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+<!--
+ - SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2016 Nextcloud GmbH and Nextcloud contributors
+ - SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+-->
+# How to apply a license
+
+Originally Nextcloud was licensed under the GNU AGPLv3 only. From
+June, 16 2016 on we switched to "GNU AGPLv3 or any later version" for
+better long-term maintainability and to make it more secure from a
+legal point of view.
+
+Additionally Nextcloud doesn't require a CLA (Contributor License
+Agreement). The copyright belongs to all the individual
+contributors.
+
+## Apply a license to a new file
+
+If you create a new file please use a SPDX license header.
+The year should then be the creation time and the email address is optional.
+
+#### Frontend source (`.js`, `.ts`, `.css` and etc)
+
+```js
+/**
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: [year] [your name] [<your email address>]
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+````
+
+or `.vue` files
+
+```html
+<!--
+  - SPDX-FileCopyrightText: [year] [your name] [<your email address>]
+  - SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+-->
+```
+
+#### Backend source (`.php`)
+
+```php
+/**
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: [year] [your name] [<your email address>]
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+```
+
+## Apply a licence to an existing file
+
+If you modify an existing file, please keep the existing license header as
+it is and just add your copyright notice.
+In order to do so there are two options:
+
+* If a generic header is already present, please just add yourself to the AUTHORS.md file
+* If no generic header is present, you can add yourself with a copyright line as described below
+
+````diff
+/**
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2022 Alice <alice@nextcloud.local>
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2023 Bob <bob@nextcloud.local>
++* SPDX-FileCopyrightText: [year] [your name] [<your email address>]
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+````
+
+An example of a generic license header where adding yourself to the AUTHORS.md
+file is prefered please see the example below
+
+```
+/**
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2024 Nextcloud GmbH and Nextcloud contributors
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+
+```
+
+For more information on SPDX headers, please see 
+
+* https://reuse.software/ 
+* https://spdx.dev/
+
+## DCO
+
+Additionally we require a Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO), look
+at [CONTRIBUTING.md][contributing] to learn more how to sign your commits.
+
+[contributing]: ../.github/CONTRIBUTING.md#sign-your-work