Preserving Critical Software For the Long Term

Participation will be voluntary and opt-in, with lightweight workflows designed to minimize overhead for maintainers and projects.Projects that are archived will receive persistent Software Heritage identifiers (SWHIDs), along with structured metadata that records the Sovereign Tech Agency’s public investment, such as the program, year, and category. Together, Software Heritage and the Sovereign Tech Agency are preserving critical open source software that underpins research, public services, and digital infrastructure for the future.By combining public investment with long-term archival, we are creating durable references that link software, knowledge, and public investment across time. This makes it possible not only to keep the source code of software available, but also to understand its role, evolution, and impact in the future.We see this work as part of a broader effort to strengthen the sustainability of the open source ecosystem: one where institutions support the continuity, resilience, and researchability of shared digital commons. By participating in Software Heritage working groups and sharing the lessons we’ll learn through our partnership, we’ll help develop practices that others can adopt and build on.Ensuring that critical software remains accessible, identifiable, and meaningful for the future is an ongoing responsibility—and one we are committed to taking on together. This collaboration with the Sovereign Tech Agency demonstrates how public institutions can take concrete action to protect critical digital infrastructure." — Roberto Di Cosmo, Director of Software Heritage More articles All articles Standards 08 Jun 2026 Read article: Where standards and code meet We have signed a memorandum of understanding with DIN, the German Institute for Standardization, to strengthen open source participation in international standards development. Standards 13 May 2026 Read article: What open source maintainers told us about standards Earlier this year we ran a survey to understand how open source maintainers engage with standards work, and where the hurdles are.