1.. SPDX-License-Identifier: CC-BY-SA-2.0-UK 2 3***************************************** 4The Yocto Project Development Environment 5***************************************** 6 7This chapter takes a look at the Yocto Project development environment. 8The chapter provides Yocto Project Development environment concepts that 9help you understand how work is accomplished in an open source 10environment, which is very different as compared to work accomplished in 11a closed, proprietary environment. 12 13Specifically, this chapter addresses open source philosophy, source 14repositories, workflows, Git, and licensing. 15 16Open Source Philosophy 17====================== 18 19Open source philosophy is characterized by software development directed 20by peer production and collaboration through an active community of 21developers. Contrast this to the more standard centralized development 22models used by commercial software companies where a finite set of 23developers produces a product for sale using a defined set of procedures 24that ultimately result in an end product whose architecture and source 25material are closed to the public. 26 27Open source projects conceptually have differing concurrent agendas, 28approaches, and production. These facets of the development process can 29come from anyone in the public (community) who has a stake in the 30software project. The open source environment contains new copyright, 31licensing, domain, and consumer issues that differ from the more 32traditional development environment. In an open source environment, the 33end product, source material, and documentation are all available to the 34public at no cost. 35 36A benchmark example of an open source project is the Linux kernel, which 37was initially conceived and created by Finnish computer science student 38Linus Torvalds in 1991. Conversely, a good example of a non-open source 39project is the Windows family of operating systems developed by 40Microsoft Corporation. 41 42Wikipedia has a good :wikipedia:`historical description of the Open Source 43Philosophy <Open_source>`. You can also find helpful information on how 44to participate in the Linux Community 45`here <https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/process/index.html>`__. 46 47The Development Host 48==================== 49 50A development host or :term:`Build Host` is key to 51using the Yocto Project. Because the goal of the Yocto Project is to 52develop images or applications that run on embedded hardware, 53development of those images and applications generally takes place on a 54system not intended to run the software --- the development host. 55 56You need to set up a development host in order to use it with the Yocto 57Project. Most find that it is best to have a native Linux machine 58function as the development host. However, it is possible to use a 59system that does not run Linux as its operating system as your 60development host. When you have a Mac or Windows-based system, you can 61set it up as the development host by using 62`CROPS <https://github.com/crops/poky-container>`__, which leverages 63`Docker Containers <https://www.docker.com/>`__. Once you take the steps 64to set up a CROPS machine, you effectively have access to a shell 65environment that is similar to what you see when using a Linux-based 66development host. For the steps needed to set up a system using CROPS, 67see the 68":ref:`dev-manual/start:setting up to use cross platforms (crops)`" 69section in 70the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 71 72If your development host is going to be a system that runs a Linux 73distribution, you must still take steps to prepare the system 74for use with the Yocto Project. You need to be sure that the Linux 75distribution on the system is one that supports the Yocto Project. You 76also need to be sure that the correct set of host packages are installed 77that allow development using the Yocto Project. For the steps needed to 78set up a development host that runs Linux, see the 79":ref:`dev-manual/start:setting up a native linux host`" 80section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 81 82Once your development host is set up to use the Yocto Project, there 83are several ways of working in the Yocto Project environment: 84 85- *Command Lines, BitBake, and Shells:* Traditional development in the 86 Yocto Project involves using the :term:`OpenEmbedded Build System`, 87 which uses 88 BitBake, in a command-line environment from a shell on your 89 development host. You can accomplish this from a host that is a 90 native Linux machine or from a host that has been set up with CROPS. 91 Either way, you create, modify, and build images and applications all 92 within a shell-based environment using components and tools available 93 through your Linux distribution and the Yocto Project. 94 95 For a general flow of the build procedures, see the 96 ":ref:`dev-manual/building:building a simple image`" 97 section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 98 99- *Board Support Package (BSP) Development:* Development of BSPs 100 involves using the Yocto Project to create and test layers that allow 101 easy development of images and applications targeted for specific 102 hardware. To development BSPs, you need to take some additional steps 103 beyond what was described in setting up a development host. 104 105 The :doc:`/bsp-guide/index` provides BSP-related development 106 information. For specifics on development host preparation, see the 107 ":ref:`bsp-guide/bsp:preparing your build host to work with bsp layers`" 108 section in the Yocto Project Board Support Package (BSP) Developer's 109 Guide. 