GPLv3 Compatibility

[ericnixmd]

I was trying to find documentation why GPLv2 was chosen instead of GPLv3. I'm trying to advocate for getting DCO added to the OpenVPN server config options by the manufacturer of the gateway I use. It seems that DCO requiring/using GPLv2 is a point that makes it difficult to implement (for reasons above my head).

Is there any chance of DCO migrating to be used with GPLv3?

[cron2]

Which platform are you talking about, and what brings you to the conclusion that using DCO (which is a driver, and as such, not "linked to the running program") requires a particular license?

OpenVPN itself is GPLv2, and has always been, with or without DCO.

[schwabe]

Also the dco module is used in the kernel as a module. So it has the same license as the kernel itself. So if you are shipping the Linux kernel, you already have that under GPLv2. ovpn-dco does not have that. Neither does the license of the kernel module any effect on any userspace program using ovpn-dco.

If this module had been under the GPLv3, it would NOT be compatible with the Linux kernel. GPLv2 only (the kernel license) is incompatible with GPLv3. Only "GPLv2 or later" is compatible with GPLv3.

[cron2]

strictly speaking we don't even know if this is about Linux ;-) - might be DCO on BSD (where the kernel module is BSD licensed) or DCO on Windows...

[schwabe]

I assumed it was since it was reported in the ovpn-dco repository ;)

[ordex]

@ericnixmd any hint?