---
key: free-surfer-1.0
short_name: FreeSurfer Software License Agreement 1.0
name: FreeSurfer Software License Agreement 1.0
category: Permissive
owner: MGH
homepage_url: https://surfer.nmr.mgh.harvard.edu/fswiki/FreeSurferSoftwareLicense
spdx_license_key: LicenseRef-scancode-free-surfer-1.0
ignorable_authors:
    - The General Hospital Corporation, Boston MA
---

FreeSurfer Software License Agreement

Version 1.0, February 2011

This Agreement covers contributions to and downloads from the FreeSurfer project ("FreeSurfer") maintained by The General Hospital Corporation, Boston MA, USA ("MGH"). Part A of this Agreement applies to contributions of software and/or data to FreeSurfer (including making revisions of or additions to code and/or data already in FreeSurfer). Part B of this Agreement applies to downloads of software and/or data from FreeSurfer. Part C of this Agreement applies to all transactions with FreeSurfer. If you distribute Software (as defined below) downloaded from FreeSurfer, all of the paragraphs of Part B of this Agreement must be included with and apply to such Software.

Your contribution of software and/or data to FreeSurfer (including prior to the date of the first publication of this Agreement, each a "Contribution") and/or downloading, copying, modifying, displaying, distributing or use of any software and/or data from FreeSurfer (collectively, the "Software") constitutes acceptance of all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement. If you do not agree to such terms and conditions, you have no right to contribute your Contribution, or to download, copy, modify, display, distribute or use the Software.

PART A. CONTRIBUTION AGREEMENT

License to MGH with Right to Sublicense ("Contribution Agreement")

As used in this Contribution Agreement, "you" means the individual contributing the Contribution to FreeSurfer and the institution or entity which employs or is otherwise affiliated with such individual in connection with such Contribution.

This Contribution Agreement applies to all Contributions made to FreeSurfer, including without limitation Contributions made prior to the date of first publication of this Agreement. If at any time you make a Contribution to FreeSurfer, you represent that (i) you are legally authorized and entitled to make such Contribution and to grant all licenses granted in this Contribution Agreement with respect to such Contribution; (ii) if your Contribution includes any patient data, all such data is de-identified in accordance with U.S. confidentiality and security laws and requirements, including but not limited to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and its regulations, and your disclosure of such data for the purposes contemplated by this Agreement is properly authorized and in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations; and (iii) you have preserved in the Contribution all applicable attributions, copyright notices and licenses for any third party software or data included in the Contribution.

Except for the licenses granted in this Agreement, you reserve all right, title and interest in your Contribution.

You hereby grant to MGH, with the right to sublicense, a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no charge, royalty-free, irrevocable license to use, reproduce, make derivative works of, display and distribute the Contribution. If your Contribution is protected by patent, you hereby grant to MGH, with the right to sublicense, a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable license under your interest in patent rights covering the Contribution, to make, have made, use, sell and otherwise transfer your Contribution, alone or in combination with any other code.

You acknowledge and agree that MGH may incorporate your Contribution into FreeSurfer and may make FreeSurfer available to members of the public on an open source basis under terms substantially in accordance with the Software License set forth in Part B of this Agreement. You further acknowledge and agree that MGH shall have no liability arising in connection with claims resulting from your breach of any of the terms of this Agreement.

YOU WARRANT THAT TO THE BEST OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE YOUR CONTRIBUTION DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY CODE THAT REQURES OR PRESCRIBES AN "OPEN SOURCE LICENSE" FOR DERIVATIVE WORKS (by way of non-limiting example, the GNU General Public License or other so-called "reciprocal" license that requires any derived work to be licensed under the GNU General Public License or other "open source license"). 

