Legal FAQ


License and Legal Questions


Contributor License Agreement


Do I need to purchase a license for Gephi to use it in my company or university?

No, you do not need to purchase Gephi to use it.

The Gephi Software and Toolkit are free, open-source software. After you download Gephi software you can use it for commercial and non-commercial purposes right away.

If your company requires additional professional services, contact us at: [email protected]


Can I use Gephi to create a commercial application?

Yes, you can use Gephi to create commercial applications and sell them.

There are no license costs for any kind of usage of Gephi.

  • You can use the Gephi Platform and Toolkit to create applications and sell them without any charges.
  • You can build applications on top of the Gephi Platform and sell them without any charges.
  • You are not required to open-source your own code (but you can).

There is only one requirement from the license: If you modify sources of the Gephi Platform/Toolkit itself then you need to publish these changes so that the community can benefit from possible improvements.
In most usecases, building an application on top of the Gephi Platform does not require making any changes to the platform sources (you would notice if you’d be modifying the sources).

Gephi.org can help you with promoting the applications you built using Gephi: Just send us basic information and screenshots and we will link your application from a future showcase.


Can my contribution to Gephi.org be included in a commercial product?

Yes – any organization or individual can do this, but if your plug-in is published in GNU (A)GPL or a commercial license, it can’t be integrated in a commercial product without your explicit approval.

However, any testing, bug reports or patches that get contributed to Gephi will remain in the Gephi project: royalty-free and freely available.


Can I modify Gephi source code files and distribute it for free or sell it?

Yes, you can redistribute modified versions of Gephi for free or even sell it.

However, if you modify Gephi source code files, you must make these changes available to the Gephi community and satisfy the other terms of the CDDL.

In general, for any file covered by the CDDL which you have modified for your product, you should:

  • include the license notice in each file
  • retain the modified file and (preferably) the diff from the Gephi version
  • make these patches publicly available as source code, preferably by uploading them to code.launchpad.net/gephi by creating your own branch so they will be publicly archived on Launchpad,
  • and otherwise comply with all other applicable terms of the Contributor Agreement at Contributor Agreement

Files which you wrote entirely yourself and added to the software you do not have to make available to the Gephi community. Naturally if you made any general-purpose changes that could be useful for Gephi, we would love to get them as suggested patches on [email protected].


Why do we want to dual license Gephi under CDDL and GPLv3?

We want to let the developers build value the way they want with Gephi, and use it either for commercial or free purpose.


Do I need anything besides Gephi source code to be able to compile and run Gephi?

Yes.

The Gephi Platform includes a number of third-party libraries which are needed for compiling and executing the software. See the complete list of components in Gephi at http://gephi.org/developers/license/.

These third-party libraries are included in the source snapshot distributions and Bazaar. Please read license files which accompany Gephi.

The extra libraries are included in binary format in the regular builds available for download. You may be asked to accept their licenses when starting the software.


Can I sell Gephi with my custom modules without disclosing my source code for the custom modules?

Yes.

Files which you have written entirely yourself for your custom modules do not have to be licensed under the Gephi License Agreement, and so need not be disclosed as source code. Remember to carefully check over the Binary Code Licenses for third-party binaries included in Gephi to be sure that any product you distribute is in compliance with these licenses. (Generally it should suffice to simply ask customers to accept the same licenses they would have to accept if they downloaded the extra binary files from the gephi.org web site.)


Can I distribute Gephi on a CD-ROM that I sell?

Yes.

We do not provide dealer pricing or any other type of pricing for Gephi software: It is open source software that is free to use. Just download it from the Gephi website: http://gephi.org/users/download/.

If you distribute the whole software you will have to ask your customers/users to agree to comply with the Gephi License Agreement and the Binary Code Licenses for any third-party binaries used in the software which you distribute. The software includes a pop-up license dialog which should cover most cases.


Can I redistribute the Java Software Development Kit (SDK), any version, royalty-free with Gephi?

Yes.

The SDK can be redistributed in accordance with the click-and-accept license on the web site at http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/.


There are tutorials that can be found on Gephi.org (under “Learn”). Can we use those materials in our course?

Yes! All tutorials, technical articles, screencasts, etc. are free for you to use. Items “other than source code” are covered in Section 4c of the Gephi.org Terms of Use.


What is the Contributor License Agreement (“CLA”)?

The CLA is an innovative vehicle firstly used by Sun for copyright assignment on contributions to its open source projects. The Gephi Contributor Agreement(GCLA) applies to contributions to any product or project owned or managed by the Gephi Consortium, including projects on gephi.org.

The Gephi CLA also covers patents. Specifically, with the GCLA, if the contribution embodies a patent which the Contributor owns, then by signing the GCLA the Contributor gives Gephi Consortium and all other recipients a license to use that patent.


Do I have to fill out a Contributor License Agreement?

Yes, you must fill out a Contributor Agreement, if

  • you intend to contribute source code or other materials including software localizations, regardless of the size of the contribution, which are intended to be compiled or otherwise integrated with the Gephi product.

All contributors to the Gephi.org website should fill out the CLA, as it makes it easier to keep track of contributions.

  • If you contribute web content to gephi.org such as web page translations, tech tips, etc, which will not be included in the product itself, then the Gephi Terms of use govern and no Contributor Agreement is needed.
  • If you contribute web content to gephi.org such as complete articles, presentations, flash demos, etc, which will not be included in the product itself, then we would prefer you to sign the CA agreement. If you don’t, the Terms of Use automatically apply.

http://consortium.gephi.org/cla.html

Read the Terms of Use


How do I file a completed CLA?

The Gephi Consortium must have a fax or hard copy of the CLA on file before the Gephi Consortium can accept contributions and update the list of contributors with an accepted CLA. You will find a blank form of the CLA at: http://consortium.gephi.org/cla.html. The CLA is in .txt format (on purpose – we need a format not intended for modification).

1. Print it, mourn the loss of a tree, fill it out and sign it. Please take care to print your details very clearly, including your postal and email address. Also don’t forget to check one statement in the 7th paragraph regarding scope of your CLA.

2. Scan it and email it to [email protected];

or Post it to either of the following address:

The Gephi Consortium, chez Sebastien Heymann
166 Boulevard Voltaire
75011 Paris
France


Can I file my completed CLA by email?

If your computer has fax capability, then you can print out the CLA form, fill it out, sign it, scan it, and fax or mail it from your computer. We are unable to accept digital signatures at this time.

http://consortium.gephi.org/cla.html


Do I have to file a CLA for every contribution?

No, once you have a CLA on file it will cover all your contributions to gephi.org, and other projects owned or managed by the Gephi Consortium, going forward.


Once I have a CLA on file, can I change my mind and cancel?

There is no process to cancel an assignment once made for technology you have already contributed. This is to protect the code base so everyone who uses it can depend on its continued functionality. However, you are never obligated to make further contributions to gephi.org.


I tried to make a contribution to gephi.org and signed a CLA, but my contribution was not accepted. What is the result?

The CLA is still effective, but that does not affect your ability to exercise ownership rights in your contribution.


Why does Gephi request a CLA?

The Gephi Consortium asks that you share the copyright on your contributions the first time you contribute code to gephi.org, so that the Gephi Consortium can protect the Gephi code base and also allow consideration of alternative licensing models under a unified copyright for the gephi.org code base. See policy statement for more details at http://consortium.gephi.org/cla.html


If my company wants me to contribute changes, who should sign the CLA, me or my company?

The individual should sign the CLA. If the contribution involves your company’s property, then you need to obtain proper approval from your company. Gephi.org assumes that, when necessary, individuals have obtained the necessary permission from their company.