{"id":9181,"date":"2026-06-01T02:25:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T00:25:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/?post_type=manual_kb&#038;p=9181"},"modified":"2026-06-01T02:25:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T00:25:59","slug":"what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work","status":"publish","type":"manual_kb","link":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/","title":{"rendered":"What is the GNU GPL license and how does it work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GNU General Public License (GPL) is one of the most widely used free software licenses. It was created by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) to ensure that software remains free to use, study, modify, and distribute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is commonly used in open-source projects, including the Linux ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#What_the_GPL_allows\" >What the GPL allows<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#What_%E2%80%9Ccopyleft%E2%80%9D_means\" >What \u201ccopyleft\u201d means<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#Key_conditions_of_the_GPL\" >Key conditions of the GPL<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#Compatibility_considerations\" >Compatibility considerations<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#Practical_implications\" >Practical implications<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/what-is-the-gnu-gpl-license-and-how-does-it-work\/#Summary\" >Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_the_GPL_allows\"><\/span>What the GPL allows<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div id=\"mybox-3086499973\" class=\"mybox-content mybox-entity-placement\"><div class=\"early-access-banner-inpost\">\r\n  <div class=\"banner-left-inpost\">\r\n    <div class=\"icon-box-inpost\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/square-info-icon.svg\" alt=\"Info\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"text-box-inpost\">\r\n      <span class=\"label-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Early access<\/span><\/span>\r\n      <h4><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Still need help?<\/span><\/h4>\r\n      <p><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Contact our customer service team.<\/span><\/p>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div class=\"banner-right-inpost\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/panel.mybox.com\/helpdesk2\/v\/list\/\" class=\"banner-button-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Message us<\/span><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\"><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GPL grants users four essential freedoms:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the freedom to run the software for any purpose<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the freedom to access and study the source code<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the freedom to modify the software<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the freedom to redistribute the software<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These permissions apply to both original and modified versions of the software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_%E2%80%9Ccopyleft%E2%80%9D_means\"><\/span>What \u201ccopyleft\u201d means<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GPL is a copyleft license.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This means that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>any modified version of GPL software must remain under the GPL license<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>improvements must also be shared under the same terms<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the software and its derivatives must remain open-source<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This ensures that software built on GPL code remains free and accessible to others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Key_conditions_of_the_GPL\"><\/span>Key conditions of the GPL<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When using or distributing GPL-licensed software, certain conditions must be met:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the license text must be included<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the source code must be made available<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>modifications must be clearly documented<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>recipients must retain the same usage rights<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These conditions apply whenever the software is redistributed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Compatibility_considerations\"><\/span>Compatibility considerations<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GPL is a strong copyleft license, which means it may not be compatible with all other software licenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In practice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>GPL software must remain under GPL when distributed<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>combining GPL code with proprietary code may be restricted<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>license compatibility must be checked when mixing open-source components<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_implications\"><\/span>Practical implications<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GPL is designed to preserve openness in software development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It ensures that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>users maintain long-term access to source code<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>improvements are shared with the community<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>software remains freely available<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, developers must understand the licensing rules before integrating GPL code into projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The GNU GPL is a free software license that guarantees users the freedom to use, modify, and share software. Through its copyleft principle, it ensures that all modified versions remain open-source and subject to the same license terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","manualknowledgebasecat":[42],"manual_kb_tag":[5876,5877,5878,5879,5880,5881,5872,5873,5874,5875],"class_list":["post-9181","manual_kb","type-manual_kb","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","manualknowledgebasecat-miscellaneous","manual_kb_tag-strong-copyleft","manual_kb_tag-open-source-license","manual_kb_tag-free-software-foundation","manual_kb_tag-software-freedom","manual_kb_tag-source-code-access","manual_kb_tag-software-redistribution","manual_kb_tag-gnu-general-public-license","manual_kb_tag-general-public-license","manual_kb_tag-free-software-license","manual_kb_tag-copyleft-license"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/9181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/manual_kb"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/9181\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9185,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/9181\/revisions\/9185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"manualknowledgebasecat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manualknowledgebasecat?post=9181"},{"taxonomy":"manual_kb_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb_tag?post=9181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}