Licensing Clarification for Using MSVC Toolchain on Linux

Question

Hello,

I need clarification on licensing terms for using the MSVC Toolchain for cross-compiling open-source software on Linux.

 

In my current project, I’m building open-source software on Linux for Windows, and this requires specific MSVC components (headers, libraries, linker, etc.). Currently, the only official way to acquire these files is through the Visual Studio Installer, which isn’t compatible with Linux, even when using Wine. As a result, third-party tools are necessary to obtain the required files.

 

After reading through the licensing terms for Microsoft Diagnostic Build Tools for Visual Studio 2022 (link to license terms), I found some relevant information under Section 4, Scope of the License:

“Unless applicable law gives you more rights despite this limitation, you may use the software only as expressly permitted in these license terms. In doing so, you must comply with any technical limitations in the software that only allow you to use it in certain ways. In addition, you may not: • work around any technical limitations in the software; …”

To work around the Visual Studio Installer’s incompatibility with Linux, I’m considering developing an open-source tool to download the necessary MSVC files. However, from my understanding, such a tool might violate the Microsoft Software License Terms for Visual Studio 2022 Remote Debugger, IntelliTrace Collector, other debuggers, agents, and build tools because it could be interpreted as circumventing a technical limitation in the Visual Studio Installer.

 

Since I’m not a lawyer and English is my second language, I might have misunderstood some details. My primary concern is to avoid any risk of violating Microsoft’s licensing terms or having my GitHub repository taken down if I publish this tool.

 

So, my question is: If my understanding is correct and this approach would indeed violate the Terms of Service, is there an alternative licensing option available that would allow me to develop an open-source tool to download MSVC build files on Linux for cross-compilation purposes?

 

Thank you in advance for any guidance.

Answer 1

Hi @ChrissMon , 

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A! 

This is a community forum for technical questions & issues. 

For question regarding licensing, please contact licensing expert.

Call (1-800-426-9400), Monday through Friday, 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM PST to speak directly to Microsoft licensing specialist. 

Or you can contact Volume Licensing Support. 

You can see https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/license-terms/ for more details. Thanks for your understanding. 

Sincerely,

Anna

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