|
199
|
1 .. _licensing:
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
3
|
|
|
4 Licensing of the Orthanc ecosystem
|
|
|
5 ==================================
|
|
|
6
|
|
|
7 .. contents::
|
|
|
8
|
|
|
9
|
|
|
10 Philosophy
|
|
|
11 ----------
|
|
|
12
|
|
|
13 The objectives of the Orthanc ecosystem is to share technical
|
|
201
|
14 knowledge about :ref:`DICOM <dicom-guide>`, to build a consistent
|
|
|
15 platform for developing medical imaging software, and to foster
|
|
|
16 scientific collaborations in medical imaging by subscribing to the
|
|
|
17 `open-science paradigm
|
|
|
18 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_science>`__. To this end, Orthanc
|
|
|
19 is provided as free and open-source software to the benefit of the
|
|
|
20 worldwide community of medical imaging.
|
|
199
|
21
|
|
|
22 In order to support this objective of global knowledge sharing, the
|
|
|
23 Orthanc project enforces reciprocity. If someone finds Orthanc useful
|
|
|
24 to her academic work or to her business, the community of medical
|
|
|
25 imaging should gain an advantage from this use by enlarging the
|
|
|
26 knowledge base. This virtuous circle guarantees the fact that Orthanc
|
|
|
27 will be developed in a sustainable way in the long-term, to the
|
|
|
28 benefit of all stakeholders. Predatory behaviors should be prevented,
|
|
201
|
29 while preserving the freedoms of the users of Orthanc, including the
|
|
199
|
30 commercial uses.
|
|
|
31
|
|
|
32 According to this philosophy, the University Hospital of Liège decided
|
|
201
|
33 to release the Orthanc ecosystem under the `GPLv3+ license
|
|
|
34 <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html>`__ in 2012. The GPL is
|
|
|
35 a strong copyleft license that is recognized worldwide, and that is
|
|
|
36 designed to enforce reciprocity.
|
|
199
|
37
|
|
|
38 As Orthanc is lightweight and designed for Web applications and for
|
|
|
39 sharing medical images over Internet, it has been quickly deployed on
|
|
|
40 cloud platforms in order to host large amount of data. Orthanc
|
|
|
41 considers this use as very legitimate, for instance for scientific
|
|
|
42 purpose (think of open-data databases) or for societal needs (think of
|
|
|
43 teleradiology platforms in developing countries). Unfortunately, the
|
|
|
44 GPL does not protect from predatory commercial behaviors over cloud
|
|
|
45 platforms because of the so-called "`ASP loophole
|
|
201
|
46 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Affero_General_Public_License>`__",
|
|
|
47 that does not enforce modified versions of a free and open-source
|
|
|
48 software running on a server to be given back to the community.
|
|
199
|
49
|
|
|
50 For this reason, the plugins that provide scalability-related or
|
|
|
51 cloud-related features (for instance the :ref:`PostgreSQL
|
|
201
|
52 <postgresql>` and :ref:`Web viewer <webviewer>` plugins that are
|
|
199
|
53 necessary for Web applications distributed at a large scale) were
|
|
201
|
54 released under the stronger `AGPLv3+ licence
|
|
|
55 <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/why-affero-gpl.en.html>`__.
|
|
199
|
56 This license protects the community of medical imaging by ensuring
|
|
|
57 that the features included in Orthanc instances running in remote
|
|
|
58 servers are publicly available as well.
|
|
|
59
|
|
|
60
|
|
|
61 Guidelines
|
|
|
62 ----------
|
|
|
63
|
|
|
64 Over the years, it was observed that people fear the use of GPL and
|
|
|
65 AGPL licenses, that are wrongly considered as preventing commercial
|
|
|
66 uses. This is most often a wrong assumption, given that the Orthanc
|
|
200
|
67 server is a standalone executable, not a software library.
