*BSD News Article 61097


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From: thorpej@lestat.nas.nasa.gov (Jason R Thorpe)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,,comp.unix.bsd.misc
Subject: Re: BSDI vs FreeBSD
Date: 9 Feb 1996 16:49:40 -0800
Organization: Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation Project - NASA Ames
Lines: 31
Message-ID: <4fgq34$eng@lestat.nas.nasa.gov>
References: <AFj4X5nCg4@qsar.chem.msu.su> <4f6eir$odk@news.quanta.com>
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Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:13554 comp.unix.bsd.misc:495

In article <4f6eir$odk@news.quanta.com>, Ross Walker <rsww@quanta.com> wrote:
>Eugene Radchenko (eugene@qsar.chem.msu.su) wrote:

>BSDI is different from FreeBSD. It is a commercial implementation of
>4.4BSD while FreeBSD is a public domain implementation. I believe that
>BSDI uses the AT&T kernel code parts and therefore those parts of the
>kernel sources cannot be distributed. FreeBSD has re-written those

Two goofs:
	a) FreeBSD is *not* public domain.  It is a copyrighted work
	   which is freely redistributable.

	b) BSD/OS and FreeBSD are both based in 4.4BSD-Lite.  Neither
	   contain that awful AT&T-tained code.

The reason which BSD/OS is not freely redistributable is that BSDI has
rewritten or written from scratch many pieces of the BSD/OS system.  They
consider those pieces proprietary software.

On the other hand, those with a BSD/OS source license will see many
files that carry the same or similar copyright notice and/or licencing
terms as similar files in FreeBSD or NetBSD.  Files which contain
"UCB-style" (a.k.a. the style used in 4.4BSD-Lite) licencing are
redistributable.  Others refer to a BSDI licencing agreement which
states quite clearly the terms under which that code is provided.

-- 
Jason R. Thorpe                                       thorpej@nas.nasa.gov
NASA Ames Research Center                               Home: 408.866.1912
NAS: M/S 258-6                                          Work: 415.604.0935
Moffett Field, CA 94035                                Pager: 415.428.6939