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> regulatory compliance requires that devices which make unlicensed use of radio spectrum (such as Wi-Fi) must contain non-user modifiable software for their radios in order to comply with regulations

Couldn't one restrict the chip to only accept signed firmware and then publish the source with reproduceable build instructions? This would prevent user modification while still being open source.

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While it might be technically open source, it's very, very much against the spirit of open source.

It's also explicitly prohibited under the GPLv3 unless there's no way that the manufacturer can update that firmware.

Well, it's not great, but it's still a step up from an opaque firmware blob and (maybe?) still allowed under FCC rules.

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