08 14:47:17

Sorry, topic not resolved for me... My brain is more confused than before posting my question :-)
But thanks again and have all a good week-end.

twelveeighty · 2022-07-08 15:02:45

pinchoonet wrote:

Sorry, topic not resolved for me....

You're getting close to Troll territory here - it doesn't take much effort to understand the concept of 'many licenses' vs. 'one license'. I think you're conflating or even translating "that's not what I want to hear" with "I don't understand what I'm hearing". I also think that you never spoke to a lawyer, contrary to your statement in post #3.

ewaller · 2022-07-08 16:02:07

I always cringe when Copyright threads pop up. It is a complex topic that can be befuddling. The lawyers at work hate open source licences and always try to take the path of least resistance and try to avoid them -- fortunately they have found that not to be a universal "solution".

I am not a lawyer and would gouge my eyes out with a rusty spoon if I were. My impression is that you can use open source licences for your own purposes for just about anything you need or want to do on your own machine. Where you will get into trouble is when you distribute changes to that code to others -- especially if trying to do so for profit. You may find out you are required to share the source of changes and the tools to build them.

Selling a laptop with software installed is redistribution.

Trilby · 2022-07-08 17:58:28

ewaller wrote:

Selling a laptop with software installed is redistribution.

As is putting the software in the repos. There should be nothing special needed for selling for a profit that is not also required for making the software available in a repo except for any case where the license prohibits commercial use. None of the common open source licenses prohibit commercial use of the unmodified software (even the GPL is fine with people selling copies for profit so long as the source is available); though some common Creative Commons licenses for documentation does. I doubt that would apply to selling hardware that contained that documentation, though that'd be a lawyer question, and it really has nothing to do with open source licensing specifically, but rather a question of whether selling a computer with a document on it is equivalent to making profit off of distributing that document.

Trademark is an entirely separate issue that may apply, but relates only to using the name and logos. Software can not be trademarked. Trademarked content can be licensed, but I am not aware of any public statement of any license at all for the arch linux name or logo. So contacting the relevant owners of the trademark would be necessary to seek permission if one intends to use the name or logo (this can be easily avoided).

Last edited by Trilby (2022-07-08 17:59:29)

ewaller · 2022-07-08 21:22:28

Trilby wrote:

ewaller wrote:
Selling a laptop with software installed is redistribution.
As is putting the software in the repos. There should be nothing special needed for selling for a profit that is not also required for making the software available in a repo except for any case where the license prohibits commercial use.

All true. What I was dancing around is that doing so makes binds you to the requirements of the licences. For example. If one adds something to the menagerie that builds upon something licensed by the GPL such that the licensed code becomes part of the executable, then you are subject to the "Copy Left" rules. Not any issue (I think) provided you don't add anything. If you are merely distributing code that is otherwise available, no issue. If you are adding something, be aware.

Sadly, these discussions usually devolve to arguing the number of angels that can dance on the head of a pin.

Awebb · 2022-07-08 22:11:23

Most if not all copyleft code within Arch has a viewable license in the pacman information screen and all sources and patches can be viewed by looking at the PKGBUILD on the packes page. In an ideal world this would be enough.

Cyrus Yip · 2022-07-09 18:38:32

Steam Deck is a commercial product whose system is based on Arch Linux, which shows that it's doable to sell devices with Arch. Maybe you can learn something from this real example.

Last edited by Cyrus Yip (2022-07-09 18:54:10)

Awebb · 2022-07-09 18:55:07

Having Valve moneyz helps with getting a paragraph jockey who is into this kind of thing.

Arch Linux

#1 2022-07-07 12:47:49

What is ArchLinux license?

#2 2022-07-07 12:57:31

Re: What is ArchLinux license?

#3 2022-07-07 13:14:00

Re: What is ArchLinux license?

#4 2022-07-07 13:15:30

Re: What is ArchLinux license?

#5 2022-07-07 14:39:12

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#6 2022-07-07 15:24:36

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#7 2022-07-07 16:30:45

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#8 2022-07-07 16:57:12

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#9 2022-07-07 17:30:19

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