Releasing Open Source

We have worked with the Office of General Counsel to identify the ideal licenses to use when releasing University-owned copyrights through open source. Follow the University Regents policy for details.

Open source releases are ideal for projects that need additional improvement or maintenance. An open source release can be a bridge to build a community of users that together enhance the impact and value of the software or copyrighted tool.

We encourage you to choose a license that best serves the University’s mission and your academic discipline.
 

Open Source Resources

UMN Resources

External Resources

  • OSS Watch—provides unbiased advice and guidance on the use, development, and licensing of open source software.
  • Creative Commons—helps you legally share your knowledge and creativity.
  • TL; DR Legal—software licenses presented in plain, easy-to-comprehend language.
     

License Recommendations for Software

Preferred: GNU General Public License version 3

  • See TR;DL Legal for a summary of the GPL v3.0 license

Acceptable: MIT License, BSD License, Apache 2.0 License, LGPL v3.0 License

License Recommendations for Creative Works

Preferred: Creative Commons-Noncommercial-ShareAlike

Acceptable: Any Creative Commons License 
 

Frequently Asked Questions

Contact Us

Report your invention or contact Sandipan Banerjee with questions.