|Publication number||US7890429 B2|
|Application number||US 11/667,426|
|Publication date||15 Feb 2011|
|Filing date||27 Oct 2005|
|Priority date||18 Nov 2004|
|Also published as||CN101061451A, CN101061451B, DE102004055759A1, DE102004055759B4, EP1815308A1, US20080010460, WO2006053631A1|
|Publication number||11667426, 667426, PCT/2005/11503, PCT/EP/2005/011503, PCT/EP/2005/11503, PCT/EP/5/011503, PCT/EP/5/11503, PCT/EP2005/011503, PCT/EP2005/11503, PCT/EP2005011503, PCT/EP200511503, PCT/EP5/011503, PCT/EP5/11503, PCT/EP5011503, PCT/EP511503, US 7890429 B2, US 7890429B2, US-B2-7890429, US7890429 B2, US7890429B2|
|Original Assignee||Nokia Siemens Networks Gmbh & Co. Kg|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (12), Non-Patent Citations (2), Classifications (10), Legal Events (4)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
The present invention relates to a method for managing a time-limited license on a computer application that can be run on a network component.
Modern data processing networks, such as for instance telecommunication networks, generally have network components which are linked to one another in a very complex manner. These network components have the most varied of tasks and must thus be able to be universally configured in order to be able to be used in telecommunication with different time-slot oriented and packet-oriented transmission methods for instance. In addition, it is also necessary to adapt specific network components to the different license agreements, which a subscriber can conclude with a network operator.
Aside from the partially proprietary hardware in these networks, software applications also primarily ensure that specific administratively activatable functionalities can be provided and used with specific network components.
The provision of these functionalities is very frequently subject to an initially general utilization limitation, which can be overridden by acquiring a generally time-limited utilization license on a desired computer application. One particular problem with the management of the utilization license duration is the often temporal limitation of the utilization license. The option of intervening in the ongoing operation of the network is frequently no longer possible for the supplier of the computer application, so that improper further use of the computer application can not be excluded once the utilization license has expired. Attempts by determining a license finish date to initiate deinstallation of the application when the license finish date is reached and thus to be able to rule out further use can be circumvented by a comparatively simple manipulation of the relevant time base, with which the license finish date is compared.
The object underlying the present invention is thus to specify a method for managing a time-limited license on a computer application that can be run on a network component, with which it is ensured that a computer application is reliably rendered unavailable for continued-unauthorized use once the duration of the license has expired.
This object is achieved in accordance with the invention by a method for managing a time-limited license on a computer application that can be run on a network component, with which;
In this manner, the inventive method, together with the license server that, itself, can be run on the network component, enables, based on the determination of the reference date and based on the continuous updating thereof, a creation of the time base, which is independent of the system time and against which the assured license period can be evaluated.
An expedient embodiment of the invention allows the license data record also to contain a digital signature, with which it is possible to ensure that only the owner of the signature key is also able to monitor the data of the license data record in terms of its integrity and thus to prompt the execution of the licensed computer application. Provision can hereby further be made for the license data record to be read from the license server cyclically or on the basis of an event trigger. The cyclical evaluation of the license data record can thus be advantageous in that an updating or an extension of the license duration can be automatically perceived by the license server without additional measures. In a development of the invention, the signing time can only be used for determining the reference date after a successful signature check.
The determination and the updating of the reference date are naturally particularly important to the course of the method according to the invention because this reference date constitutes the central information for determining the current time basis, against which other time data is evaluated. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the license server can thus access the system time as the current time base, if the comparison of the system time with the previously determined reference date produces the result that the system time is more recent than or equal to the reference date. This ensures that the time base of the license server is on the, as it were, most recent time base allowing for the previous condition. Accordingly, in a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, the procedure can be reversed, i.e. the reference date is used to determine whether the license period has not yet expired, without adaptation to the system time as the current time base of the license server, if the comparison of the system time with the previously determined reference date produces the result that the system time is older than the previously determined reference date. This reliably rules out the possibility of the computer application being utilized if the system time is frozen or even set back, because the system time can then still be located within the license period but the reference date, which is then also updated, is after the end of the assured license duration.
