Distributed license administration system using a local policy server to communicate with a license server and control execution of computer programs

Patent 5579222 Issued on November 26, 1996. Estimated Expiration Date:

November 26, 2013. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

Patent References

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5390297

Inventors

Assignee

Intergraph Corporation

Application

No. 990583 filed on 12/14/1992

US Classes:

717/167, Remote705/1, AUTOMATED ELECTRICAL FINANCIAL OR BUSINESS PRACTICE OR MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENT705/16, Including point of sale terminal or electronic cash register705/26Electronic shopping (e.g., remote ordering)

Examiners

Primary: Black, Thomas G.
Assistant: Choules, Jack M.

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Bromberg & Sunstein

International Classes

G06F 015/16
G06F 017/60

Abstract

An improved system for administration of license terms for a software product on the network, having an arrangement, for tracking software product usage, with one of the computers acting as a license server. This arrangement permits the license server (i) to identify the current set of nodes that are using the software product, (ii) to handle license data concerning conditions under which usage of the software product is permitted at any given node, and (iii) to determine whether at any given time the conditions would be satisfied if a given node is added to this set of nodes. The software product may thus include instructions to interface with the license server to cause enforcement of the license terms. The improvement, in one embodiment, to the system includes a policy server database maintained on each node, containing data specifying conditions under which usage of the software product is permitted on the corresponding node. Each node also has a policy server "daemon" in association with the corresponding policy server database, for (i) communicating with the license server, (ii) interfacing with both the software product and the corresponding policy server database, (iii) enforcing the license terms applicable to the software product at a given local node on the basis of both license policy maintained at the local node as well as applicable data from the license server.