SOFTWARE LICENSE DISTRIBUTION AND VALIDATION USING A DISTRIBUTED IMMUTABLE DATA STORE

• US 20190318063A1
• Filed: 04/11/2018
• Published: 10/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: WIERZBA, James Michael, SINGH, Parmjeet
• Granted Patent: US 10,846,375 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/105 Arrangements for software license management or administration, e.g. for managing licenses at corporate level
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/107 License processing; Key processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1085 Content sharing, e.g. peer-to-peer [P2P]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/645 using a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/18 Licensing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/30 Public key, i.e. encryption algorithm being computationally infeasible to invert or user's encryption keys not requiring secrecy
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3236 using cryptographic hash functions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3242 involving keyed hash functions, e.g. message authentication codes [MACs], CBC-MAC or HMAC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/50 using hash chains, e.g. blockchains or hash trees

Abstract

A license for software distributed to multiple users can be validated using a peer-to-peer network, asymmetrical cryptography and an essentially hack-proof public data store of licensing information, avoiding the need for a licensing server or central coordination by servers or host computers. Instances of the licensed software are implemented on the nodes of the peer-to-peer network. A distributed, immutable data store where each segment of data of the series of segments in the data store include a hash of the previous segment. Licensing transactions can be recorded and validated using the distributed, immutable data store. Licensing transactions can include but are not limited to provisioning, de-provisioning, activation and deactivation transactions. The license processing logic can be integrated into the licensed application software, so that once the licensed software is implemented on a user'"'"'s computer, license generation, license revocation, license validation and license invalidation proceed automatically without the need for any intervention.

Claims

1. A software license issuer, the software license issuer issuing a license for licensed software to a node in a peer-to-peer software licensing network, the software license issuer comprising:

a memory connected to a processor;

the processor configured to;

issue a transaction to the peer-to-peer software licensing network, the transaction comprising a public key used to identify the software license issuer, a digital signature for authentication of the license issuer public key and a license public key that identifies the license for the licensed software.

2. The software license issuer of claim 1, wherein the transaction comprises a provisioning transaction, the provisioning transaction creating the license for the licensed software.

3. The software license issuer of claim 2, wherein the provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is not provisioned.

4. The software license issuer of claim 1, wherein the transaction comprises a de-provisioning transaction, the de-provisioning transaction revoking a license for the licensed software.

5. The software license issuer of claim 4, wherein the de-provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is provisioned.

6. The software license issuer of claim 1, wherein the software licenser issuer comprises a node in the peer-to-peer software licensing network.

7. A software license holder comprising a node in a peer-to-peer software licensing network, the software license holder comprising:

a memory connected to a processor;

the processor configured to;

receive from a node in the peer-to-peer software licensing network a transaction;

validate the transaction; and

in response to successful validation of the transaction, add the transaction to a segment comprising a hash of a final segment in a distributed data store, software licensing transaction data and a hash of the segment, the segment comprising a potential addition to a copy of the distributed data store at the node, the distributed data store comprising linked segments where each segment comprises a hash of a previous segment in the data store.

8. The software license holder of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to release the segment for publication to the peer-to-peer software licensing network.

9. The software license holder of claim 7, wherein in response to receiving a published segment from the peer-to-peer network, the published segment is added to the copy of the distributed data store at the node.

10. The software license holder of claim 9, wherein the node discards the segment comprising the potential addition to the copy of the distributed data store at the node.

11. The software license holder of claim 7, the software license holder issuing a transaction. comprising a license public key identifying the software license holder'"'"'s license and a digital signature that authenticates the license public key.

12. The software license holder of claim 11;

wherein the transaction comprises an activation transaction that activates licensed software and wherein the activation transaction is valid if a license public key identifying the software license holder'"'"'s license is a currently provisioned license and the license public key is not activated.

13. The software license holder of claim 11, wherein the transaction comprises a deactivation transaction that deactivates the licensed software, wherein the deactivation transaction is valid if a license public key identifying the software license holder'"'"'s license is a currently provisioned license and the license public key is activated.

14. The software license holder of claim 7, wherein the received transaction is a provisioning transaction received from a software license issuer, the provisioning transaction comprising a public key identifying the software license issuer, a digital signature for authentication of the license issuer public key and a license public key that identifies the license;

and wherein the provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is not provisioned.

15. The software license holder of claim 7, wherein the received transaction is a de-provisioning transaction received from a software license issuer, the de-provisioning transaction comprising a public key identifying the software license issuer, a digital signature for authentication of the software license issuer public key and a license public key that identifies the license;

and wherein the de-provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is provisioned.

16. A method of using a peer-to-peer network to perform software license processing without a license server comprising:

receiving by a processor of a first node in the peer-to-peer software license processing network, the first node comprising a license holder for licensed software, the license holder comprising license holder processing logic, a copy of a whitelist of approved software issuers and a copy of a distributed data store comprising linked segments in which a subsequent segment of the distributed data store comprises a hash of a preceding segment;

receiving a transaction from a second node in the peer-to-peer software license processing network;

in response to successful validation of the transaction, adding the transaction to a segment at the first node, the segment comprising a potential addition to the distributed data store, where the segment at the first node comprises a hash of a final segment in the copy of the distributed data store at the first node, licensing transaction data and a hash of the segment at the first node.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising generating an activation transaction comprising a license public key identifying the license holder'"'"'s license and a digital signature that authenticates the license public key;

and wherein the activation transaction is valid if a license public key identifying the license holder'"'"'s license is a currently provisioned license and the license public key is not activated.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising generating a deactivation transaction comprising a license public key identifying the license holder'"'"'s license and a digital signature that authenticates the license public key and wherein the deactivation transaction is valid if a license public key identifying the license holder'"'"'s license is a currently provisioned license and the license public key is activated.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the second node comprises a license issuer and the transaction is a provisioning transaction received from the license issuer, the provisioning transaction comprising a public key identifying the license issuer, a digital signature for authentication of the license issuer public key and a license public key that identifies the license;

and wherein the provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is not provisioned.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the second node comprises a license issuer and the transaction is a de-provisioning transaction received from a license issuer, the de-provisioning transaction comprising a public key identifying the license issuer, a digital signature for authentication of the license issuer public key and a license public key that identifies the license;

and wherein the de-provisioning transaction is valid if the license issuer public key is in the license issuer whitelist and the license public key is provisioned.