Votes Are in: All Clear for Debian Lenny

Jan 07, 2009

Britta Wuelfing

Debian developers have determined the outcome: proprietary components are acceptable, paving the way for Lenny, the next free distro of Debian GNU/Linux 5.0.

Votes from project members have finally put to rest the Lenny Release General Resolution and thereby confirmed specifics of the Debian Free Software Guidelines (DFSG). The debate had raged over whether to accept proprietary firmware in Debian. The furor over the various options proposed by project secretary Manoj Srivestava had culminated last month in his resignation. Bdale Garbee, in his role as acting secretary, was the bringer of good news: the voting developers decided on Option 5, "Assume blobs [microcode driving hardware components] comply with GPL unless proven otherwise." Garbee's announcement goes into specifics about what this means.

Even so, many developers have requested further clarity. As Garbee writes, "[Debian project leader] Steve [McIntyre] and I have discussed it, and we think it's pretty clear. This result means that the Debian Lenny release can proceed as the release team has intended, with the kernel packages currently in the archive."

The complete General Resolution results are summarized here.

Related content

Debian Seeking New Project Secretary

Current balloting for Debian Lenny's future has led to strife in the organization. Secretary of the free project, Manoj Srivastava, has resigned his position. A possible consequence is that the next version will undergo further delay in its release.

more »
Debian Developers to Determine Lenny's Fate

Free Linux distro Debian has been working steadily on its next version 5.0 of the OS, known as Lenny. Now developers have been called in for a vote to determine the course of its general release.

more »
Debian Lenny Deep Freeze: February Release?

The countdown for Debian Lenny has begun with the project team putting the code in deep freeze. The release of Debian GNU/Linux 5.0 is expected mid-February.

more »
Debian Kernel Has No Proprietary Firmware

Debian developer Robert Millan is offering an alternative kernel for Debian's Lenny free Linux distro. Unlike the standard Lenny kernel, it contains no proprietary firmware.

more »
FOSDEM: Pride and Success in 2009

Over the weekend the Free and Open Source Software Developers' European Meeting (FOSDEM) took place in Brussels. In his keynote, Mozilla's Mark Surman hoped for Open Source's success and Debian key contributor Bdale Garbee supported its social contract. As an aside, Debian Lenny's target release date was reconfirmed.

more »

comments powered by Disqus

Issue 266/2023

Buy this issue as a PDF

Digital Issue: Price $12.99

(incl. VAT)

Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Find SysAdmin Jobs

News

Linux Mint 21.1 Enters Beta Status

With a new version of the Cinnamon Desktop, Linux Mint 21.1 has plenty to offer.
4MLinux 41.0 Now Stable and Ready for Use

The developers behind 4MLinux have changed the status of 41.0 to STABLE, which means it's ready for prime time.
Xfce 4.18 Coming Soon and Offers Subtle Improvements

The Xfce team has announced the release date of the next iteration of the desktop, which includes a good number of features to polish the fan-favorite Linux UI.
Orange Pi Board Has Arch-Based Linux Distribution in the Works

The developers of the Orange Pi board are planning to release an Arch-based Linux distribution available for its hardware as an alternative to Orange Pi OS.
Alpine Linux 3.17 Now Available to the General Public

The developers of Alpine Linux have officially announced the release of the latest version of the security-focused Linux distribution.
The New StarFighter Linux Laptop Now Available for Preorder

A new, completely customizable Linux laptop is now available to preorder from Star Labs.
Critical Escalation Vulnerability Found in the Linux Kernel

A new local privilege escalation vulnerability has been discovered in the Linux kernel and users are encouraged to upgrade/patch immediately.
AlmaLinux 8.7 Now Available

The developers of AlmaLinux have released the latest version of the OS, named Stone Smilodon, to the general public.
New Arch-Based Linux Distribution Aims to be Beginner-Friendly

CachyOS has been created to serve as a Linux distribution for everyone, even while being based on the more complex Arch Linux.
elementary OS 7 Getting Closer to Release

The team behind elementary OS has announced they are now focused on putting the finishing touches on the next major release of the Linux distribution.