Linux kernel source tree
GPL 2.0
GPL-2.0 WITH Linux-syscall-noteThe license file states its own SPDX identifier. Reporight trusts that, but the file is not the full license text, so read it for exceptions.
What this means for you
Share-alike reaches the whole derivative work. Combining it with proprietary code you ship is the classic contamination risk.
- Check whether the project says 'version 2 only' or 'version 2 or later' — it changes what you can upgrade to.
- This is an SPDX expression with an exception (GPL-2.0 WITH Linux-syscall-note). The exception changes what the base license requires — read it before you rely on either.
The license file says other licenses also apply to parts of this repository. The root license is not the whole story here.
You can
- Use, study, and modify the code, including commercially
- Distribute your derivative work under the same license
You must
- License the entire derivative work under the same license when you distribute it
- Offer complete corresponding source to anyone who receives a binary
- Keep notices and document your changes
You cannot
- Ship a derivative work as closed source
- Add terms that restrict the freedoms this license grants downstream
- Apply DRM or patent terms that defeat the license's guarantees
This is not legal advice. Your obligations depend on how you use the code and your jurisdiction. Consult counsel for production risk.
How we know
- spdx headerThe license file declares GPL-2.0 WITH Linux-syscall-note
The file carries an SPDX-License-Identifier line — the maintainers stating the license in machine-readable form.
- filenameLicense file found, text not recognized
The file does not match any reference license text Reporight carries. It may be custom, modified, or truncated.
- github apiGitHub declares 'Other'
GitHub found a license file but would not attribute it to a standard license — usually custom or modified text.
This summary reads the repository root only. Vendored trees and per-file headers can differ — run a deep scan to map every file.