I probably don't understand either.

But if you mean to bundle UniFi code with your own code,

that would be a redistribution. That UniFi controller is 'free

to use'--after the individual user accepts the online use

agreement at ubnt.com/download.

So this isn't an open-source package, and it's not free for

anybody to redistribute--as the agreement describes. Why

not read through that agreement--I'd call it 'clear licensing'

and I think it answers your question.

Other Linux packages solve this by incorpororating an external

package by reference rather than inclusion. I don't know if this

works here or not.   Dave

I'm not combining any code, just taking the generic unix/linux download and massaging it into a RPM package for my own use. 

I do take care of some selinux issues as well as massage the install locations to be more FHS compliant and provide a systemd unit file so it would be nice to be able to share the package with others but as it's not "redistributable" then the point is moot.

Thanks,

Richard

Take a look at the agreement bound to the downloads,

and I think you'll decide it's not redistributable.   Dave

Same here : I have built my own RHEL/CentOS rpm packages from the hidden-but-still-available UniFi.unix.zip, and I'm thinking of making them available, since it's probably annoying to many users to not have any official download for RHEL/CentOS, and the instructions found when searching the web are often outdated and partly incorrect.

I have looked for any indication of a license for the Ubiquiti code inside the controller, and can't find any. When downloading from the official page, the pop-up only mentions "firmware" again and again... so my personal interpretation is that it could be considered "freeware".

I really think that Ubiquiti's idea is to make the controller "free to use" for everyone as long as it's used only to manage Ubiquiti devices and not clones or competing devices. Repackaging the controller nicely for RHEL/CentOS doesn't go into that direction at all.

But the safest solution would be to share the spec file + other custom files (systemd service) only, setting the source to "nosource" and shipping a trivial script to download the source and rebuild the rpm locally. There are no build requirements other than systemd anyway. This isn't as nice for RHEL/CentOS end-users, and doesn't actually change anything for Ubiquiti as these end-users will end up with the same software bits.

Matthias

While i agree with @Dave-D on this, i also do NOT think it is a Good idea to repackage any of the unifi beta builds and offer them publicly and or be submitting them to any third party company on behalf of ubiquiti. This causes trust issues when it is not packaged officially from the build server and the proper md5 hash being shown.

As with being repackaged things can be inserted or have the change code which could go undetected by the end user and cause publicity issues for ubiquiti if something like this would happen. 

Also do note this from the agreement page.

USES AND RESTRICTIONS

You may:

(a) download and use the Ubiquiti Firmware solely in Ubiquiti Devices, and make copies of the Ubiquiti Firmware as reasonably necessary for such use, provided that You reproduce, unaltered, all proprietary notices on or in the copies.

You may not, and shall not permit others to:

(a) use the Ubiquiti Firmware on any devices or products that are not owned by You or Your business organization;
(b) use the Ubiquiti Firmware on any non-Ubiquiti Devices;
(c) copy the Ubiquiti Firmware (except as expressly permitted above), or copy the accompanying documentation;
(d) modify, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise attempt (i) to defeat, avoid, bypass, remove, deactivate, or otherwise circumvent any software protection mechanisms in the Ubiquiti Firmware, including without limitation any such mechanism used to restrict or control the functionality of the Ubiquiti Firmware, or (ii) to derive the source code or the underlying ideas, algorithms, structure or organization from the Ubiquiti Firmware (except that the foregoing limitation does not apply to the extent that such activities may not be prohibited under applicable law); or
(e) distribute, rent, transfer or grant any rights in the Ubiquiti Firmware or modifications thereof or accompanying documentation in any form to any person without the prior written consent of Ubiquiti.
(f) remove any Ubiquiti copyright notice or Ubiquiti branding from the Ubiquiti Firmware or modify any user interface of the Ubiquiti Firmware or Ubiquiti Device.

The Ubiquiti devices must be properly installed. It is your responsibility to follow local country regulation including operation within legal frequency channels, output power, and Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) requirements. You are responsible for keeping the devices working according to these rules.

Paging @UBNT-Brandon @UBNT-Ben 

I have managed to mangle my source RPM so that it will download the source on the fly and therefore does not contain any Ubiquity files. 

IANAL but I think this doesn't appear to violate any of the above restrictions but I would like some sort of input from someone at Ubiquity before I share it.

Thanks,

Richard

Well sure: not only not a good idea, but a violation of the

commercial terms of service--which could elicit a lawsuit!.    Dave

@Dave-D is right.  you are looking at the possibility of facing a lawsuit.  you are also exposing Ubiquiti To legal liabilities if you are repackaging their software without their authorization.  while it may contain material part of the GPL I am sure there is propietary code in there that is property of Ubiquiti.  I am just telling you this is a VERY BAD IDEA

My hunch is if this is essentially a loader / install helper

package which doesn't modify / download / distribute

Ubiquiti code, there wouldn't be any issue at all.

You might even submit it to the help section as a possible

item for them to publish.   Dave

---

Dave-D wrote:

My hunch is if this is essentially a loader / install helper

package which doesn't modify / download / distribute

Ubiquiti code, there wouldn't be any issue at all.

 

You might even submit it to the help section as a possible

item for them to publish.   Dave

---

@Dave-D

> Newer beta releases contain the Unifi.unix.zip which at anypoint in time could stop working. 

> No matter what the app would have to curl / wget / git the Unifi.unix.zip ( Falls under / download / distribute )

> How does one control who gets access to the .rpm? As this is only shown now for beta testers only.

---

hobbes1069 wrote:

I have created and RPM for my personal use that works well under Fedora and CentOS 7 and there has been some intrest from others, however, the licensing of Unifi, even though it's "free to use", is not clear.

