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Method and apparatus for controlling access to and corruption of information in computer systems

  • US 5,657,473 A
  • Filed: 10/21/1992
  • Issued: 08/12/1997
  • Est. Priority Date: 02/21/1990
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for controlling access to and modification of information stored on a storage medium of a computer system, the information on the storage medium being divided into a plurality of non-overlapping partitions including a boot partition and a plurality of general partitions, each partition being capable of containing ties and each partition further being divided into a plurality of sectors, any designated subset of the general partitions being capable of being made active at any given time when the computer system is in use, wherein the apparatus comprises a supervising means separate of a central processing unit (CPU) of the computer system for, in use, allowing/restricting/prohibiting read/write operations upon the storage medium depending upon whether information to be read from a sector or written to a sector is operating system information or user information, whether the sector is in the boot partition or in a general partition, and whether if the partition is a user partition the partition is active or inactive, and allowing a format operation only on a general partition which is active and prohibiting a format operation on the boot partition or on a general partition which is inactive, and reset means connected with said supervisor means for resetting the computer system should an attempt be made to perform a prohibited read, write or format operation, in use.

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