Method and system for authenticating files

Abstract

A system and method for verifying the integrity of files, and in particular executable files on a server workstation in a distributed computing network. In one form, verification is accomplished by selecting random or pseudo-random sections of the file, both as to the location and size, and comparing check code results for those sections with corresponding calculations of check codes for a secure master file. In the context of a network, the objective is to verify the integrity of the executable file, typically located in as unsecure server computer, and once so verified transmit over a relatively secure communication network confidential data to be used by the executable file. The systems and methods for practicing the invention in a distributed computing network involving communication, using relative security protocols, between a dispatcher workstation and a server workstation and resources to generate and compare random or pseudo-random number pairs which define sections of the executable file subject to authentication. The comparison involves check code computations for the sections defined by the number pairs as appears in the server computer file as well as a master executable file in the dispatcher computer. A comparison of the check codes determines the integrity of the executable file in the server computer.