Open source
Software whose licence meets the freedoms and conditions defined for open source.
What does open source mean?
Open source describes software with a licence enabling source access, modification and redistribution under defined conditions. The OSI’s Open Source Definition specifies these rights more closely. Publicly readable source code alone is insufficient. Open-source software can also be used and offered commercially; the term sets no general zero price for the product or its support.
A fictional portal is to use an open-source library. The team checks the specific licence and version and records required notices and redistribution conditions. Maintenance availability, ownership of security reports, operations and support are established separately. Open code does not guarantee those services or freedom from errors. Nor does every open-source licence automatically require publication of all the portal’s own code.
Sources
Related terms
- Software licenceThe terms under which rights to software are granted.
- Package managerA tool for obtaining and managing software packages, their versions and dependencies.
- Legacy systemAn existing system still in use, with technical and business dependencies accumulated over time.
- Multi-tenancyMulti-tenancy supports separate customer or group scopes in one solution. A tenant is not automatically one person or one database.
- Browser cacheThe browser cache stores suitable HTTP responses for later use. Reuse and revalidation follow the applicable rules.
- Cache invalidationCache invalidation ends reuse of a stored copy under defined rules. The source record remains a separate concern.
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