PostgreSQL, OpenSSL, and the GPL

Posted Feb 16, 2011 20:36 UTC (Wed) by mattdm (subscriber, #18)
Parent article: PostgreSQL, OpenSSL, and the GPL

I don't think the "system library" exception applies when the system library is distributed together with the GPL-licensed work -- as it would be in any Linux distro.

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Correct...

Posted Feb 17, 2011 4:50 UTC (Thu) by khim (subscriber, #9252) [Link]

This is the relevant part:

However, as a special exception, the source code distributed need not include anything that is normally distributed (in either source or binary form) with the major components (compiler, kernel, and so on) of the operating system on which the executable runs, unless that component itself accompanies the executable (emphasis mine).

If the PostgreSQL is included on CD it's pretty hard to argue that "that component itself does not accompanies the executable". Of course we'll only know if/when FSF will sue RedHat (or at least will clearly write that you can not link program with both libreadline and opensll and then distribute it as part of CD) because it's very-very gray area...