110 111- *Kernel Development:* If you are going to be developing kernels using 112 the Yocto Project you likely will be using ``devtool``. A workflow 113 using ``devtool`` makes kernel development quicker by reducing 114 iteration cycle times. 115 116 The :doc:`/kernel-dev/index` provides kernel-related 117 development information. For specifics on development host 118 preparation, see the 119 ":ref:`kernel-dev/common:preparing the build host to work on the kernel`" 120 section in the Yocto Project Linux Kernel Development Manual. 121 122- *Using Toaster:* The other Yocto Project development method that 123 involves an interface that effectively puts the Yocto Project into 124 the background is Toaster. Toaster provides an interface to the 125 OpenEmbedded build system. The interface enables you to configure and 126 run your builds. Information about builds is collected and stored in 127 a database. You can use Toaster to configure and start builds on 128 multiple remote build servers. 129 130 For steps that show you how to set up your development host to use 131 Toaster and on how to use Toaster in general, see the 132 :doc:`/toaster-manual/index`. 133 134- *Using the VSCode Extension:* You can use the `Yocto Project BitBake 135 <https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=yocto-project.yocto-bitbake>`__ 136 extension for Visual Studio Code to start your BitBake builds through a 137 graphical user interface. 138 139 Learn more about the VSCode Extension on the `extension's marketplace page 140 <https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=yocto-project.yocto-bitbake>`__. 141 142Yocto Project Source Repositories 143================================= 144 145The Yocto Project team maintains complete source repositories for all 146Yocto Project files at :yocto_git:`/`. This web-based source 147code browser is organized into categories by function such as IDE 148Plugins, Matchbox, Poky, Yocto Linux Kernel, and so forth. From the 149interface, you can click on any particular item in the "Name" column and 150see the URL at the bottom of the page that you need to clone a Git 151repository for that particular item. Having a local Git repository of 152the :term:`Source Directory`, which 153is usually named "poky", allows you to make changes, contribute to the 154history, and ultimately enhance the Yocto Project's tools, Board Support 155Packages, and so forth. 156 157For any supported release of Yocto Project, you can also go to the 158:yocto_home:`Yocto Project Website <>` and select the "DOWNLOADS" 159item from the "SOFTWARE" menu and get a released tarball of the ``poky`` 160repository, any supported BSP tarball, or Yocto Project tools. Unpacking 161these tarballs gives you a snapshot of the released files. 162 163.. note:: 164 165 - The recommended method for setting up the Yocto Project 166 :term:`Source Directory` and the files 167 for supported BSPs (e.g., ``meta-intel``) is to use 168 :ref:`overview-manual/development-environment:git` 169 to create a local copy of the upstream repositories. 170 171 - Be sure to always work in matching branches for both the selected 172 BSP repository and the Source Directory (i.e. ``poky``) 173 repository. For example, if you have checked out the "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" 174 branch of ``poky`` and you are going to use ``meta-intel``, be 175 sure to checkout the "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" branch of ``meta-intel``. 176 177In summary, here is where you can get the project files needed for 178development: 179 180- :yocto_git:`Source Repositories: <>` This area contains Poky, Yocto 181 documentation, metadata layers, and Linux kernel. You can create local 182 copies of Git repositories for each of these areas. 183 184 .. image:: figures/source-repos.png 185 :width: 100% 186 187 For steps on how to view and access these upstream Git repositories, 188 see the ":ref:`dev-manual/start:accessing source repositories`" 189 Section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 190 191- :yocto_dl:`Yocto release archives: </releases/yocto>` This is where you can 192 download tarballs corresponding to each Yocto Project release. Downloading 193 and extracting these files does not produce a local copy of a Git repository 194 but rather a snapshot corresponding to a particular release. 195 196- :yocto_home:`DOWNLOADS page </software-overview/downloads/>`: 197 The :yocto_home:`Yocto Project website <>` includes a "DOWNLOADS" page accessible 198 through the "SOFTWARE" menu that allows you to download any Yocto 199 Project release, tool, and Board Support Package (BSP) in tarball 200 form. The hyperlinks point to the tarballs under 201 :yocto_dl:`/releases/yocto/`. 202 203 .. image:: figures/yp-download.png 204 :width: 100% 205 206 For steps on how to use the "DOWNLOADS" page, see the 207 ":ref:`dev-manual/start:using the downloads page`" 208 section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 209 210Git Workflows and the Yocto Project 211=================================== 212 213Developing using the Yocto Project likely requires the use of 214:ref:`overview-manual/development-environment:git`. 215Git is a free, open source distributed version control 216system used as part of many collaborative design environments. This 217section provides workflow concepts using the Yocto Project and Git. In 218particular, the information covers basic practices that describe roles 219and actions in a collaborative development environment. 220 221.. note:: 222 223 If you are familiar with this type of development environment, you 224 might not want to read this section. 