OpenTF for an open Terraform

Philosophy

The philosophical concerns surrounding open source have intensified following HashiCorp's license change. Josh Padnick emphasizes the importance of maintaining an open-source commitment, citing the Cloud Native Computing Foundation's requirement for perpetual openness 1. He believes that open source should be a clearly understood part of a company's business model, rather than a point of contention 1.

We're entering an era of open source where we're still figuring out what the social contract is with an open source project, its community and its maintainers.

--- Josh Padnick

Josh also highlights the strategic thinking behind OpenTF, aiming to create a superior alternative to Terraform without antagonizing HashiCorp 2.

   

Company Tensions

The tensions between companies in the open-source ecosystem have been exacerbated by HashiCorp's licensing move. Josh Padnick describes Gruntwork's complex relationship with HashiCorp, where their open-source tool, Terragrunt, inadvertently became a competitor to HashiCorp's commercial products 3. He explains that negotiating licensing fees with HashiCorp would compromise Gruntwork's independence, likening it to operating at HashiCorp's leisure 4.

If that is the state that we are in as a business, then we are not an independent business. We are operating at HashiCorp's leisure with their permission.

--- Josh Padnick

Josh stresses the importance of maintaining autonomy to continue providing value to customers without external constraints.