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All information in these pages is copyright (c) 1989-2003 by Roger Nichols. All rights reserved. Permission for personal reference only, and may not be reproduced by any method without written permission.
Copy Protection
by Roger Nichols
The first topic today will be copy protection. When I use protection it always
produces a sore spot, usually near my wallet. I know that software manufacturers
need to protect their intellectual property because of piracy, but some of
the restrictions due to copy protection issues can quickly get out of hand.
Comparisons are drawn from music software piracy issues, but a $900 plug-in
provides a much greater incentive for piracy than a $16 music CD. I am basically
for copy protection of software, but I think there must be a way to produce
a kinder, gentler copy protection scheme. Most users of copy-protected software
agree, but the software producers and the company that provides the vast majority
of the protection schemes don’t listen to outside suggestions on how
to improve the usability of protected software.
The six major copy protection schemes are serial number/ authorization code,
hidden file placement during installation, original CD insertion during launch,
authorization floppy disks, challenge/ response strings, and the dongle.
Serial #
Serial number/ authorization code entry is the easiest to deal with, but also
the easiest to crack. There are tons of web sites that provide serial numbers
that can be plugged into a pirated program to get it to work. Microsoft, and
File Maker are among those who use this type of protection. Some programs
run in demo mode until the proper codes are entered, and then turn into a
full working program. More and more software vendors now provide demo only
versions that cannot become full working versions. You (or someone) must pay
before downloading a fully functional version. The software can be moved to
a different computer easily. The software can run on more than one computer
at a time.Hidden File
Hidden file placement during installation works much better. You still have
to enter codes to unlock the program, but if the hard disk is re-formatted
or the program is moved to another disc, the program will ask for re-installation
of the original CD. This makes it less appealing to pirates because you have
to circulate an original CD to install the program. If the program asks for
the CD and you don’t have it, you are out of luck. Apple’s Final
Cut Pro 2 software works this way. You can install the software on more than
one computer and run multiple copies if installed from the original disk.
Original CD
Inserting the original CD during each launch works very well, but imagine
if you had to insert a CD for each plug-in and program during a large Pro
Tools launch. I have one program that will revert to demo mode if the CD is
not present, but it will still work for emergency work.
Key Disk
We all know about authorization floppy disks. These floppies are physically
damaged so that some sectors cannot be written to. You could make copies of
key disks, but you would have to damage the exact same sector, and then write
a copy program that would make an exact image of the original but not fail
the copy when encountering the bad sector. Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. Macs
don’t have floppy drives any more. If the authorization is on the hard
disk the program will run. If the software is installed on a different computer
it will run if you insert the key disk when prompted by the software. Without
a key disk the program will quit.
This copy protection scheme has caused me the most grief. I have been good
about buying multiple copies of software that I want to run on more than one
computer. I went to New York to work and took a key disk for each piece of
software. My hard disk started acting up so I had to replace it. I was grinning
from ear to ear because I remembered to bring my key disks. I was going to
un-install all of the software, replace the hard disk, and then re-install
the software. I inserted the first key disk to de-authorize a software package.
The program refused to un-install the authorization because it wasn’t
the exact same install disk used during the installation. The key disks have
no serial numbers on them, so I had no way of knowing which disk was used
to authorize which copy of the exact same software. For more than half the
software, I brought the wrong key disk. There was also some software that
I forgot was copy protected. I found out after the hard disk was replaced
and the software started asking for the key disk to be inserted. It was depressing,
expensive trip to the music store to buy third copies of the software with
the wrong key disks.
If you want to move the software from one computer to another you can remove
the authorization from one computer and authorize another computer. You can
run the software temporarily on another computer by inserting the key disk
when the software requests it.
Challenge/ Response
When floppy disk drives started disappearing, challenge/ response strings
appeared. The first time you try to use a piece of software the protection
mechanism looks at your hard disk and generates a string of words based on
the hard disk being authorized. You e-mail this string to the software vendor
who generates a response string and e-mails it to you. When the matching response
is entered, your software turns on. If you reformat your hard disk you just
re-enter the same response and the software comes back on.
