Trial period for built exe

[Jordan Kuehn]

From time to time I have the need to provide a customer with an executable, but have it only work for a fixed period of time unless it gets 'activated'.  In the past I've employed some one-off solutions of my own using hidden files, registry keys, and whatnot.  This seems cumbersome and is a bit strange to apply an 'activation', i.e. update the file/key/whatever to a known good value.  I know NI has a Third Party Licensing toolkit, but the options for an exe require buying a third party licensing server that can take payment from paypal and such.  I don't need this complexity or the added cost.  My question is, what do you guys employ?  Is there a simple solution to this or does it require building up a more complete activation scheme from scratch?

[JackDunaway]

Are deployed systems guaranteed internet access and the ability to ping a license server?

[Jordan Kuehn]

Are deployed systems guaranteed internet access and the ability to ping a license server?

 

Sometimes

 

I'd be interested in both options.  I imagine that the license server route would allow for a silent activation which could be nice.  A non-networked option would be nice too.  Like I mentioned, my one-off quick solutions have involved a static file, but some sort of serial key would be preferable.  I just don't want to go do a bunch of work developing something that I feel has almost certainly been done many many times.

[Mellroth]

If you are really serious about protecting the application I would say a hardware dongle is one option you could consider.

 

<shameless plug>

WireFlow is about to release a solution for any LabVIEW target with an USB port.

 

 

Expected release is in a week or two, keep an eye on our webpage, lavag.org or LabVIEW Tools Network.

</shameless plug>

 

/Jonas