System for enabling software in storage-capable devices

• US 9,342,470 B2
• Filed: 10/14/2013
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Western Digital Israel Limited (Western Digital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sandisk Technologies Incorporated (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Bryant-Rich, Donald Ray, Hahn, Judah Gamliel
• Primary Examiner(s): Anya, Charles E
• Application Number:
  US14/053,168
• Publication Number:
  US 20140143794A1
• Time in Patent Office: 946 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/102 where the programme performs an interfacing function, e.g. device driver G06F13/105 takes precedence; scheduling within device drivers G06F9/52; contention policies within device drivers G06F9/4881
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/445 by mutual authentication, e.g. between devices or programs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/51 at application loading time, e.g. accepting, rejecting, starting or inhibiting executable software based on integrity or source reliability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/572 Secure firmware programming, e.g. of basic input output system [BIOS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2129 Authenticate client device independently of the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers

Abstract

Methods for enabling software from a storage-capable device including the steps of: loading, by a host system operationally connected to the storage-capable device, software from an authenticatable storage area residing in the storage-capable device; validating the software; and installing the validated software, wherein the validated software provides an interface between the host system and the storage-capable device. In some embodiments, the software is enabling software, the method further including the step of loading, by the host system, device-functionality software from the authenticatable storage area. In some embodiments, the method further includes the steps of: validating the device-functionality software; and enabling the validated device-functionality software. In some embodiments, the method further includes the steps of prior to the step of loading the software, executing a probe command in the host system; and returning, by the probe command, a list of device functional units residing in the storage-capable device.

Claims

1. A host system, operable with software stored on a storage-capable device in communication with the host system, comprising:

a host; and

a storage-capable device interface for communicating with and for allowing the host to execute software stored on the storage-capable device, wherein the host is configured to cause the host system to;

execute a probe command;

in connection with the probe command, receive a list of device functional units residing in the storage-capable device;

load, from an authenticable storage area residing in the storage-capable device, software based on an identifier sent in the probe command;

validate said software; and

install the validated software, wherein the validated software provides an interface between the host system and device-functional software in the storage-capable device;

wherein the host system is further configured to determine whether an operating system of the host system supports the software and, in response to determining that the software is not supported by the operating system, skip the steps to load, validate and install the software.

2. The host system of claim 1, wherein the host system comprises a PC, a PDA or a mobile phone.

3. The host system of claim 1, the host system being further configured to access, from the list, only selected device functional units that are compatible with an operating system of the host system.

4. The host system of claim 1, wherein the probe command is configured to return, from the list, only selected device functional units that are compatible with an operating system of said host system, and the identifier is a host-OS identifier sent in a security-protocol-out payload of the probe command.

5. The host system of claim 4, wherein the list is a silo-type identifier list, and wherein the host system is further configured to skip the steps to load, validate, and install the software responsive to determining that the software is not supported by the operating system.

6. The host system of claim 1, wherein the probe command is configured to return, from the list, only selected device functional units that are authorized for use with a specific host system.

7. The host system of claim 1, wherein the probe command is configured to return, from the list, only selected device functional units.

8. The host system of claim 1, wherein the authenticable storage area is a digital-rights management device functional unit.

9. The host system of claim 1, wherein the host system is further configured to use a signature to validate the device-functionality software.

10. The host system of claim 1, wherein the storage-capable device is removable from the host system.

11. A host system, operable with software stored on a storage-capable device in communication with the host system, comprising:

a host; and

a storage-capable device interface for communicating with and for allowing the host to execute software stored on the storage-capable device, wherein the host is configured to cause the host system to;

execute a probe command;

in connection with the probe command, receive a list of device functional units residing in the storage-capable device;

load, from an authenticable storage area residing in the storage-capable device, software based on an identifier sent in the probe command;

validate said software; and

install the validated software, wherein the validated software provides an interface between the host system and device-functional software in the storage-capable device;

wherein the host system is further configured to determine whether an operating system of the host system supports the software; and

wherein the host system is further configured to;

prior to loading the software, authenticate the authenticable storage area to the host system using a device certificate;

subsequent to authenticating, establish a secure session between the host system and a server; and

subsequent to establishing the secure session, send an image of the software with a server certificate to the storage-capable device.

12. The host system of claim 11, wherein the host system is further configured to encrypt the image with a key agreed upon via a key exchange using the server certificate.

13. The host system of claim 11, wherein the software is enabling software and the host system is further configured to:

validate the image;

load device-functionality software from the authenticable storage area;

validate the device-functionality software; and

enable the validated device-functionality software.

14. The host system of claim 13, wherein the host system is further configured to use a signature in the device certificate to validate the device-functionality software.

15. A host system operable with software stored on a storage-capable device in communication with the host system, the host system comprising:

a host; and

a storage-capable device interface for communicating with and for allowing the host to execute software stored on the storage-capable device, wherein the host is configured to cause the host system to;

load software from an authenticable storage area residing in the removable storage-capable device;

validate the software;

install the validated software, wherein the validated software provides an interface between the host system and device-functionality software in the storage-capable device;

use the validated and installed software to load device-functionality software from the authenticable storage area;

validate the device-functionality software;

enable the validated device-functionality software;

prior to loading the software, authenticate the authenticable storage area to the host system using a device certificate;

subsequent to authenticating the authenticable storage area, establish a secure session between the host system and a server; and

subsequent to establishing the secure session, send an image of the software with a server certificate to the storage-capable device.

16. The host system of claim 15, wherein the host system is configured to encrypt the image with a key agreed upon via a key exchange using the server certificate.

17. The host system of claim 16, wherein the host system is configured to validate the device-functionality software using a signature in the device certificate.

18. The host system of claim 15, wherein the host system comprises a PC, a PDA or a mobile phone.

19. The host system of claim 18, wherein the storage capable device comprises a PDA or a printer.