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Making regsistration keys

Posted by AnyoneEB [send private reply] at September 02, 2002, 10:00:56 AM

I'm interested learning how to make a program have a regsistration key/serial number for making it shareware (as in some way to encrypt a name into a key or something like that). I'm interested any any kind of resource, including a book.

BTW, I'd program this in Java, but it's fine if the resource uses C, Pascal, or BASIC(AHHH!!!).

Posted by gian [send private reply] at September 03, 2002, 03:18:38 AM

Usually these are similar to many popular public-key encryption algorithms, like RSA. You would probably encrypt some string containing rego data etc.

Posted by Cortez [send private reply] at September 03, 2002, 05:58:50 AM

Or maybe you may want try using something like this: http://www.aspack.com/asprotect.htm

Posted by AnyoneEB [send private reply] at September 03, 2002, 11:30:09 AM

Cortez: That looks like what I want, but it seems a bit expensive. I'll have to test if that will work with Java when I get home. Wait... that looks like it's for Windows-only, I can't use that, I want portabilty.

@gian: that's what I thought, but do you have a suggestion for a resourse about writting code for that? I wouldn't want to use exactly RSA (which I have a book which has a few pages explaining).

I think I saw something in another post about a book called "Applied Cryptography" would that cover what I want to know. (I have a spare $30 Barnes & Noble gift card I just got for my birthday... :))

Posted by Psion [send private reply] at September 03, 2002, 12:18:44 PM

Why wouldn't you want to use RSA?

Posted by AnyoneEB [send private reply] at September 03, 2002, 04:27:12 PM

Well, I guess there's no reason not to... off to Google for code.

Posted by gian [send private reply] at September 06, 2002, 02:50:14 AM

I had a really good idea. I want to develop a really cool bit of code to do registration/serial number stuff, and then release it under the GPL :-) (You need to understand the GPL to get why
that's funny).

Posted by CodeRed [send private reply] at September 06, 2002, 09:53:52 AM

LOL

Posted by taubz [send private reply] at September 06, 2002, 10:01:24 PM

GPG doesn't lose anything by being open source. But, I still laughed.

Posted by gian [send private reply] at September 07, 2002, 02:53:09 AM

Taubz: Nope... you missed the humor.
If I released code to do required registration under the GPL, then it would require any program that used it to be GPLd too, defying the very purpose of having compulsary registration code.

Posted by mop [send private reply] at September 07, 2002, 10:19:32 AM

*rimshot*

Posted by unknown_lamer [send private reply] at September 07, 2002, 02:31:52 PM

Registration keys can be useful for GPLed software. You could use them to track people who paid for your software and get support or something. As long as the keys are short enough or have short unique fingerprints that would work well. You don't even need to make the key stuff part of the Free program, just give people keys when they purchase the software, then have them give it to you when they need support. You could even have inactive/active keys where e.g. a retail box would get an "inactive" key that could be used on a website to give the person who paid for the retail box the normal key. Or something like that (my mind isn't being clear! I worked way too much in the last three days).

Posted by taubz [send private reply] at September 07, 2002, 05:11:01 PM

Good point, gian.

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