Re: MySQL & ActiveRecord Licenses

Frederick Cheung
2011-03-21T20:46:43Z

On Mar 21, 8:05 pm, "Paul E. G. Lynch"
<plynch...-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w@public.gmane.org>
wrote:
> GPL requires that if you link with the library, you have to have a GPL-
> compatible license so that the result is available under GPL.
 See:http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#LinkingWithGPL
>
> So, if ActiveRecord is linking with the MySQL libraries, then my
> understanding is that it should be GPL (or something compatible).
> Just to clarify, I do not wish ActiveRecord to be GPL, and I do not
> even like GPL.  I am just trying to understand how they have avoided
> that license issue, because it has implications for the Ruby on Rails
> web application I am working on (for which we are working on a
> license).
>

My reading of http://www.mysql.com/about/legal/licensing/foss-exception/
is that there is an exception for linking with the mysql libraries, as
long as the work produced is under one of many licenses (including the
mit license, which is the license under which rails is distributed if
my memory is correct).

That said, activerecord doesn''t link to any native libraries. If you
use the mysql adapter, that pulls in the mysql gem, which does
obviously load the mysql library, but if you don''t use mysql then that
will never happen. Don''t ask me what the legal implications are!

Fred


>     --Paul
>
> On Mar 21, 3:18 pm, Bryan Crossland
<bacrossl...-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w@public.gmane.org> wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Mon, Mar 21, 2011 at 1:48 PM, Paul E. G. Lynch
<plynch...-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w@public.gmane.org>wrote:
>
> > > MySQL''s license is GPL.  ActiveRecord, which (I presume)
uses MySQL''s
> > > client libraries, is under the MIT license.  How does
ActiveRecord
> > > avoid being GPL?
>
> > I''m no attorney but I believe the answer is that ActiveRecord
is not
> > modifying MySQL but is a separate framework for accessing it as well
as a
> > number of other databases. You still need a copy of MySQL if you want
to use
> > the part that can access it. The FAQ for GPL/GNU explains more in the
> > section on "Using programs released under the GNU licenses when
writing
> > other programs".
>
> >http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html
>
> > B.