Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Other

John Richard McDowell

Aaron Payne Goldsmid

Matthias Hermann Wollnik

Nathan Jeffrey Ide

Hakki Tunc Bostanci

Karan Singh Dhillon

Kenneth D Ray

Paul J Leach

Charles W Kaufman

William R Tipton

Andrew M Herron

Jonathan D Schwartz

Krassimir Emilov Karamfilov

Matthew Charles Setzer

Nir Ben Zvi

Duncan G Bryce

Pankaj Mohan Kamat

Andrey V Lelikov

Methods and a tool or instrument for performing the methods of protecting a computer program with a parameter cloud are disclosed. A parameter cloud comprising a plurality of elements may be created. Called functions of a computer program may have defined expected parameter cloud states so that proper behavior of the called function is achieved when the parameter cloud state is the expected parameter cloud state. An expected parameter cloud state may include a selected set of elements of the parameter cloud having assigned values. Static portions of the called functions may depend on a current parameter cloud state, and calling functions may transform the parameter cloud state prior to calling their respective called functions. The methods and instrument may operate on original source code or post-binary targets of the computer program. A fingerprint may be used to identify a specific computer program from a sequence of state transitions.

Software protection through interdependent parameter cloud constrained software execution

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for licensing protected content to application sets. Embodiments of the invention permit a local machine to increase its participation in authorizing access to protected content. For example, an operating system within an appropriate computing environment is permitted to determine if an application is authorized to access protected content. Thus, the application is relieved from having to store a publishing license. Further, authorization decisions are partially distributed, easing the resource burden on a protection server. Accordingly, embodiments of the invention can facilitate more robust and efficient authorization decisions when access to protected content is requested.

Licensing protected content to application sets

Restricting execution by a computing device of instructions within an application program. The application program is modified such that execution of the selected instructions is dependent upon a corresponding expected state of one or more hardware components in the computing device. In an embodiment, the application program is modified to place the hardware components in the expected states prior to execution of the corresponding selected instructions. Creating the dependency on the hardware components prevents the unintended or malicious execution of the selected instructions.

Hardware constrained software execution

A method to apply a protection mechanism to a binary object includes using operating system resources to load a binary object from a storage medium along with a manifest and a digital signature. Authentication of the binary object is performed using the digital signature and the manifest is read to determine a category of protection for the binary object. The operating system selects a protection mechanism corresponding to the protection category and injects protection mechanism code, along with the binary object into a binary image on computer RAM. When the binary image is accessed, the protection mechanism executes and either allows full access and functionality to the binary object or prevents proper access and operation of the binary object. The protection mechanisms may be updated independently from the information on the storage medium.

Software protection injection at load time

A fancy stool having a seat supported by a pair of legs having the appearance of human legs and provided with shoes. The legs are made of lengths of wood timber with a wooden foot in the form of a platform attached to their bottom end and a spacer attached below the foot-like platform at the tip. The wood timber legs are covered with super-imposed layers of elastic fabric to provide a human leg appearance and texture. The legs are dressed with socks or stockings and shoes are passed over the feet with padding disposed between the feet and the shoe interior. Alternatively, the legs are made of plastic molding having the appearance of human legs and feet. The plastic legs preferably have a surface coating of elastomeric material to provide the consistency of human flesh.

Fancy stool

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John Richard McDowell