Licensing Terms

Public License terms are provided by OpenSS7 and contributors on all software with the exception of test programs which have closed licenses. Commercial license is provided on all software by OpenSS7 Corporation. For more information on Commercial Licensing see OpenSS7 Corporation.

Software provided under public license by OpenSS7 falls into one of four categories:

Software provided under Open Public License
Software provided under GPL Version 2
Software provided under LGPL Version 2.1
Software provided under OpenSS7 Copyright
Software provided by Contributors under Open License

In any given software package distributed by OpenSS7, there may be software that is subjected to one or more of these licensing categories. Please consult the licensing terms provided in the copyright notice at the beginning of the source file in question, or contained in the directory in which the source occurs.

Software provided under Open Public License

As a matter of logistics and to permit OpenSS7 users the most flexible use of OpenSS7 software, some source files are distibuted under an open public license. Our open public license looks like this. In general, the only files that OpenSS7 provides under a open public license are header files that are intended to be used by applications developers and are to be installed into system header files in a distribution. These include:

OpenSS7 STREAMS SS7 Stack System Header Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SS7 Device Drivers System Header Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SIGTRAN Stack System Header Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS TALI Modules System Header Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SCTP Stack System Header Files

Software provided under GNU Public License (GPL) Version 2

OpenSS7 software licensed under the GNU Public License (GPL) Version 2 can also be licensed under the OpenSS7 Commercial License. Software that is licensed under GPL includes:

OpenSS7 STREAMS SS7 Stack Source Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SS7 Device Drivers Source Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SIGTRAN Stack Source Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS TALI Modules Source Files
OpenSS7 STREAMS SCTP Stack Source Files

OpenSS7 provides a GPL Version 2 Public License on this code for several reasons:

Our interpretation of the GNU Public License Version 2 is a follows:

You May:

Use the software for your own use.
Distribute the software without modifications and linked only with software under a Public License equivalent to the GPL Version 2.
Distribute the software with modifications, source code for the modifications, and source code for any linked applications.

You May NOT:

Distribute the software with modifications under any terms other than the GPL.
Distribute the software linked with proprietary applications not distributed in full compliance with the GNU Public License Version 2.

For any of the above you will need a Commercial License.

Commercial License

Reasons for getting a Commercial License are as follows:

You need support.
You need to do one of the things mentioned under You May NOT above.
You would like to contribute a small amount of funding to the OpenSS7 Project.

Commercial licenses are available from OpenSS7 Corporation.

Software provided under Lesser GNU Public License (LGPL) Version 2.1

OpenSS7 software licensed under the Lesser GNU Public License (LGPL) Version 2.1 can also be licensed under the OpenSS7 Commercial License.

OpenSS7 does not normally release software under the LGPL. Some exceptions to this general rule are as follows:

Existing Libraries (e.g., XTI library)
Application Framework Libraries

Software provided under OpenSS7 Copyright

Software licensed under OpenSS7 is licensed under a proprietary license only. This includes primarily: (Please refer to the Copyright notices and licensing terms included with the specific software.)

Conformance Test Programs
Performance Test Programs
Interworking Test Programs

Software provided by OpenSS7 Corporation for these purposes normally has the license terms that can be found here. There are a number of reasons why the OpenSS7 conformance, performance and interworking software does not have an open license:

Conformance Test Programs should be modified only if there is an error in the validity of the conformance test. Conformance tests are provided by OpenSS7 Corporation for the sole purpose of testing the conformance and validity testing of the OpenSS7 stacks. Use of this software for testing products other than the OpenSS7 stacks is strictly prohibited.

If conformance test programs were permitted to be modified, it would not be possible to have a strict baseline on the test results necessary to ensure conformace to applicable conformance standards and specifications.

Performance Test Programs can be modified to skew or invalidate the performance test. Performance test programs which are not modified provide a benchmark for further testing of the OpenSS7 stacks and protocol modules. As such, these programs should not be modified. Therefore, modification of test programs remains under the strict control of OpenSS7 Corporation.

If performance test programs were permitted ot be modified, it would not be possible to have a strict baseline on the test results necessary to ensure conformance to performance objectives of applicable standards and specifications.

The same is true for specific interworking tests (such as those provided for TALI). It would be difficult to maintain a strict baseline on test results if these programs were permitted to be modified.

However, conformance, performance and interworking programs may be distributed with the OpenSS7 stacks without change; however, no license is given to modifiy the programs. Checksums are included with OpenSS7 source releases at the Beta level and beyond to allow the recipient of a distribution to check that the conformance, performance and interworking test programs have not been modified. The OpenSS7 Project will provide MD5 checksums on its downloads page with each distribution to allow a recipient of an OpenSS7 stack to ensure that the software being used come from an authoritative release and that baseline test results are applicable.

Software provided by Contributors under Open License

Software provided by contributors posted on this website is subject to the Copyrights and Licensing of the software's respective authors and owners.