PART B. DOWNLOADING AGREEMENT

License from MGH with Right to Sublicense ("Software License")

As used in this Software License, "you" means the individual downloading and/or using, reproducing, modifying, displaying and/or distributing the Software and the institution or entity which employs or is otherwise affiliated with such individual in connection therewith. The General Hospital Corporation, Boston MA, USA ("MGH") hereby grants you, with right to sublicense, with respect to MGH's rights in the software, and data, if any, which is the subject of this Software License (collectively, the "Software"), a royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, make derivative works of, display and distribute the Software, provided that: (a) you accept and adhere to all of the terms and conditions of this Software License; (b) in connection with any copy of or sublicense of all or any portion of the Software, all of the terms and conditions in this Software License shall appear in and shall apply to such copy and such sublicense, including without limitation all source and executable forms and on any user documentation, prefaced with the following words: "All or portions of this licensed product (such portions are the "Software") have been obtained under license from The General Hospital Corporation and are subject to the following terms and conditions:" (c) you preserve and maintain all applicable attributions, copyright notices and licenses included in or applicable to the Software; (d) modified versions of the Software must be clearly identified and marked as such, and must not be misrepresented as being the original Software; and (e) you consider making, but are under no obligation to make, the source code of any of your modifications to the Software freely available to others on an open source basis.

The license granted in this Software License includes without limitation the right to (i) incorporate the Software into proprietary programs (subject to any restrictions applicable to such programs), (ii) add your own copyright statement to your modifications of the Software, and (iii) provide additional or different license terms and conditions in your sublicenses of modifications of the Software; provided that in each case your use, reproduction or distribution of such modifications otherwise complies with the conditions stated in this Software License.

This Software License does not grant any rights with respect to third party software, except those rights that MGH has been authorized by a third party to grant to you, and accordingly you are solely responsible for (i) obtaining any permissions from third parties that you need to use, reproduce, make derivative works of, display and distribute the Software, and (ii) informing your sublicensees, including without limitation your end-users, of their obligations to secure any such required permissions.

The Software has been designed for research purposes only and has not been reviewed or approved by the Food and Drug Administration or by any other agency. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT CLINICAL APPLICATIONS ARE NEITHER RECOMMENDED NOR ADVISED. Any commercialization of the Software is at the sole risk of the party or parties engaged in such commercialization. You further agree to use, reproduce, make derivative works of, display and distribute the Software in compliance with all applicable governmental laws, regulations and orders, including without limitation those relating to export and import control.

The Software is provided "AS IS" and neither MGH nor any contributor to the software (each a "Contributor") shall have any obligation to provide maintenance, support, updates, enhancements or modifications thereto. MGH AND ALL CONTRIBUTORS SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL EXPRESS AND IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL MGH OR ANY CONTRIBUTOR BE LIABLE TO ANY PARTY FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, EXEMPLARY OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY ARISING IN ANY WAY RELATED TO THE SOFTWARE, EVEN IF MGH OR ANY CONTRIBUTOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT NOT PROHIBITED BY LAW OR REGULATION, YOU FURTHER ASSUME ALL LIABILITY FOR YOUR USE, REPRODUCTION, MAKING OF DERIVATIVE WORKS, DISPLAY, LICENSE OR DISTRIBUTION OF THE SOFTWARE AND AGREE TO INDEMNIFY AND HOLD HARMLESS MGH AND ALL CONTRIBUTORS FROM AND AGAINST ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, SUITS, ACTIONS, DEMANDS AND JUDGMENTS ARISING THEREFROM.

None of the names, logos or trademarks of MGH or any of MGH's affiliates or any of the Contributors, or any funding agency, may be used to endorse or promote products produced in whole or in part by operation of the Software or derived from or based on the Software without specific prior written permission from the applicable party.

Any use, reproduction or distribution of the Software which is not in accordance with this Software License shall automatically revoke all rights granted to you under this Software License and render Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Software License null and void.

This Software License does not grant any rights in or to any intellectual property owned by MGH or any Contributor except those rights expressly granted hereunder. 

PART C. MISCELLANEOUS

This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts without regard to principles of conflicts of law. This Agreement shall supercede and replace any license terms that you may have agreed to previously with respect to FreeSurfer.