# Fork in the road for Terraform?

- Show: [Oxide and Friends](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends)
- Published: 2023-08-22
- Length: 1h 20m
- Episode: 24
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/68ec7c75

## Summary

Josh Padnick, Malcolm Matalka, and Cory O'Daniel, founders of GruntWerk, Terraform Cloud alternatives, and early-stage startups respectively, discuss the OpenTF project formed in response to HashiCorp's decision to relicense Terraform under the Business Source License (BSL). They explain that the vague BSL terms create unacceptable legal risk for customers and competitors, prompting a consortium of former rivals to collaborate on an open-source fork. The group details their rapid organization, the OpenTF manifesto, and their strategy to place the project under the CNCF to ensure governance and community trust, aiming to preserve the social contract of open source infrastructure.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=0) Introduction: Tributes and Context
- [4:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=255) The HashiCorp BSL Announcement and Reaction
- [7:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=431) Impact on GruntWerk and the Terraform Ecosystem
- [14:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=878) Analyzing the BSL License and FAQ Ambiguity
- [24:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=1476) Community Response and the OpenTF Consortium
- [37:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=2262) The OpenTF Manifesto and Resource Commitment
- [53:45](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=3225) The 'Squeezefish' Video and Internal Resistance
- [1:03:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform#t=3808) Governance, Forking, and the CNCF Path

## Topics

- [Intellectual property](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/intellectual-property)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- HashiCorp (company)
- Terraform (product)
- OpenTF (product)
- GruntWerk (company)
- Terraform Cloud (product)
- Vault (product)
- CNCF (other)
- Cockroach (company)
- Jenkins (product)
- Node.js (product)
- ZFS (product)
- DTrace (product)
- Oxide Computer Company (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Tesla, Checklists and Bullies - Emerging External Eupsychics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-06-18-tesla-checklists-and-bullies-emerging-external-eupsychics) (The Amp Hour)
- [353: Red for the Ones That Might Blow Up](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-11-26-353-red-for-the-ones-that-might-blow-up) (Embedded.fm)
- [285: A Chicken Getting to the Other Side](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2019-04-11-285-a-chicken-getting-to-the-other-side) (Embedded.fm)
- [479: Make Your Voice Heard](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2024-06-13-479-make-your-voice-heard) (Embedded.fm)
- [Kickstarter, Manufacturing, Open Hardware - Judging Jurisdictional Junctures](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-09-24-kickstarter-manufacturing-open-hardware-judging-jurisdictional-junctures) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-08-22-fork-in-the-road-for-terraform. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Oxide and Friends.