|
|
199
|
68
|
|
|
69 The following table provides a simple summary of the most common
|
|
|
70 situations, and indicates whether the use is accepted ("Yes"),
|
|
|
71 prevented ("No"), or restricted ("Dual licensing"):
|
|
|
72
|
|
|
73 +-----------------------------------------------------+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
201
|
74 | | Mode of distribution of the third-party system, or of the third-party plugin/script |
|
|
199
|
75 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
201
|
76 | Usage of the Orthanc ecosystem | Permissive | GPLv3 | AGPLv3 | Internal use | Proprietary software | Proprietary cloud |
|
|
|
77 | | (MIT, BSD, | | | | distributed to clients | platform |
|
|
203
|
78 | | Apache...) | | | | | |
|
|
199
|
79 +=====================================================+===============+=======+========+==============+========================+===================+
|
|
|
80 | Using Orthanc as such, even if some AGPL-licensed | N/A | N/A | N/A | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
|
|
81 | plugin is installed | | | | | | |
|
|
|
82 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
|
83 | Calling Orthanc from a third-party application | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
|
|
84 | (using REST API or DICOM protocol), even if some | | | | | | |
|
|
|
85 | AGPL-licensed plugin is installed | | | | | | |
|
|
|
86 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
|
87 | Creating an Orthanc plugin or a Lua script, that | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Dual licensing | Yes |
|
|
|
88 | is hosted by an Orthanc server where no | | | | | | |
|
|
|
89 | AGPL-licensed plugin is installed | | | | | | |
|
|
|
90 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
|
91 | Creating an Orthanc plugin or a Lua script, that | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Dual licensing | Dual licensing |
|
|
|
92 | is hosted by an Orthanc server where some | | | | | | |
|
|
|
93 | AGPL-licensed plugin is installed | | | | | | |
|
|
|
94 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
202
|
95 | Using a modified version of the GPL-licensed | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Dual licensing | Yes |
|
|
|
96 | code of Orthanc, or using a modified version of | | | | | | |
|
|
|
97 | some GPL-licensed plugin, or reusing their original | | | | | | |
|
|
|
98 | code in a third-party system | | | | | | |
|
|
199
|
99 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
202
|
100 | Using a modified version of some AGPL-licensed | No | No | Yes | Yes | Dual licensing | Dual licensing |
|
|
|
101 | plugin, or reusing its original code in a | | | | | | |
|
|
|
102 | third-party system | | | | | | |
|
|
199
|
103 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
|
104 | Using the :ref:`Stone of Orthanc <stone>` library | No | No | Yes | Yes | Dual licensing | Dual licensing |
|
|
|
105 +-----------------------------------------------------+---------------+-------+--------+--------------+------------------------+-------------------+
|
|
|
106
|
|
201
|
107 **Notes:**
|
|
|
108
|
|
|
109 * The wording "third-party system" is very broad, as it encompasses
|
|
|
110 many possibilities. It can for instance be a Web application, a
|
|
|
111 heavyweight desktop application, an automated script, or more
|
|
202
|
112 generally any system that takes advantage of Orthanc as a service in
|
|
|
113 its global architecture.
|
|
201
|
114
|
|
202
|
115 * If your use case falls in a "**Dual licensing**" cell, please get in
|
|
|
116 touch with `Osimis <http://osimis.io/>`__, the commercial partner of
|
|
|
117 the Orthanc project that is the only entity entitled to grant a
|
|
|
118 `license exception
|
|
201
|
119 <https://www.fsf.org/blogs/rms/selling-exceptions>`__ to your
|
|
202
|
120 company for the Orthanc core and its :ref:`associated official
|
|
|
121 plugins <plugins-official>`.
|
|
201
|
122
|
|
|
123 * If you reuse code from Orthanc or one of its associated plugins, you
|
|
|
124 must mention the copyright of the Orthanc project.
|
|
199
|
125
|
|
201
|
126 * An Orthanc plugin cannot be licensed under a permissive license
|
|
203
|
127 (MIT, BSD, Apache...) because it cannot run independently of the
|
|
|
128 Orthanc SDK, which implies that the plugin and the Orthanc core form
|
|
|
129 a single combined program, which in turn means that the plugin
|
|
|
130 should be licensed under GPLv3 by `copyleft
|
|
|
131 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft>`__ contamination. Check out
|
|
|
132 the `license compatibility matrix on Wikipedia
|
|
201
|
133 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/License_compatibility#Compatibility_of_FOSS_licenses>`__.
