S E C U R I T Y
Installing CodeMeter on End User Systems
Software developers who intend to integrate CodeMeter into their applications will , sooner or later , have to think about how they can get CodeMeter onto their users ’ systems . The key to success is knowing all of the features of the installer and understanding how it can be used most effectively . This article will look at the fundamental approach to installing CodeMeter on Windows systems and at everything else you should know about CodeMeter installation .
The CodeMeter Architecture In Brief For licensed software to run on your users ’ systems , they need an active CodeMeter License Server . Only CodeMeter Embedded can run without it on e . g . industrial controllers . The CodeMeter License Server receives and processes the queries from applications and libraries protected and licensed with Code- Meter and sends the necessary commands to the right CmContainers . In the case of the hardware container CmDongle , this would mean encrypted commands sent to the connected dongle ; for the software option CmAct- License , the cryptographic operations are run in the CodeMeter License Server itself ; and for the new online option , CmCloudContainer would receive the commands via a secure https connection with the cloud system operated by Wibu-Systems .
To store and process CmActLicenses , the target system needs certain additional rights to create the binding with the system and to securely store information on that system . In this case , the CodeMeter License Server must be given administrator rights and be installed as a service or daemon on the system .
With CmDongles and CmCloudContainers , commands are executed in a secure environment , that is , either on the secure hardware developed by Wibu-Systems or the secure servers running in Wibu-Systems ’ data centers . In this case , the CodeMeter License Server could also be run with simple user rights .
Why Install CodeMeter ? The installer for CodeMeter Runtime will install the CodeMeter License Server and CodeMeter WebAdmin as a service or daemon . Since every protected and licensed application needs to be able to reach a CodeMeter License Server , this puts in place the right conditions for your software to work reliably and correctly on the system . Alongside the two services , the installer also includes several key libraries and applications for using CodeMeter . This comprises of the tool to visualize the available CmContainer and the means to interact with the License Server , e . g . to import updates to the connected
CmContainers . Alternatively , the command line tool cmu can do the same jobs .
On Windows systems , the installer will also configure the Windows Firewall to match your needs concerning CodeMeter . If you want CmContainers connected to the system to be accessible by other systems , it can open the necessary port 22350 .
The Compatibility Promise All applications that use CodeMeter will be using CodeMeter Core API . This API allows software developers to make CodeMeter an integral part of their software . Applications and libraries protected with AxProtector from Code- Meter Protection Suite will also be relying on the same API .
Wibu-Systems can make a compatibility promise for its CodeMeter Core API : Once a call is available in the Core API , it will stay available in future CodeMeter versions and always produce the same result . This promise is the reason why different software vendors have
8