| Author | Sun Microsystems |
|---|---|
| Latest version | 1.2 |
| SPDX identifier | SISSL, SISSL-1.2 |
| FSFapproved | Yes[1] |
| OSIapproved | Yes |
| GPL compatible | No[1] |
| Copyleft | Weak[1] |
TheSun Industry Standards Source License (SISSL) is now a retiredfree andopen source license, recognized as such by theFree Software Foundation and theOpen Source Initiative (OSI). Under SISSL, developers could modify and distribute source code and derived binaries freely. Furthermore, developers could choose to keep their modifications private or make them public. However, the SISSL is unique among OSI-approved licenses in requiring that "The Modifications which You create must comply with all requirements set out by the Standards body in effect one hundred twenty (120) days before You ship the Contributor Version." If the Modifications do not comply, SISSL becomes a copyleft license, and source must be published "under the same terms as this license [SISSL] on aroyalty-free basis within thirty (30) days."
Several open source projects funded bySun Microsystems were licensed under SISSL, includingOpenOffice.org, andSun Grid Engine (SGE). Later versions of OpenOffice.org were dual-licensed under the SISSL andLGPL until the retirement of the SISSL, at which time OpenOffice.org was relicensed only under the LGPL. Sun Grid Engine appears to still be covered by the SISSL.
Sun's Chief Open Source OfficerSimon Phipps announced the retirement of the license on September 2, 2005 to combatlicense proliferation.[2] It is now listed by OSI as "voluntarily retired" by Sun, and the OSI license page states that "Sun has ceased to use or recommend this license."[3][4] OpenOffice.org 2.0 code, for example, is now licensed exclusively under the LGPL. Sun developed theCommon Development and Distribution License, a variant of theMozilla Public License and later releasedOpenSolaris and theGlassFish Application Server under that license.