|
|
203
|
134 Here is the corresponding entry about this topic in the `GPL FAQ
|
|
|
135 <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#GPLPlugins>`__: *"If
|
|
|
136 the main program dynamically links plug-ins, and they make function
|
|
|
137 calls to each other and share data structures, we believe they form
|
|
|
138 a single combined program, which must be treated as an extension of
|
|
|
139 both the main program and the plug-ins. [...] If the main program
|
|
|
140 and the plugins are a single combined program then this means you
|
|
|
141 must license the plug-in under the GPL or a GPL-compatible free
|
|
|
142 software license and distribute it with source code in a
|
|
|
143 GPL-compliant way."*
|
|
201
|
144
|
|
|
145 * If you deal with medical applications in Europe, note that Osimis
|
|
|
146 sells **CE-approved** versions of a Web viewer plugin.
|
|
|
147
|
|
|
148 * You are kindly invited to cite the `reference paper about Orthanc
|
|
|
149 <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10278-018-0082-y>`__
|
|
|
150 in your scientific work.
|
|
|
151
|
|
202
|
152 * This is our own simplified, technical interpretation of the GPLv3+
|
|
|
153 and AGPLv3+ in the very specific context of Orthanc. It is not
|
|
|
154 intended to be a complete guide to copyleft licensing. Please get in
|
|
|
155 touch with the `Free Software Foundation <https://www.fsf.org/>`__
|
|
|
156 for more legal information.
|
|
199
|
157
|
|
|
158
|
|
|
159 .. _cla:
|
|
|
160
|
|
|
161 Contributing to the code of Orthanc
|
|
|
162 -----------------------------------
|
|
|
163
|
|
202
|
164 Contributed vs. internal code
|
|
199
|
165 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|
|
|
166
|
|
202
|
167 It is important to make the distinction between contributed code and
|
|
|
168 internal code:
|
|
199
|
169
|
|
202
|
170 * **Contributed code** refers to source code that takes advantage of
|
|
199
|
171 Orthanc and/or that extends Orthanc, such as new :ref:`plugins
|
|
|
172 <plugins>`, :ref:`Lua scripts <lua>`, or any higher-level
|
|
|
173 application that uses the :ref:`REST API <rest>` of Orthanc. This
|
|
|
174 code can live outside of the official source repositories of the
|
|
202
|
175 Orthanc ecosystem. External contributors can distribute such
|
|
|
176 contributed code on whatever platform they prefer, in a way that is
|
|
|
177 fully uncoupled from the Orthanc project, and keep the intellectual
|
|
199
|
178 property of their developments. Such contributors are however kindly
|
|
|
179 invited to index their contributions in the `dedicated repository on
|
|
203
|
180 GitHub <https://github.com/jodogne/OrthancContributed>`__, and
|
|
|
181 contributed plugins should also be indexed in the :ref:`Orthanc Book
|
|
|
182 <plugins-contributed>`.
|
|
199
|
183
|
|
|
184 * **Internal code** refers to source code that only makes sense if
|
|
|
185 embedded within the Orthanc core or within one of the official
|
|
|
186 plugins. This includes new features and bugfixes. The way to
|
|
|
187 contribute to the internal code of the Orthanc ecosystem is
|
|
|
188 described in the sections below.
|
|
|
189
|
|
|
190
|
|
204
|
191 **Important:** You should always favor the :ref:`creation of a new
|
|
|
192 plugin <creating-plugins>` over modifications to the internal code
|
|
|
193 (see below)!
|
|
|
194
|
|
|
195
|
|
199
|
196
|
|
|
197 Contributor License Agreement
|
|
|
198 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|
|
|
199
|
|
|
200 It is necessary for the Orthanc project to make sure that the internal
|
|
|
201 code of Orthanc can be interfaced with proprietary systems, as those
|
|
|
202 are still unfortunately everywhere in the healthcare market. This
|
|
|
203 forces us to require all the intellectual property over the source
|
|
|
204 code of Orthanc to be centralized, with the University Hospital of
|
|
|
205 Liège together with the Osimis company acting as the official
|
|
|
206 guardians of the whole Orthanc ecosystem. This centralization also
|
|
|
207 enables the dual licensing scheme described above, which in turn
|
|
|
208 allows Osimis to collect money from the industry in order to fund
|
|
|
209 further free and open-source development of the Orthanc ecosystem to
|
|
|
210 the benefit of the worldwide community of medical imaging, according
|
|
|
211 to a virtuous cycle.