225 226The Yocto Project files are maintained using Git in "branches" whose Git 227histories track every change and whose structures provide branches for 228all diverging functionality. Although there is no need to use Git, many 229open source projects do so. 230 231For the Yocto Project, a key individual called the "maintainer" is 232responsible for the integrity of the development branch of a given Git 233repository. The development branch is the "upstream" repository from which 234final or most recent builds of a project occur. The maintainer is 235responsible for accepting changes from other developers and for 236organizing the underlying branch structure to reflect release strategies 237and so forth. 238 239.. note:: 240 241 For information on finding out who is responsible for (maintains) a 242 particular area of code in the Yocto Project, see the 243 ":doc:`../contributor-guide/identify-component`" 244 section of the Yocto Project and OpenEmbedded Contributor Guide. 245 246The Yocto Project ``poky`` Git repository also has an upstream 247contribution Git repository named ``poky-contrib``. You can see all the 248branches in this repository using the web interface of the 249:yocto_git:`Source Repositories <>` organized within the "Poky Support" 250area. These branches hold changes (commits) to the project that have 251been submitted or committed by the Yocto Project development team and by 252community members who contribute to the project. The maintainer 253determines if the changes are qualified to be moved from the "contrib" 254branches into the "master" branch of the Git repository. 255 256Developers (including contributing community members) create and 257maintain cloned repositories of upstream branches. The cloned 258repositories are local to their development platforms and are used to 259develop changes. When a developer is satisfied with a particular feature 260or change, they "push" the change to the appropriate "contrib" 261repository. 262 263Developers are responsible for keeping their local repository up-to-date 264with whatever upstream branch they are working against. They are also 265responsible for straightening out any conflicts that might arise within 266files that are being worked on simultaneously by more than one person. 267All this work is done locally on the development host before anything is 268pushed to a "contrib" area and examined at the maintainer's level. 269 270There is a somewhat formal method by which developers commit changes and 271push them into the "contrib" area and subsequently request that the 272maintainer include them into an upstream branch. This process is called 273"submitting a patch" or "submitting a change." For information on 274submitting patches and changes, see the 275":doc:`../contributor-guide/submit-changes`" section in the Yocto Project 276and OpenEmbedded Contributor Guide. 277 278In summary, there is a single point of entry for changes into the 279development branch of the Git repository, which is controlled by the 280project's maintainer. A set of developers independently 281develop, test, and submit changes to "contrib" areas for the maintainer 282to examine. The maintainer then chooses which changes are going to 283become a permanent part of the project. 284 285.. image:: svg/git-workflow.* 286 :width: 100% 287 288While each development environment is unique, there are some best 289practices or methods that help development run smoothly. The following 290list describes some of these practices. For more information about Git 291workflows, see the workflow topics in the `Git Community 292Book <https://book.git-scm.com>`__. 293 294- *Make Small Changes:* It is best to keep the changes you commit small 295 as compared to bundling many disparate changes into a single commit. 296 This practice not only keeps things manageable but also allows the 297 maintainer to more easily include or refuse changes. 298 299- *Make Complete Changes:* It is also good practice to leave the 300 repository in a state that allows you to still successfully build 301 your project. In other words, do not commit half of a feature, then 302 add the other half as a separate, later commit. Each commit should 303 take you from one buildable project state to another buildable state. 304 305- *Use Branches Liberally:* It is very easy to create, use, and delete 306 local branches in your working Git repository on the development 307 host. You can name these branches anything you like. It is helpful to 308 give them names associated with the particular feature or change on 309 which you are working. Once you are done with a feature or change and 310 have merged it into your local development branch, simply discard the 311 temporary branch. 312 313- *Merge Changes:* The ``git merge`` command allows you to take the 314 changes from one branch and fold them into another branch. This 315 process is especially helpful when more than a single developer might 316 be working on different parts of the same feature. Merging changes 317 also automatically identifies any collisions or "conflicts" that 318 might happen as a result of the same lines of code being altered by 319 two different developers. 320 321- *Manage Branches:* Because branches are easy to use, you should use a 322 system where branches indicate varying levels of code readiness. For 323 example, you can have a "work" branch to develop in, a "test" branch 324 where the code or change is tested, a "stage" branch where changes 325 are ready to be committed, and so forth. As your project develops, 326 you can merge code across the branches to reflect ever-increasing 327 stable states of the development. 