{ "question": "Does a GPL label on a mod pack give me rights to the other people's mods in it?", "slug": "does-a-gpl-label-on-a-mod-pack-give-me-rights-to-others-mods", "url": "https://www.rightshold.com/answers/does-a-gpl-label-on-a-mod-pack-give-me-rights-to-others-mods", "short_answer": "No. A license can only be granted by someone who holds the rights, so whoever assembled a pack can put the GPL only on the parts they made or already had the right to license that way. Every mod in the pack stays under its own author's license, whether that is GPL, MIT, a Creative Commons license, a custom \"don't reupload\" term or all rights reserved. The GPL itself says so: putting a GPL'd work alongside separate works in an \"aggregate\" does not make the GPL apply to the other parts. Before you redistribute, modify or reuse a mod from a pack, check that mod's own license, and the game's own rules for mods.", "checklist": [ "List the mods in the pack and find each one's own license, on its project page, in its repository's LICENSE file or in the files inside the mod.", "Treat no license as no permission: a mod with no stated license is all rights reserved, whatever the pack says.", "Check what each license allows for your plan: redistributing the file, including it in your own pack, modifying it, or using its code or assets in your own mod. Some authors allow modpack inclusion but not reuploads.", "Prefer linking or a manifest that downloads mods from their official pages over rehosting files, where the platform supports it.", "Use the pack author's GPL only for what the pack author made: their configs, scripts and original files.", "Check the game's EULA and the hosting platform's rules: they can limit commercial use of mods and how packs may be distributed.", "When in doubt, ask the mod author in writing and keep their reply." ], "sections": [ { "heading": "Why the label doesn't spread", "points": [ "Copyright in each mod belongs to its author (or whoever they assigned it to). Collecting mods does not transfer those rights to the collector.", "GPL-3.0 section 5 calls a compilation of separate, independent works an aggregate and says including a covered work in one does not cause the license to apply to the other parts.", "The reverse also holds: if a mod in the pack is GPL, you can use that mod under the GPL, with its source and notice duties, but not the mods next to it." ] } ], "checks": [ { "label": "Redistributing a modified GPL-3.0 mod, by itself", "license": "GPL-3.0-only", "license_name": "GNU General Public License v3.0", "intended_use": { "redistribution": true, "modification": true }, "verdict": "permitted", "answer": "Yes", "findings": [ "Every use you described is granted by GPL 3.0, and nothing you described is prohibited." ], "duties": [ "attribution", "license_notice", "state_changes", "share_alike", "source_disclosure" ], "official_text": "https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html" }, { "label": "Including a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 mod in a pack you charge for", "license": "CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0", "license_name": "Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International", "intended_use": { "commercial_use": true, "redistribution": true, "attribution_planned": true }, "verdict": "prohibited", "answer": "No", "findings": [ "CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 prohibits commercial_use." ], "duties": [ "attribution", "license_notice", "state_changes", "no_additional_restrictions", "share_alike" ], "official_text": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/legalcode" } ], "checks_note": "Yes means the license grants the use, on the duties listed. Duties such as source_disclosure, share_alike and network_source_offer are the ones that conflict with keeping a product closed-source.", "ask_rightshold": { "start": "https://www.rightshold.com/start?ref=answers", "mcp_endpoint": "https://www.rightshold.com/mcp", "ask": "My pack has mods under GPL-3.0, MIT and CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. What can I redistribute, and on what terms?", "mcp_call": { "tool": "license_compatibility", "arguments": { "licenses": [ "GPL-3.0-only", "MIT", "CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0" ], "intended_use": { "redistribution": true, "modification": true } } }, "also": [ "check_rights_batch checks up to 100 items, one per mod, in one call.", "Pass a mod's GitHub page as source_url and Rightshold reads the license that repository declares." ], "scope": "Rightshold reads the licenses you name or point it at. It cannot see licenses that are not published, and it does not interpret a game's EULA or a platform's rules for you." }, "sources": [ { "title": "GNU General Public License v3.0 (section 5, aggregates)", "url": "https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html" }, { "title": "GNU GPL FAQ: mere aggregation", "url": "https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#MereAggregation" }, { "title": "17 U.S.C. ยง 201: ownership of copyright", "url": "https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/201" }, { "title": "Choose a License: no license", "url": "https://choosealicense.com/no-permission/" } ], "related": [ { "title": "Can I use GPL code in proprietary software?", "url": "https://www.rightshold.com/answers/can-i-use-gpl-code-in-proprietary-software" }, { "title": "Can I use CC BY-NC assets in a paid game?", "url": "https://www.rightshold.com/answers/can-i-use-cc-by-nc-assets-in-a-paid-game" }, { "title": "GPL vs AGPL", "url": "https://www.rightshold.com/answers/gpl-3-0-vs-agpl-3-0" } ], "computed_from": "Curated guidance; license verdicts computed from Rightshold's license profiles at render time. Not legal advice.", "updated": "2026-10-29" }