|
|
|
212
|
|
|
213 As a consequence, before any code can be accepted into the official
|
|
|
214 repositories of Orthanc, the individual code contributors must sign a
|
|
|
215 `Contributor License Agreement (CLA)
|
|
|
216 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contributor_License_Agreement>`__. Here
|
|
|
217 is the procedure:
|
|
|
218
|
|
|
219 1. Download the individual CLA (ICLA) form from the `Orthanc homepage
|
|
|
220 <https://www.orthanc-server.com/resources/2019-02-12-IndividualContributorLicenseAgreementOrthanc.pdf>`__.
|
|
|
221
|
|
|
222 2. Print the document, then write down your signed initials on pages 1
|
|
|
223 and 2, and sign page 3.
|
|
|
224
|
|
|
225 3. Return a scanned copy of the document to e-mail ``orthanc-legal@osimis.io``.
|
|
|
226
|
|
|
227 4. Wait for confirmation from the Osimis company.
|
|
|
228
|
|
|
229 **Important:** This form is only valid for individual contributors
|
|
|
230 acting as physical persons. If your company wishes to become
|
|
202
|
231 contributor as a juridical person, please request a Corporate CLA at
|
|
|
232 the same e-mail address: ``orthanc-legal@osimis.io``.
|
|
199
|
233
|
|
|
234
|
|
|
235 Submitting code
|
|
|
236 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|
|
|
237
|
|
|
238 Once the CLA onboarding process has succeeded, use `Mercurial
|
|
|
239 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercurial>`__ to fork the official
|
|
|
240 repository of interest from BitBucket. Here are the location of those
|
|
|
241 repositories:
|
|
|
242
|
|
|
243 * The `Orthanc server <https://bitbucket.org/sjodogne/orthanc/src>`__.
|
|
|
244
|
|
|
245 * The `official plugins <https://bitbucket.org/sjodogne/>`__ originating from the University Hospital of Liège.
|
|
|
246
|
|
|
247 * The `official plugins <https://bitbucket.org/osimis/>`__ originating from Osimis.
|
|
|
248
|
|
|
249 Once you have finished modifying the code in your forked repository,
|
|
|
250 issue a `pull request
|
|
|
251 <https://confluence.atlassian.com/bitbucket/tutorial-learn-about-bitbucket-pull-requests-774243385.html>`__.
|
|
|
252
|
|
|
253 **Some words of warning:**
|
|
|
254
|
|
|
255 * Please stick to the :ref:`coding style <coding-style>` of Orthanc.
|
|
|
256
|
|
|
257 * It is your responsibility to make sure that you have the
|
|
|
258 intellectual property over all the source code you commit into
|
|
|
259 Orthanc.
|
|
|
260
|
|
|
261 * All the contributions will be carefully reviewed. Some contributions
|
|
|
262 may be modified, yet even rejected. A rejection might for instance
|
|
|
263 occur if your contribution does not match the Orthanc roadmap, does
|
|
|
264 not meet our high-quality code standards, or breaks backward
|
|
200
|
265 compatibility. Please be sure that we warmly welcome and appreciate
|
|
|
266 your contributions, but be aware of the fact that we are quite
|
|
204
|
267 strict, and that the review process might take time. This is why the
|
|
|
268 recommended way of contributing to Orthanc is always by
|
|
|
269 :ref:`creating contributed plugins <creating-plugins>`.
|
|
|
270
|
|
|
271 * Your pull requests should be kept **as small as possible**, and
|
|
|
272 should be focused on one very specific issue or feature. Large
|
|
|
273 architectural changes are reserved for the core development team of
|
|
|
274 Orthanc, as we must follow our `long-term roadmap
|
|
|
275 <https://bitbucket.org/sjodogne/orthanc/src/default/TODO>`__.
|
|
|
276
|
|
|
277 * Unit testing is mandatory. Integration tests should be submitted to
|
|
|
278 the `dedicated repository
|
|
|
279 <http://bitbucket.org/sjodogne/orthanc-tests/>`__.
|
|
199
|
280
|
|
|
281 * In the case of a doubt wrt. a potential contribution, please discuss
|
|
|
282 it on the `Orthanc Users
|
|
|
283 <https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/orthanc-users>`__
|
|
|
284 discussion group before starting the actual development.
|
