chore: update license header

[AJPfleger]

Initial Problem

All files in our project have a different copyright header, which may or may not be updated when changes are done. This adds some clutter and unnecessary thinking to each PR.

Solution attempts

The most beautiful solution would be to automatically update each file with creation-date and when it was last touched. However, this is not possible, because of some reasons.

Creation date

We could go back into the git logs and check the first entry. This gets a bit confusing, when we rename/move files. In theory, it should work with --follow. However, I noticed, that often the suggested creation date is newer, than the actual one, following all PRs by hand.

Modification date

For this one, we get definitely the correct year, however, by updating the headers to the actual year, we add an modification in this year. In the end, we would need to update all files to this year (Except those, that weren't touch outsider their initial creation year.)

Options

In the end it boils down to 3 options with their ups and downs

🅰 git_add_date to today (current proposal)

This is an approach to get the most accurate numbers out.
Pros:

• Sophisticated
• We get a feeling, how old the code might be

Cons:

• The first year can be wrong (too recent) due to git-bugs
• Needs code for handling

🅱 existing_date to today

Similar to 🅰 but with the assumption, that we trust our old code more than the buggy git-log.

🅲 min(🅰, 🅱)

We could use the data provided in 🅰 and 🅱 and only use the git_add_date when it is smaller, than the indicated date. Still not perfect, but maybe a bit better. This option is probably not the best for keeping in the CI and pre-commit.

🅳 2016 to today

Uses the full span.
Pros:

• Check is easy
• Every file looks the same

Cons:

• Header contains no additional information
• We are pre-dating all (c)s

Other changes

• Acts -> ACTS, since we converged to that spelling
• http:// -> https:// in the license link

[CarloVarni]

Hi @AJPfleger I'm afraid you have to update this to include the latest PRs that went into ACTS

[AJPfleger]

@CarloVarni I covered all new files in my daily update.

[andiwand]

let's get this in

[paulgessinger]

I'm sorry to delay this, but does this mean we need to touch every single file every 1st of January or the CI is red?

I think if we update this, the solution needs to be:

1. In pre-commit, update files that are part of the staged changes
2. In PRs, only run the license check on files that are changed in the PR. Something like this could work here.

[andiwand]

Oh right I forgot about that issue. A few potential solutions

1. don't care about the year at all - that brings us back to the existing solution?
2. validate and constrain the start and end year
3. only put 2016
4. only verify the end date if the file changed

[AJPfleger]

I would prefer most a static solution in the form of
// Copyright (C) 2016 CERN for the benefit of the ACTS project
or
// Copyright (C) 2016- CERN for the benefit of the ACTS project
to symbolise, that the project is still ongoing.

Is the first solution fine for everyone?

[CarloVarni]

I would prefer most a static solution in the form of // Copyright (C) 2016 CERN for the benefit of the ACTS project or // Copyright (C) 2016- CERN for the benefit of the ACTS project to symbolise, that the project is still ongoing.

Is the first solution fine for everyone?

The first one would make people think they have to update the year when they change a file. The second one seems uncomplete with a dangling - imho

[andiwand]

I am also in favor of this

// Copyright (C) 2016 CERN for the benefit of the ACTS project

It also makes clear that this is the first date of the copyright, whatever it means, but it cannot be confused anymore with the date of the file which is a good thing IMO

[AJPfleger]

In today's developer meeting, no-one disfavoured to use the static (C) 2016 approach

[sonarqubecloud]

Quality Gate passed

Issues
0 New issues
0 Accepted issues

Measures
0 Security Hotspots
0.0% Coverage on New Code
0.0% Duplication on New Code

See analysis details on SonarCloud

[acts-project-service]

✅ Athena integration test results [11be339]

✅ All tests successful

status	job	report
🟢	report_pull_request
🟢	run_art_test: test_data18_13TeV_1000evt
🟢	run_art_test: test_ttbarPU40_reco
🟢	run_workflow_tests_run4_mc
🟢	run_workflow_tests_run2_mc
🟢	run_workflow_tests_run2_data
🟢	run_workflow_tests_run3_mc
🟢	run_workflow_tests_run3_data
🟢	test_ActsDumpGeometryIdentifiers
🟢	test_ActsCheckObjectCountsCachedWorkflow
🟢	test_ActsCheckObjectCountsWorkflow
🟢	test_ActsEFTrackFit
🟢	test_ActsPersistifySeeds
🟢	test_ActsBenchmarkWithSpot
🟢	test_ActsAnalogueClustering
🟢	test_ActsWorkflowHeavyIons
🟢	test_ActsWorkflowFastTracking
🟢	test_ActsWorkflowCached
🟢	test_ActsWorkflow
🟢	test_ActsValidateAmbiguityResolution
🟢	test_ActsValidateResolvedTracks
🟢	test_ActsValidateTracks
🟢	test_ActsValidateActsCoreSpacePoints
🟢	test_ActsValidateActsSpacePoints
🟢	test_ActsValidateSeeds
🟢	test_ActsValidateOrthogonalSeeds
🟢	test_ActsValidateClusters
🟢	test_ActsPersistifyEDM
🟢	test_ActsGSFRefitting
🟢	test_ActsKfRefitting
🟢	test_ActsExtrapolationAlgTest
🟢	test_ActsITkTest
🟢	run_unit_tests