328 329- *Use Push and Pull:* The push-pull workflow is based on the concept 330 of developers "pushing" local commits to a remote repository, which 331 is usually a contribution repository. This workflow is also based on 332 developers "pulling" known states of the project down into their 333 local development repositories. The workflow easily allows you to 334 pull changes submitted by other developers from the upstream 335 repository into your work area ensuring that you have the most recent 336 software on which to develop. The Yocto Project has two scripts named 337 ``create-pull-request`` and ``send-pull-request`` that ship with the 338 release to facilitate this workflow. You can find these scripts in 339 the ``scripts`` folder of the :term:`Source Directory`. For information 340 on how to use these scripts, see the 341 ":ref:`contributor-guide/submit-changes:using scripts to push a change upstream and request a pull`" 342 section in the Yocto Project and OpenEmbedded Contributor Guide. 343 344- *Patch Workflow:* This workflow allows you to notify the maintainer 345 through an email that you have a change (or patch) you would like 346 considered for the development branch of the Git repository. To send 347 this type of change, you format the patch and then send the email 348 using the Git commands ``git format-patch`` and ``git send-email``. 349 For information on how to use these scripts, see the 350 ":doc:`../contributor-guide/submit-changes`" section in the Yocto Project 351 and OpenEmbedded Contributor Guide. 352 353Git 354=== 355 356The Yocto Project makes extensive use of Git, which is a free, open 357source distributed version control system. Git supports distributed 358development, non-linear development, and can handle large projects. It 359is best that you have some fundamental understanding of how Git tracks 360projects and how to work with Git if you are going to use the Yocto 361Project for development. This section provides a quick overview of how 362Git works and provides you with a summary of some essential Git 363commands. 364 365.. note:: 366 367 - For more information on Git, see 368 https://git-scm.com/documentation. 369 370 - If you need to download Git, it is recommended that you add Git to 371 your system through your distribution's "software store" (e.g. for 372 Ubuntu, use the Ubuntu Software feature). For the Git download 373 page, see https://git-scm.com/download. 374 375 - For information beyond the introductory nature in this section, 376 see the ":ref:`dev-manual/start:locating yocto project source files`" 377 section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 378 379Repositories, Tags, and Branches 380-------------------------------- 381 382As mentioned briefly in the previous section and also in the 383":ref:`overview-manual/development-environment:git workflows and the yocto project`" 384section, the Yocto Project maintains source repositories at :yocto_git:`/`. 385If you look at this web-interface of the repositories, each item is a separate 386Git repository. 387 388Git repositories use branching techniques that track content change (not 389files) within a project (e.g. a new feature or updated documentation). 390Creating a tree-like structure based on project divergence allows for 391excellent historical information over the life of a project. This 392methodology also allows for an environment from which you can do lots of 393local experimentation on projects as you develop changes or new 394features. 395 396A Git repository represents all development efforts for a given project. 397For example, the Git repository ``poky`` contains all changes and 398developments for that repository over the course of its entire life. 399That means that all changes that make up all releases are captured. The 400repository maintains a complete history of changes. 401 402You can create a local copy of any repository by "cloning" it with the 403``git clone`` command. When you clone a Git repository, you end up with 404an identical copy of the repository on your development system. Once you 405have a local copy of a repository, you can take steps to develop 406locally. For examples on how to clone Git repositories, see the 407":ref:`dev-manual/start:locating yocto project source files`" 408section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 409 410It is important to understand that Git tracks content change and not 411files. Git uses "branches" to organize different development efforts. 412For example, the ``poky`` repository has several branches that include 413the current "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" branch, the "master" branch, and many 414branches for past Yocto Project releases. You can see all the branches 415by going to :yocto_git:`/poky/` and clicking on the 416``[...]`` link beneath the "Branch" heading. 417 418Each of these branches represents a specific area of development. The 419"master" branch represents the current or most recent development. All 420other branches represent offshoots of the "master" branch. 421 422When you create a local copy of a Git repository, the copy has the same 423set of branches as the original. This means you can use Git to create a 424local working area (also called a branch) that tracks a specific 425development branch from the upstream source Git repository. In other 426words, you can define your local Git environment to work on any 427development branch in the repository. To help illustrate, consider the 428following example Git commands:: 429 430 $ cd ~ 431 $ git clone git://git.yoctoproject.org/poky -b &DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP; 432 433In the previous example 434after moving to the home directory, the ``git clone`` command creates a 435local copy of the upstream ``poky`` Git repository and checks out a 436local branch named "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;", which tracks the upstream 437"origin/&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" branch. Changes you make while in this 438branch would ultimately affect the upstream "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" branch 439of the ``poky`` repository. 