If you want to move the software to a new computer you must e-mail the vendor
with the challenge string from the new computer along with a convincing explanation
of why you have a new challenge string.
There are variations to this method that are not based on hardware, but on
a date and/ or the name of the owner. The software will work on any hard disk,
but must be supplied with a new response string every year.
Dongle
The dongle is a hardware device that can be read by the software. The dongle
contains the serial number of the authorized software. If the dongle is not
plugged into the computer the software will not operate. If you buy additional
software the serial numbers can be added to the dongle. If you change computers
or change hard disks the software can be re-installed and the same dongle
will activate the software.
Every piece of dongle-protected software used its own dongle. You could have
multiple dongles hanging from the back of your computer. A new dongle called
iLok is a universal dongle that can be authorized by many different software
vendors. This will allow one dongle to authorize all of your software, no
matter who the vendor is. Many companies are switching over to iLok authorization.
If you need to work on a different computer, just take the dongle with you
and install the software on the computer you need to use.
Copy Copy Copy.
I am not going to argue about whether or not you should be able to copy your
own software, there are plenty of forums where the flaming rages on late into
the night. I know we are always going to have copy protection on expensive
software. I do think that there can be some changes that will better serve
everyone involved.
One problem with ProTools and other DAW systems with copy protected plug-ins
is that if you send a ProTools file to someone else, they have to own the
same plug-ins that you own, or the session will not play back the same way.
The graphics industry has solved this problem with expensive fonts by embedding
them in the document so that the recipient can open the file and see it the
same way you do, without having to purchase the same fonts you have. You cannot
use the fonts anywhere except in that document.
I would like to see the same type of embedded plug-ins in Pro Tools session
documents. If you send a session to someone else, the plug-ins would be included
with the session file, but would only work in that session. You could add
more of them in that session by option-dragging them around, but they would
not open in any other document. Besides making it easy to send a mix to someone
else to touch up a little, it would be good advertising for the plug-in. If
the guy on the receiving end liked the plug-in, he would have to buy it to
use in other sessions. Also, if someone sends you a session document with
some esoteric plug-in that you would never buy in 100 years, you won’t
have to buy it just to play back his session.
I prefer the dongle type copy protection, mainly because it lets me move between
computers easily. If I buy a new computer two weeks after installing new software,
I just move it to the new computer and plug in the dongle. Of all the last
three major copy protection schemes, the dongle seems the least objectionable.
Keeping Pace
The main player in the copy protection field is Pace Anti-Piracy. They have
software called Interlock that is used to produce key disks for software authorization.
Pace makes the iLock dongle that will contain all of the software keys for
copy protected software. So far Antares Audio, Bomb Factory, Digidesign, Serato
Audio, and Steinberg have signed up for iLok protection and are starting to
ship product.
To make the transition easier I would like to see Pace provide a software
package to end users (copy protected, of course) that would gather up all
of the key disk authorizations on a computer and store them in the iLok. A
small init would be placed on the system so that when protected software looks
for the hidden key file the init would query the iLok and then respond correctly
to the protected software. The same type of utility could be used to gather
challenge/ response protections and store them on the iLok.
I would also like to see a “Backup iLok.” For some fee you could
own a second iLok that duplicated the authorizations of the first iLok. This
could be administered by Pace and they could keep track of who is authorized
to have what. Also I would like to see temporary authorizations of software
on the iLok, kind of like Pay-Per-View. Over the Internet you purchase the
use of one or more pieces of software for some number of days. You pay by
credit card and the authorization is downloaded to your iLok.
Ending
This column is actually copy protected. If the back page of the magazine is
blank, then it means that this is not your legal copy of this month’s
EQ. You may in fact be reading someone else’s copy or just browsing at
a newsstand. I have found a crack for the magazine copy protection. Just go
into a dark room, pour lemon juice on the last page and hold a cigarette lighter
under the page until it starts to turn brown.
Now try to explain why you are exiting a bathroom with a flaming, lemon scented
copy of my column. You guys are sick.