On Sat, 2010-03-13 at 12:27 +0100, Bjørn Mork wrote: > This is probably answered somewhere, but I just can't find it right now: > what are the actual requirements for including a firmware which is > distributed from kernel.org in the Debian package firmware-linux-nonfree? It must be clearly legal to distribute in a separate package from the kernel. > The reason I ask is because I was a bit surprised to find that my > edgeport usb serial adapter stopped working after upgrading from > 2.6.26-2 to 2.6.32-3. I knew the firmware had been moved outside the > driver and into the firmware/ directory of the upstream kernel source, > so I thought that installing firmware-linux-nonfree would solve this. > I then found bug #548745 and the question arised. Why can't Debian > distribute something that is distributed from kernel.org, not even in > non-free? Because people were sloppy about licencing when they added firmware to the kernel in the first place. In many cases the only stated licence is GPLv2, which means we are not allowed to distribute the firmware without also distributing its source. (This is unlikely to have been the intent of the copyright holder, but that doesn't mean we can assume some other licence.) In other cases the licence says the firmware can only be distributed along with the kernel, but Debian has decided that non-free software must be distributed separately. In some cases I have tried to contact the copyright holders and request a more appropriate licence. Occasionally this has worked. > Is that restriction really gaining anyone? > > Well, not really a problem to me. I can get the firmware from the > upstream kernel source. But I assume other users may have more problems > with this. And I believe that such self-imposed unnecessary > restrictions are only causing harm to Debian. Instead of complaining about a decision which was taken by the project several years ago, perhaps you could talk to Edgeport about fixing the licence (bug #548745). Ben. -- Ben Hutchings It's easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them.
Attachment:
signature.asc
Description: This is a digitally signed message part