440 441It is important to understand that when you create and checkout a local 442working branch based on a branch name, your local environment matches 443the "tip" of that particular development branch at the time you created 444your local branch, which could be different from the files in the 445"master" branch of the upstream repository. In other words, creating and 446checking out a local branch based on the "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" branch 447name is not the same as checking out the "master" branch in the 448repository. Keep reading to see how you create a local snapshot of a 449Yocto Project Release. 450 451Git uses "tags" to mark specific changes in a repository branch 452structure. Typically, a tag is used to mark a special point such as the 453final change (or commit) before a project is released. You can see the 454tags used with the ``poky`` Git repository by going to :yocto_git:`/poky/` 455and clicking on the ``[...]`` link beneath the "Tag" heading. 456 457Some key tags for the ``poky`` repository are ``jethro-14.0.3``, 458``morty-16.0.1``, ``pyro-17.0.0``, and 459``&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;-&DISTRO;``. These tags represent Yocto Project 460releases. 461 462When you create a local copy of the Git repository, you also have access 463to all the tags in the upstream repository. Similar to branches, you can 464create and checkout a local working Git branch based on a tag name. When 465you do this, you get a snapshot of the Git repository that reflects the 466state of the files when the change was made associated with that tag. 467The most common use is to checkout a working branch that matches a 468specific Yocto Project release. Here is an example:: 469 470 $ cd ~ 471 $ git clone git://git.yoctoproject.org/poky 472 $ cd poky 473 $ git fetch --tags 474 $ git checkout tags/rocko-18.0.0 -b my_rocko-18.0.0 475 476In this example, the name 477of the top-level directory of your local Yocto Project repository is 478``poky``. After moving to the ``poky`` directory, the ``git fetch`` 479command makes all the upstream tags available locally in your 480repository. Finally, the ``git checkout`` command creates and checks out 481a branch named "my-rocko-18.0.0" that is based on the upstream branch 482whose "HEAD" matches the commit in the repository associated with the 483"rocko-18.0.0" tag. The files in your repository now exactly match that 484particular Yocto Project release as it is tagged in the upstream Git 485repository. It is important to understand that when you create and 486checkout a local working branch based on a tag, your environment matches 487a specific point in time and not the entire development branch (i.e. 488from the "tip" of the branch backwards). 489 490Basic Commands 491-------------- 492 493Git has an extensive set of commands that lets you manage changes and 494perform collaboration over the life of a project. Conveniently though, 495you can manage with a small set of basic operations and workflows once 496you understand the basic philosophy behind Git. You do not have to be an 497expert in Git to be functional. A good place to look for instruction on 498a minimal set of Git commands is 499`here <https://git-scm.com/documentation>`__. 500 501The following list of Git commands briefly describes some basic Git 502operations as a way to get started. As with any set of commands, this 503list (in most cases) simply shows the base command and omits the many 504arguments it supports. See the Git documentation for complete 505descriptions and strategies on how to use these commands: 506 507- *git init:* Initializes an empty Git repository. You cannot use 508 Git commands unless you have a ``.git`` repository. 509 510- *git clone:* Creates a local clone of a Git repository that is on 511 equal footing with a fellow developer's Git repository or an upstream 512 repository. 513 514- *git add:* Locally stages updated file contents to the index that 515 Git uses to track changes. You must stage all files that have changed 516 before you can commit them. 517 518- *git commit:* Creates a local "commit" that documents the changes 519 you made. Only changes that have been staged can be committed. 520 Commits are used for historical purposes, for determining if a 521 maintainer of a project will allow the change, and for ultimately 522 pushing the change from your local Git repository into the project's 523 upstream repository. 524 525- *git status:* Reports any modified files that possibly need to be 526 staged and gives you a status of where you stand regarding local 527 commits as compared to the upstream repository. 528 529- *git checkout branch-name:* Changes your local working branch and 530 in this form assumes the local branch already exists. This command is 531 analogous to "cd". 532 533- *git checkout -b working-branch upstream-branch:* Creates and 534 checks out a working branch on your local machine. The local branch 535 tracks the upstream branch. You can use your local branch to isolate 536 your work. It is a good idea to use local branches when adding 537 specific features or changes. Using isolated branches facilitates 538 easy removal of changes if they do not work out. 539 540- *git branch:* Displays the existing local branches associated 541 with your local repository. The branch that you have currently 542 checked out is noted with an asterisk character. 