Common Public License
Encyclopedia
In computing
, the CPL (Common Public License) is a free software
/ open-source software
license published by IBM
. The Free Software Foundation
and Open Source Initiative
have approved the license terms of the CPL.
The CPL has the stated aims of supporting and encouraging collaborative open-source
development while still retaining the ability to use the CPL'd content with software licensed under other licenses, including many proprietary
licenses. The Eclipse Public License
(EPL) consists of a slightly modified version of the CPL.
The CPL has some terms that resemble those of the GNU General Public License
(GPL), but some key differences exist. A similarity relates to distribution of a modified computer program
: under either license (CPL or GPL), one must make the source code of a modified program available to others.
CPL, like the GNU Lesser General Public License
, allows non-CPL-licensed software to link to a library under CPL without requiring the linked source code to be made available to the licensee.
CPL lacks compatibility with both versions of the GPL because it has a "choice of law
" section in section 7, which restricts legal disputes to a certain court. Another source of incompatibility is the different copyleft
requirements.
Microsoft
has released its Windows Installer XML
(WiX) developer tool, Windows Template Library
(WTL) and the FlexWiki
engine under the CPL as Sourceforge
projects.
IBM, along with several people from academia, started CPL licensed COIN-OR projects to provide free and open-source software relating to optimization and operational analysis. The initiative led to establishment of the COIN-OR
Foundation.
To reduce the number of open source licenses, IBM and Eclipse Foundation agreed upon using solely the Eclipse Public License
in the future. Open Source Initiative therefore lists the Common Public License as deprecated and superseded by EPL.
Computing
Computing is usually defined as the activity of using and improving computer hardware and software. It is the computer-specific part of information technology...
, the CPL (Common Public License) is a free software
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
/ open-source software
Open-source software
Open-source software is computer software that is available in source code form: the source code and certain other rights normally reserved for copyright holders are provided under a software license that permits users to study, change, improve and at times also to distribute the software.Open...
license published by IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
. The Free Software Foundation
Free Software Foundation
The Free Software Foundation is a non-profit corporation founded by Richard Stallman on 4 October 1985 to support the free software movement, a copyleft-based movement which aims to promote the universal freedom to create, distribute and modify computer software...
and Open Source Initiative
Open Source Initiative
The Open Source Initiative is an organization dedicated to promoting open source software.The organization was founded in February 1998, by Bruce Perens and Eric S. Raymond, prompted by Netscape Communications Corporation publishing the source code for its flagship Netscape Communicator product...
have approved the license terms of the CPL.
The CPL has the stated aims of supporting and encouraging collaborative open-source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
development while still retaining the ability to use the CPL'd content with software licensed under other licenses, including many proprietary
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
licenses. The Eclipse Public License
Eclipse Public License
The Eclipse Public License is an open source software license used by the Eclipse Foundation for its software. It replaces the Common Public License and removes certain terms relating to litigations related to patents....
(EPL) consists of a slightly modified version of the CPL.
The CPL has some terms that resemble those of the GNU General Public License
GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
(GPL), but some key differences exist. A similarity relates to distribution of a modified computer program
Computer program
A computer program is a sequence of instructions written to perform a specified task with a computer. A computer requires programs to function, typically executing the program's instructions in a central processor. The program has an executable form that the computer can use directly to execute...
: under either license (CPL or GPL), one must make the source code of a modified program available to others.
CPL, like the GNU Lesser General Public License
GNU Lesser General Public License
The GNU Lesser General Public License or LGPL is a free software license published by the Free Software Foundation . It was designed as a compromise between the strong-copyleft GNU General Public License or GPL and permissive licenses such as the BSD licenses and the MIT License...
, allows non-CPL-licensed software to link to a library under CPL without requiring the linked source code to be made available to the licensee.
CPL lacks compatibility with both versions of the GPL because it has a "choice of law
Choice of law clause
A choice of law clause or proper law clause is a term of a contract in which the parties specify that any dispute arising under the contract shall be determined in accordance with the law of a particular jurisdiction.-Explanation:...
" section in section 7, which restricts legal disputes to a certain court. Another source of incompatibility is the different copyleft
Copyleft
Copyleft is a play on the word copyright to describe the practice of using copyright law to offer the right to distribute copies and modified versions of a work and requiring that the same rights be preserved in modified versions of the work...
requirements.
Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
has released its Windows Installer XML
WiX
The Windows Installer XML , is a free software toolset that builds Windows Installer packages from an XML document. It supports a command-line environment that developers may integrate into their build processes to build MSI and MSM setup packages...
(WiX) developer tool, Windows Template Library
Windows Template Library
The Windows Template Library is a free software, object-oriented C++ template library for Win32 development. WTL was created by Microsoft employee Nenad Stefanovic for internal use and later released as an unsupported add-on to Visual Studio and the Win32 Framework SDK...
(WTL) and the FlexWiki
FlexWiki
FlexWiki was a wiki engine written primarily by David Ornstein. The code was first released in September 2004. Development ceased sometime in 2009.The engine is open source, licensed under IBM's Common Public License...
engine under the CPL as Sourceforge
SourceForge
SourceForge Enterprise Edition is a collaborative revision control and software development management system. It provides a front-end to a range of software development lifecycle services and integrates with a number of free software / open source software applications .While originally itself...
projects.
IBM, along with several people from academia, started CPL licensed COIN-OR projects to provide free and open-source software relating to optimization and operational analysis. The initiative led to establishment of the COIN-OR
COIN-OR
COIN-OR, which stands for Computational Infrastructure for Operations Research, is a project that aims to "create for mathematical software what the open literature is for mathematical theory." The open literature provides the OR community with a peer-review process and an archive...
Foundation.
To reduce the number of open source licenses, IBM and Eclipse Foundation agreed upon using solely the Eclipse Public License
Eclipse Public License
The Eclipse Public License is an open source software license used by the Eclipse Foundation for its software. It replaces the Common Public License and removes certain terms relating to litigations related to patents....
in the future. Open Source Initiative therefore lists the Common Public License as deprecated and superseded by EPL.