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MetroLock.txt
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1995-06-12
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NEWS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mary Donnelly Metrosoft
1 (619) 488-9411 Phone
1 (619) 488-3045 Fax
Email: info@metrosoft.com
METROSOFT SHIPS METROLOCK--THE FIRST LICENSING SYSTEM
FOR NEXTSTEP THAT LOCKS OBJECTS, PALETTES AND
APPLICATIONS.
SAN DIEGO, California, June 13, 1994 -- Metrosoft announced today
that it has begun embedding MetroLock in its products. MetroLock
is the first licensing system for NEXTSTEP which enables the
commercial sale of ObjectWare. It consists of an easy-to-use licensing
kit which contains a central locking mechanism and a number of
different locking schemes.
The following locking schemes are provided:
TimeBomb - Protects from use beyond a given date
DemoTime - Restricts use to a given number of minutes
LimitedSeat - Restricts use to a given number of simultaneous network
users
LimitedApp - Allows a class to be used in only one application
Snooper - Allows an administrator to monitor usage
MetroLock has the following features:
- Easily secures applications, object class libraries and palettes
- Locking mechanism is extremely difficult to detect
- Impossible to permanently "patch around" to defeat locking
- Encrypted locking scheme parameters
- Requires no source code modification
- Transparent to end-user
- No cumbersome license server
- Locking schemes may be layered (e.g., TimeBomb and LimitedSeat)
- Palettes may be secured differently for developers and end-users
- Sophisticated foundation class for custom locking schemes
- Multi-threaded for application performance
MetroLock includes a MetroLocker utility used during the build
process for protecting classes. MetroLock also includes makefiles,
the MetroLock library and full developer documentation. An easy-to-use
LockSmith utility is provided to update the locking parameters of
secured applications (e.g., increase the number of seats allowed
by a given app). LockSmith can also add or remove schemes themselves.
The Limited Seat protection can be used to lock out users above
the licensed maximum (and optionally send the system administrator
an e-mail message indicating that the maximum has been reached),
or to allow users beyond the maximum to use the object or application
but also notify the system administrator.
Based on a customer request, MetroLock has a Snooper scheme and a
Snooper utility, which allows system administrators to know not
only how many users are using a licensed object or application,
but who, by host names, are using it.
"Having Snooper enables us to monitor our use of a product. For an
administrator this is a big advantage." said Aaron Grant, System
Administrator, McCaw Cellular.
Licensing technology will be discussed by Gordon Van Huizen,
President of Metrosoft, on Wednesday, June 22nd at 3:30 on the
Strategies For Licensing And Protecting Software panel at the
NEXTSTEP EXPO.
MetroLock will be sold commercially. Available from Metrosoft
directly.
Metrosoft was founded in 1990 and is a San Diego based company
specializing in the development and publishing of NEXTSTEP applications
such as MetroTools, MetroKeys, SimonSays, HSD Spell, OCR Servant,
and MetroScan. Metrosoft is located at 710 Thirteenth Street, Suite
310, San Diego, CA 92101 and can reached at: Phone 619-488-9411,
Fax 619-488-3045 Email: info@metrosoft.com
All Metrosoft and HSD trademarks are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Metrosoft, Inc and HSD, Inc.. Intel is a registered
trademark of Intel Corporation. NeXT is a registered trademarks
of NeXT Computer, Inc. All other product or service names mentioned
herein are trademarks of their respective owners.