Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1753929AbXFOJa2 (ORCPT ); Fri, 15 Jun 2007 05:30:28 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1752603AbXFOJaQ (ORCPT ); Fri, 15 Jun 2007 05:30:16 -0400 Received: from mail.gmx.net ([213.165.64.20]:52334 "HELO mail.gmx.net" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-OK) by vger.kernel.org with SMTP id S1752215AbXFOJaO (ORCPT ); Fri, 15 Jun 2007 05:30:14 -0400 X-Authenticated: #153925 X-Provags-ID: V01U2FsdGVkX1+bcyYGCHqb76CaIzJVpIkn13w0ouJUtG4ArGsShl n8TGeU7KVV9iST From: Bernd Paysan To: david@lang.hm Subject: Re: Dual-Licensing Linux Kernel with GPL V2 and GPL V3 Date: Fri, 15 Jun 2007 11:30:09 +0200 User-Agent: KMail/1.9.5 Cc: Alexandre Oliva , Linus Torvalds , Kevin Fox , Daniel Hazelton , Lennart Sorensen , Greg KH , debian developer , Tarkan Erimer , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, Andrew Morton , mingo@elte.hu References: In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/signed; boundary="nextPart3983198.dlOzFC5rsv"; protocol="application/pgp-signature"; micalg=pgp-sha1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Message-Id: <200706151130.11184.bernd.paysan@gmx.de> X-Y-GMX-Trusted: 0 Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 2396 Lines: 62 --nextPart3983198.dlOzFC5rsv Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Disposition: inline On Friday 15 June 2007 01:46, david@lang.hm wrote: > if you cannot modify the software that runs on your Tivo hardware you > haven't tried very hard. Yes, but the GPLv2 clearly says that you don't have to try very hard. The=20 preferred form of modification has to be distributed. I can run a=20 decompiler or disassembler on a program, and I can even modify it in place= =20 with a hex editor (I have even modified programs in embedded ROMs by using= =20 focussed ion beam, so I know you can modify every program if you try hard=20 enough). It's certainly possible to crack Tivo's firmware to accept my own= =20 signature, but it's *not* the preferred form of modification, the source=20 code and Tivo's key for the signature. Since Tivo's firmware only accepts a signed kernel, the combination of=20 kernel+signature is the binary they ship. The kernel itself is useless, the= =20 signature as well. Therefore, you can imply that Tivo's key is part of=20 the "other stuff" the GPLv2 mentions, because you need it to recreate the=20 same code as Tivo did and shipped (compilers insert timestamps and such),=20 and to modify that code. The source code is just a mean, the thing they=20 shipped is the end (the binary), and they have to comply with the GPL for=20 that binary - which by all means of practical understanding includes the=20 signature. "You can imply" means: It depends on court and legal system. I'm quite=20 confident that in Germany, the legal system might favor the "GPLv2 does not= =20 allow tivoization" point of view, and in the USA, the legal sysem might do= =20 the opposite. =2D-=20 Bernd Paysan "If you want it done right, you have to do it yourself" http://www.jwdt.com/~paysan/ --nextPart3983198.dlOzFC5rsv Content-Type: application/pgp-signature -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.5 (GNU/Linux) iD8DBQBGclwji4ILt2cAfDARAo9fAJ9tR2d3QdD6s1AAP8/QucN11WgZNwCgwhzg EQ2ybRkkjDWDt6S9+fJ4AbQ= =x+4J -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- --nextPart3983198.dlOzFC5rsv-- - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/