In order to ensure a secured independency during the updating of the reference date, provision can be made in a further preferred embodiment of the invention to assign a counter to the network component in order to update the reference date, the counter reading of said counter being added to the reference date continuously or discontinuously. It is then also advantageous for the same reasons as mentioned above to store the updated reference date on the network component in a protected mode and thus also to rule out an improper manipulation in a more effective manner.
Further advantageous embodiments of the present invention will emerge from the remaining subclaims.
The invention is described in more detail below with reference to the drawing for instance, in which;
Aside from the conventional functionalities, the network element NE also comprises a license server LS and a data record server FS as well as a timer T and a system clock SC. The license server LS hereby maintains a reference date RD and a second internal time base C2 for determining a current time base AZ. The license server LS also has the task of managing the licenses granted in the license data record LF and the reference date RD as well as controlling the registered computer applications accordingly. The data record server FS provides the file management for the license data record LF with the creation data CD and provides the reference date RD with the second internal time base C2.
The part b) of
The count value of the second internal time base C2 is now continuously added to the reference date on the basis of the reading of the license data record LF and on the basis of an authorized utilization. If the count value has now reached the figure of 86400 seconds (24 h*60 min*60 sec) for instance, the reference date RD is now increased by one day and the count value is reduced by 86400. This allows the reference date RD and the value of the second internal time base C2 to be stored cyclically in the data record server FS, with the storage interval being able to be defined after measurement. The storage takes place on the network element NE with a restricted write/read access.
The next important comparison for the determination of authorization is the comparison of the initially determined and continuously updated reference date RD with the system time according to the system clock SC. This system clock SC can be predetermined by the operator of the network element NE, as a result of which the license server LS compares the system time with the reference date RD. The reference date RD impacts on the license server LS as a limit for the time of the system clock SC, subsequently referred to as system time SC. If the system time SC is now more recent than or equal to the reference date RD, the system time SC is used as the current time base AZ for the license server LS, i.e. the license server LS uses this time base for the further check concerning a possible expiry of the license duration. If the system time SC is older than the reference date, the reference date RD remains significant to the current time base AZ of the license server LS and thus for the further authorization check.
A typical structure of a license data record LF is shown schematically in
According to the explanatory notes, the license data record LF specifically contains general information such as the unique ID of the license data record (file id), the customer name, the designation of the product (product name), information relating to the signature (signature info) and the all important creation date CD, which corresponds to the date of the signing of the license data record LF.
This is followed by information relating to the MAC address, the MAC address list and the project name, with an entry under the MAC-address only allowing a specific network element NE to run the licensed computer application. Accordingly the entries in the MAC address list are the network components listed there.
The next data block concerns the actual license. The term “Feature info” specifies the name/designation of the licensed software. The term “Feature id” is a unique ID code for the licensed computer application. An entry in “Locking mode” is used to control the behavior of the license server LS after the expiry of a time-limited license, such as for instance the generation of alarms, the blocking of the computer application or the deinstallation thereof. The fields “Start” and “End” are self-explanatory and define the validity period of the license, in other words the license period LP. A time-limited licensed computer application can thus then only be run if the current time base AZ is in the license period LP defined by the fields “Start” and “End”. A license data record LF written using software is illustrated by way of example in
The specific setting of the reference date RD and its updating herewith ensures that a time base-obtained independently of the operator of the network element NE is always available to the license server LS, against which time base the allowed license period can be evaluated. Improper or unauthorized (further) use of the time-limited licensed computer application can be avoided in this manner.
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|U.S. Classification||705/59, 713/176, 705/51, 705/52|
|International Classification||G06F21/10, G06F21/51|
|Cooperative Classification||G06F21/51, G06F21/10|
|European Classification||G06F21/10, G06F21/51|
|9 May 2007||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT, GERMANY
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:SCHUSCHAN, MARTIN;REEL/FRAME:019307/0873
Effective date: 20051025
|22 Apr 2008||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: NOKIA SIEMENS NETWORKS GMBH & CO. KG, GERMANY
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT;REEL/FRAME:020828/0926
Effective date: 20080327
|7 Aug 2014||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4
|19 Nov 2014||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: NOKIA SOLUTIONS AND NETWORKS GMBH & CO. KG, GERMAN
Free format text: CHANGE OF NAME;ASSIGNOR:NOKIA SIEMENS NETWORKS GMBH & CO. KG;REEL/FRAME:034294/0675
Effective date: 20130912