HP Releases FOSS Toolset

By Greg McNevin

January 25, 2008: HP is beefing up its support of open source, announcing a new software governance initiative to help companies navigate any legal, financial and security risks they may face during a switch to open source software.

The firm is packaging seven years of its internal development including process, policies and tools and open sourcing it in an attempt to raise awareness and foster a more substantial open source governance community.

Called FOSSology, the package is based on the tools HP uses to effectively manage its own use of free and open source software and is designed to help address deployment issues such as the acquisition, tracking and licensing of free and open source software (FOSS).

HP says that traditional corporate policies for managing software assets are often inadequate when it comes to managing the unique characteristics of open source software. During a recent customer engagement, for example, HP discovered three times as many FOSS licenses as the client originally thought it held – 75 versus 25.

This left it’s customer with a choice to either implement governance policies, or replace the software at an estimated cost of $80 million.

“Companies adopting free and open source software will save money and improve their ability to operate, but they need to understand the license requirements of the programs they use and adopt appropriate governance measures to ensure proper compliance,” said Eben Moglen, founding director, Software Freedom Law Center.

“The principle of ‘share and share alike’ requires governance measures different than those for the protection of proprietary assets, but not more burdensome.”

Moglen says that resources such as HP’s can help businesses understand how to make the use of open source software compliant in simple, effective and profitable ways.

“The FOSS governance initiative allows HP to share the insight gained from its own experiences managing open source software with other enterprises and the broader FOSS community,” said Christine Martino, vice president, Open Source and Linux Organisation, HP.

This toolset is free and downloadable from FOSSology.org for immediate use under the General Public License (GPL) version two.

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