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So:

  1. A hardware device has closed-source firmware running inside it (not based on any open-source code).
  2. Computer software to update the hardware's firmware exists, with a GPLv3 license. It takes a binary firmware image file and writes it without any modification to the hardware.
  3. For the GPL software to recognize the hardware, the GPL software must be modified.

If a zip file is distributed with these things inside it:

  • Binary for customer to run, compiled from the modified GPL software
  • A nested zip file with source code for modified GPL software, to meet GPL requirements
  • Binary firmware image for the hardware, without any source code

Is that legal?

Does the GPL license "infect" the binary firmware image, so that the entire zip file is considered a derivative work, and therefore requires that the hardware's source code also be distributed under GPL?

Or is the binary firmware image considered a separate work and can be distributed alongside it without any licensing issues?

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  • 'An “aggregate” consists of a number of separate programs, distributed together on the same CD-ROM or other media. The GPL permits you to create and distribute an aggregate, even when the licenses of the other software are nonfree or GPL-incompatible.' gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#MereAggregation
    – endolith
    Commented Sep 25, 2019 at 15:14

1 Answer 1

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Generally, the output of a piece of software is not covered by the piece of software's licence, because the output is not a derivative work of the piece of software. Using a GPL-covered program to upload a firmware blob no more forces the firmware blob to be GPL'ed than using a GPL-covered file transfer program to upload your photograph requires freely-licensing the image, or using a GPL-covered web server to serve your audio files to customers requires that your audio be free.

In short: yes, it's legal. No, the GPL doesn't "infect" like that. The blob is considered a separate work and be aggregated alongside the GPL program, for example in a zipfile, without issue.

And as an aside, words like "infect" should be avoided in this context - scare-quoted or otherwise - because they can be seen as legitimising some of the giant piles of FUD that commercially-interested parties have been dumping on the free-software landscape over the years.

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