Re: [PATCH 2.6.25] module: allow ndiswrapper to use GPL-only symbols

Linus Torvalds
2008-02-28T23:27:14Z

On Thu, 28 Feb 2008, Pavel Roskin wrote:
>
> A change after 2.6.24 broke ndiswrapper by accidentally removing its
> access to GPL-only symbols. Revert that change and add comments about
> the reasons why ndiswrapper and driverloader are treated in a special
> way.

I'm not seeing why ndiswrapper should be treated separately.

If it loads non-GPL modules, it shouldn't be able to use GPLONLY symbols.

So if ndiswrapper needs GPL-only symbols, you'd better ask the people who
made those symbols GPL-only whether they could be made available to
ndiswrapper.

ndiswrapper itself is *not* compatible with the GPL. Trying to claim that
ndiswrapper somehow itself is GPL'd even though it then loads modules that
aren't is stupid and pointless. Clearly it just re-exports those GPLONLY
functions to code that is *not* GPL'd.

Linus