License Terms

Linux is licensed under Version 2 of the GNU General Public License (GPL), a document devised for the GNU project by the Free Software Foundation. The GPL allows anybody to redistribute, and even sell, a product covered by the GPL, as long as the recipient has access to the source and is able to exercise the same rights. Additionally, any software product derived from a product covered by the GPL must, if it is redistributed at all, be released under the GPL. Linux 根据 GNU 通用公共许可证 (GPL) 第 2 版获得许可，该文档由自由软件基金会为 GNU 项目设计。 GPL 允许任何人重新分发，甚至销售 GPL 涵盖的产品，只要接收者可以访问源并能够行使相同的权利。 此外，任何源自 GPL 涵盖的产品的软件产品，如果要重新分发，都必须根据 GPL 发布。

The main goal of such a license is to allow the growth of knowledge by permitting everybody to modify programs at will; at the same time, people selling software to the public can still do their job. Despite this simple objective, there's a never-ending discussion about the GPL and its use. If you want to read the license, you can find it in several places in your system, including the top directory of your kernel source tree in the COPYING file. 这种许可证的主要目标是通过允许每个人随意修改程序来促进知识的增长； 同时，向公众销售软件的人仍然可以做他们的工作。 尽管目标很简单，但关于 GPL 及其使用的讨论却永无止境。 如果您想阅读许可证，您可以在系统的多个位置找到它，包括 COPYING 文件中内核源代码树的顶层目录。

Vendors often ask whether they can distribute kernel modules in binary form only. The answer to that question has been deliberately left ambiguous. Distribution of binary modules—as long as they adhere to the published kernel interface—has been tolerated so far. But the copyrights on the kernel are held by many developers, and not all of them agree that kernel modules are not derived products. If you or your employer wish to distribute kernel modules under a nonfree license, you really need to discuss the situation with your legal counsel. Please note also that the kernel developers have no qualms against breaking binary modules between kernel releases, even in the middle of a stable kernel series. If it is at all possible, both you and your users are better off if you release your module as free software. 供应商经常询问他们是否只能以二进制形式分发内核模块。 对这个问题的答案故意模棱两可。 二进制模块的分发——只要它们遵守已发布的内核接口——到目前为止是可以容忍的。 但是内核的版权归很多开发者所有，并不是所有的开发者都同意内核模块不是衍生产品。 如果您或您的雇主希望在非自由许可下分发内核模块，您确实需要与您的法律顾问讨论这种情况。 另请注意，即使在稳定的内核系列中，内核开发人员也不会担心在内核版本之间破坏二进制模块。 如果可能的话，如果您将模块作为免费软件发布，您和您的用户都会变得更好。

If you want your code to go into the mainline kernel, or if your code requires patches to the kernel, you must use a GPL-compatible license as soon as you release the code. Although personal use of your changes doesn't force the GPL on you, if you distribute your code, you must include the source code in the distribution—people acquiring your package must be allowed to rebuild the binary at will. 如果您希望您的代码进入主线内核，或者您的代码需要内核补丁，您必须在发布代码后立即使用与 GPL 兼容的许可证。 尽管个人使用您的更改不会强制您使用 GPL，但如果您分发代码，则必须在分发中包含源代码 - 必须允许获取您的包的人随意重新构建二进制文件。

As far as this book is concerned, most of the code is freely redistributable, either in source or binary form, and neither we nor O'Reilly retain any right on any derived works. All the programs are available at ftp://ftp.ora.com/pub/examples/linux/drivers/, and the exact license terms are stated in the LICENSE file in the same directory. 就本书而言，大部分代码都是可自由再分发的，无论是源代码还是二进制形式，我们和 O'Reilly 都不对任何衍生作品保留任何权利。 所有程序都可以在 ftp://ftp.ora.com/pub/examples/linux/drivers/ 上找到，确切的许可条款在同一目录中的 LICENSE 文件中说明。