Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Tracy Sharpe

Michael Joseph Toutonghi

Jonathan E Lange

Jon Marcus Randall Whitten

Christopher Michael Pirich

Anders Hejlsberg

Yasser Baseer Asmi

Nhon Toai Quach

J Andrew Goossen

James E Allard

David Anthony Sobeski

Paul Stephen Hellyar

Victor Keith Blanco

Scott Michael Wiltamuth

Michael Courage

James Nicholas Helm

Peter H Golde

Chad W Royal

Edward H Wayt

Jerry Paul Hook

Jeffrey S Stone

Keith K Lau

Stephen Z Au

Francis M Hogle

Jonathan G Thomason

Michael Cory Maston

Paul J Lukinich

Thomas Zou

Redirection of physical media interaction is disclosed. For instance, a read action can be redirected from an optical disc to a secure virtualization module that virtualizes optical discs. The module can take digital packages in one format and present them to optical disc drivers configured to read the content of such packages in a different format. Thus, the module allows for online media content to remain in its native format while being accessible to existing native gaming console resources configured to read content in a different format. In other aspects, the module can perform various security checks on the packages, including hashing the fragments of packages, where such fragments can contain licensing provisions that can be examined by the module. The module itself can be downloaded and installed onto a gaming system or it can be pre-installed.

Read redirection of physical media

One disclosed computing system comprises a x86 processor, memory, a PCIe root complex (RC), a PCIe bus, and an interconnect chip having a PCIe endpoint (EP) that is connected to the PCIe RC through a PCIe link, the PCIe EP being connected to an AMBA&#xae; bus. The interconnect chip may communicate with the IO device via the AMBA&#xae; bus in an AMBA&#xae; compliant manner and communicate with the host system in a PCIe compliant manner. This communication may include receiving a command from the processor, sending the command to the IO device over the AMBA&#xae; bus, receiving a response from the IO device over the AMBA&#xae; bus, and sending over the AMBA&#xae; bus and the PCIe link one or more DMA operations to the memory. Further communication may include sending an IOAPIC interrupt to the processor of the host system according to PCIe ordering rules.

Support for IOAPIC interrupts in AMBA-based devices

A system and method provides a high level of system functionality in a multimedia console through the use of system applications, while reducing any corresponding lack of control that multimedia applications will have while running on the console. A predetermined amount of hardware resources of the multimedia console is reserved. The system application is executed substantially using the predetermined amount of reserved hardware resources and the multimedia application is executed substantially within the remaining unreserved hardware resources.

Reserving a fixed amount of hardware resources of a multimedia console for system application and controlling the unreserved resources by the multimedia application

In accordance with one aspect of saving audio source identifiers for soundtracks in a gaming system, an audio track is obtained from an audio source and the audio track is saved so that a copy of the audio track is available when the audio source is no longer accessible to a game console. The audio track is at least part of a user-created soundtrack and/or a user-selected soundtrack. The identifier of the audio source is also saved, and when a database containing meta data associated with the audio track is available, the meta data associated with the audio track is obtained from the database, based at least in part on the identifier saved on the storage device, and the obtained meta data is stored.

Saving audio source identifiers for soundtracks in a gaming system

Authenticity of digital data, security policies, and usage of game software are enforced on a game console. When the software is secured prior to distribution on media, a private key is used to encrypt a header digest that includes a digest of each section of the software and information specifying a region, a rating, and media type of the software. A hashing algorithm is applied to produce the digests. On the game console, a public key is used to decrypt the header digest for comparison to a hash of the header. A digest of each section of digital data is computed and compared to the corresponding digest in the header to authenticate the data. The console will not execute the software unless the parameters in the header information match those stored in the console and the computed digests for each section match those in the header on the medium.

Secure digital data format and code enforced policy

A data protection portion includes the file alteration checking portion. One aspect of the file alteration checking portion relates to a media including game content and a data protection portion. In one version, the data protection portion protects the game content from modification by determining whether the game content has been modified. If the game content has been modified, then the installation of the game content within the apparatus fails.

Media data protection with secure installer

A thread interruption function in a multi-threaded runtime environment places a first thread in an alertable blocked state that is interrupted by another thread upon request. The interrupting thread causes an asynchronous procedure call (APC) to be queued against the blocked thread. A callback procedure associated with the APC is executed in a context of the blocked thread and an indicator is stored in the context of the blocked thread. The indicator is captured by runtime environment exception handing which causes the blocked thread to be activated.

Thread interruption with minimal resource usage using an asynchronous procedure call

Hosting objects within a windowed environment is disclosed. In one embodiment, a computerized system includes a first object and a second object. The first object is of a first type, and requires siting within a windowed environment. The second object is of a second type, and sites the first object within the windowed environment. The first object may be a Component Object Model (COM)-type object typically utilized with versions of the Microsoft&reg; Windows&reg; operating system, the windowed environment may be a Java windowed environment, and the second object may be a Java object, such as a Java bean.

Hosting objects in a windowed environment

The dynamic mapping from an ActiveX component model to a JavaBean model is disclosed. In one embodiment, an ActiveX compatible object is created at run-time for those JavaBean components that an ActiveX client application wishes to utilize. In another embodiment, upon a call to CoGetClassObject or related methods using class identifiers, a COM-callable wrapper is generated and a mapping table containing COM dispatch identifiers is scanned to ensure the dispatch identifiers are unique. If they are not, the dispatch identifiers associated with JavaBean component interfaces are adjusted to make them unique.

Dynamic mapping of component interfaces

Method and apparatus for encapsulating a reference to a method in object-based programming systems and ensuring that the reference is safe are disclosed. The method of encapsulation provides for: a) defining an entity that defines the shape of the method to be referenced; b) obtaining a reference to a method; c) storing this reference in arbitrary data structures; d) passing the reference to code written by other parties; e) enabling invocation of the method by anyone holding the method reference; and f) enabling the holder of a method reference to determine the target object and method being referenced. These objectives are achieved in a strongly typed manner, making it possible for: a) developers to learn of type mismatch problems early (at compile-time) rather than late (at run-time); and b) development tools to present information to developers about the shape of components that use delegates. In addition, a model of event based programming is disclosed, wherein event-related code can be encapsulated in delegates.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Tracy Sharpe