 

Because of the lack of clear licensing I cannot submit the package for inclusion in Fedora (probably couldn't anyway) or the 3rd party repository RPM Fusion.

 

I did submit a ticked to Ubquity some time ago but I don't think they understood what I was asking.

 

Thanks,

Richard

---

attemping to Submit software to be included to any third party is forbidden.

---

Dave-D wrote:

Well sure: not only not a good idea, but a violation of the

commercial terms of service--which could elicit a lawsuit!.    Dave

---

Dave,

You say that but you didn't specify which restriction was violated so while I appreciate the response it's not particularly helpful.

Thanks,

Richard

To clarify, if the application is only a helper application to

simplify the installation on a specific platform, I doubt there

is a problem. If the application actually does the download,

that would be a different scenario.  Dave

---

Dave-D wrote:

To clarify, if the application is only a helper application to

simplify the installation on a specific platform, I doubt there

is a problem. If the application actually does the download,

that would be a different scenario.  Dave

---

Dave,

You'll have to define what you mean by 'the application doing the download"...

rpmbuild doesn't do the download but it does run the script per the spec file I've created to use curl to download the binary during the RPM creation process.

Thanks,

Richard

---

hobbes1069 wrote:

---

Dave-D wrote:

To clarify, if the application is only a helper application to

simplify the installation on a specific platform, I doubt there

is a problem. If the application actually does the download,

that would be a different scenario.  Dave

---

Dave,

 

You'll have to define what you mean by 'the application doing the download"...

 

rpmbuild doesn't do the download but it does run the script per the spec file I've created to use curl to download the binary during the RPM creation process.

 

Thanks,

Richard

---

@hobbes1069, Allowing a Non-Beta member to aquire the software via wget / curl / git is not allowed as they are most likely not a beta member and do not know the full risk's involved.

The purpose of the Ubiquiti Beta Program is to provide customers with the opportunity to help evaluate new and upcoming features and updates of Ubiquiti products, allowing customers the chance to have access to features before they're publicly available and giving Ubiquiti the opportunity to fully test products in various real-world scenarios before being released.

Terms of Service & Beta Program Guidelines

The Ubiquiti Beta Program is meant to be an open program, and anyone is invited to participate, but we want to ensure that the beta testing experience is beneficial to both our customers and to Ubiquiti, so we've laid out a few rules / expectations for participating.

We expect our beta participants to:
Provide timely and thorough feedback on new features and enhancements of the software, both good and bad.
Be patient while issues are addressed and resolved.
Understand that beta software shouldn't be treated as production software. Beta software may contain issues or bugs and is considered under development, and beta software testers must be willing to accept these risks.
Not discuss Beta features, results, and other topics anywhere but the official Beta forums or through direct email with Ubiquiti staff.
Not request technical support from UBNT staff via official support phone lines or support@ubnt.com. All Beta-related support from UBNT will be provided via official UBNT Beta forums.
Allow UBNT developers full access to beta devices when possible, whether directly through remote connection, or by continuous updates of support files.
You will hold in the strictest confidence, and take all reasonable precautions to prevent any unauthorized use or disclosure of Confidential Information. You have not and will not after the date hereof: (i) use the Confidential Information for any purpose whatsoever, or (ii) disclose the Confidential Information to any third party without the prior written consent of an authorized representative of Ubiquiti. You agree that no license or other right to Confidential Information is granted or implied hereby, and thus, no ownership of Confidential Information is or will be conveyed to you. “Confidential Information” means any information that relates to the actual or anticipated business, services, products, research or development of Ubiquiti, marketing, finances, and other information accessed by you or disclosed to you by Ubiquiti either directly or indirectly, in writing, orally or otherwise.

While the Beta program is open for anyone to participate, the program will be monitored and moderated. Anyone not following the above rules may be disallowed to participate.

Thanks for helping us make our products the best they can be

---

DStahl wrote:

---

hobbes1069 wrote:

---

Dave-D wrote:

To clarify, if the application is only a helper application to

simplify the installation on a specific platform, I doubt there

is a problem. If the application actually does the download,

that would be a different scenario.  Dave

---

Dave,

 

You'll have to define what you mean by 'the application doing the download"...

 

rpmbuild doesn't do the download but it does run the script per the spec file I've created to use curl to download the binary during the RPM creation process.

 

Thanks,

Richard

---

@@hobbes106, Allowing a Non-Beta member to aquire the software via wget / curl / git is not allowed as they are most likely not a beta member and do not know the full risk's involved.

 

I think there's some confusion here... I have no intention of supplying beta software...

 

So now that that's addressed, is there an issue?

 

THanks,

Richard

Paging @UBNT-MikeD

---

hobbes1069 wrote:

---

DStahl wrote:

---

hobbes1069 wrote:

---

Dave-D wrote:

To clarify, if the application is only a helper application to

simplify the installation on a specific platform, I doubt there

is a problem. If the application actually does the download,

that would be a different scenario.  Dave

---

Dave,

 

You'll have to define what you mean by 'the application doing the download"...

 

rpmbuild doesn't do the download but it does run the script per the spec file I've created to use curl to download the binary during the RPM creation process.

 

Thanks,

Richard

---

@@hobbes106, Allowing a Non-Beta member to aquire the software via wget / curl / git is not allowed as they are most likely not a beta member and do not know the full risk's involved.

 

I think there's some confusion here... I have no intention of supplying beta software...

 

So now that that's addressed, is there an issue?

 

THanks,

Richard

---

i know your not supplying the software your self but your enabling a person to download the software in which there is a TOS and a beta agreement they have to comply with and other warnings that go along with "beta software"

Geeez, he's already told you he's not packaging any betas. Anyone can download the non-beta stuff from the UBNT web without any subscription.

I think the point @DStahl is trying to make is it is NOT your software to repackage or redistribute.