543 544- *git branch -D branch-name:* Deletes an existing local branch. 545 You need to be in a local branch other than the one you are deleting 546 in order to delete branch-name. 547 548- *git pull \-\-rebase*: Retrieves information from an upstream Git 549 repository and places it in your local Git repository. You use this 550 command to make sure you are synchronized with the repository from 551 which you are basing changes (e.g. the "&DISTRO_NAME_NO_CAP;" 552 branch). The ``--rebase`` option ensures that any local commits you 553 have in your branch are preserved at the top of your local branch. 554 555- *git push repo-name local-branch:upstream-branch:* Sends 556 all your committed local changes to the upstream Git repository that 557 your local repository is tracking (e.g. a contribution repository). 558 The maintainer of the project draws from these repositories to merge 559 changes (commits) into the appropriate branch of project's upstream 560 repository. 561 562- *git merge:* Combines or adds changes from one local branch of 563 your repository with another branch. When you create a local Git 564 repository, the default branch may be named "main". A typical 565 workflow is to create a temporary branch that is based off "main" 566 that you would use for isolated work. You would make your changes in 567 that isolated branch, stage and commit them locally, switch to the 568 "main" branch, and then use the ``git merge`` command to apply the 569 changes from your isolated branch into the currently checked out 570 branch (e.g. "main"). After the merge is complete and if you are 571 done with working in that isolated branch, you can safely delete the 572 isolated branch. 573 574- *git cherry-pick commits:* Choose and apply specific commits from 575 one branch into another branch. There are times when you might not be 576 able to merge all the changes in one branch with another but need to 577 pick out certain ones. 578 579- *gitk:* Provides a GUI view of the branches and changes in your 580 local Git repository. This command is a good way to graphically see 581 where things have diverged in your local repository. 582 583 .. note:: 584 585 You need to install the 586 gitk 587 package on your development system to use this command. 588 589- *git log:* Reports a history of your commits to the repository. 590 This report lists all commits regardless of whether you have pushed 591 them upstream or not. 592 593- *git diff:* Displays line-by-line differences between a local 594 working file and the same file as understood by Git. This command is 595 useful to see what you have changed in any given file. 596 597Licensing 598========= 599 600Because open source projects are open to the public, they have different 601licensing structures in place. License evolution for both Open Source 602and Free Software has an interesting history. If you are interested in 603this history, you can find basic information here: 604 605- :wikipedia:`Open source license history <Open-source_license>` 606 607- :wikipedia:`Free software license history <Free_software_license>` 608 609In general, the Yocto Project is broadly licensed under the 610Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) License. MIT licensing 611permits the reuse of software within proprietary software as long as the 612license is distributed with that software. Patches to the Yocto Project 613follow the upstream licensing scheme. You can find information on the 614MIT license :wikipedia:`here <MIT_License>`. 615 616When you build an image using the Yocto Project, the build process uses 617a known list of licenses to ensure compliance. You can find this list in 618the :term:`Source Directory` at ``meta/files/common-licenses``. Once the 619build completes, the list of all licenses found and used during that build 620are kept in the :term:`Build Directory` at ``tmp/deploy/licenses``. 621 622If a module requires a license that is not in the base list, the build 623process generates a warning during the build. These tools make it easier 624for a developer to be certain of the licenses with which their shipped 625products must comply. However, even with these tools it is still up to 626the developer to resolve potential licensing issues. 627 628The base list of licenses used by the build process is a combination of 629the Software Package Data Exchange (SPDX) list and the Open Source 630Initiative (OSI) projects. `SPDX Group <https://spdx.org>`__ is a working 631group of the Linux Foundation that maintains a specification for a 632standard format for communicating the components, licenses, and 633copyrights associated with a software package. 634`OSI <https://opensource.org>`__ is a corporation dedicated to the Open 635Source Definition and the effort for reviewing and approving licenses 636that conform to the Open Source Definition (OSD). 637 638You can find a list of the combined SPDX and OSI licenses that the Yocto 639Project uses in the ``meta/files/common-licenses`` directory in your 640:term:`Source Directory`. 641 642For information that can help you maintain compliance with various open 643source licensing during the lifecycle of a product created using the 644Yocto Project, see the 645":ref:`dev-manual/licenses:maintaining open source license compliance during your product's lifecycle`" 646section in the Yocto Project Development Tasks Manual. 647