How to make restriction for running program on one pc (Page 1 of 2)

Its nice but how can i prevent it to run on just for that machine ?
after purchase full version customer can distribute it freely on internet

The questions above illustrate the situation for developers who want to distribute their own developed software.

I touched on this type of issues in my Suggestions in the past. Your software needs to be more flexible if you are to be successful in the sale of My Visual Database.

It's Good but not great, developers need the complete package to succeed, same as you do.

Does this mean that I don't have the correct software for the same procedures mentioned above?

The Enginner

this is not exactly true, or more correctly, it is true but not very effective.
the reason is that with the current implementation of your scripting ability, it is all visible (and modifiable) as plain text files under the scripts sub-folder.
what is needed, is that the custom scripts be encrypted when stored/written (if kept as separate files), or the custom scripts to be compiled and linked directly into the main executable, so only a single program file is needed to run a developed database application (assuming that it doesn't have any custom reports as well).
even if we try to implement some sort of security or protection into the programs we make, as long as the scripts are unprotected themselves, then it would be easy for them to be reversed engineered to defeat any protection scripts that have been created.

i see.  i'm glad i was mistaken about this then; but it is still not a completely robust system; as that script.dcu file can be removed or replaced (if the function names are somehow found/guessed)...may not be very likely, but still possible.  i.e. if the developer uses common function names like encrypt or decrypt or validate or checkpassword etc.

edit: i've just had a look at a script.dcu file and although ir is a bit messy, it is still in plain text (xml format), all the main guts of my custom script code is visible and can easily be extracted from this file.  needs to be properly compiled.

Would it be possible to make the files invisible or disguised or saved in an external file sorce which can be protected by file locks etc.

All I am saying is there another way around the problem rather than thinking of what should happen.

I have tried Enigma Protector and it works OK. I feel that their free Virtual Box could provide at least the possibility to pack everything into a single file.

mr_d
Thank you for the suggestion.

would it be possible to restrict the use of an application to a list of users contained in an encrypted table with a message displayed in case of misuse followed by an application closure?

Purpose of the encrypted table is to avoid reading the data using an external Sqlite tool

example:

allowed users stored in encrypted Table "MVDB_users"

open application --> check users in "MVDB_users" using sUserName := '"'+GetUserName+'"';

- if user exists = Ok
                                                                                                                                         

- if user does not exist= display warning --> Close application

Another stronger method would be to link the application to the connected network, I do not think it is currently possible...

Great, this does nearly what I want to do, when you try to read the data using an external tool, the data are not readable; this is what I call preventing read from external source.

The problem is that the encryption password is in clear text in the script file....

Is there any chance to encrypt the script file as well in a future version? This would prevent unauthorized people to modify the application as well.

Next step would be to write a script to check if a user is allowed to open the application or not as follow:

Allowed users stored in encrypted Table "MVDB_users"

open application --> check users in "MVDB_users" using sUserName := '"'+GetUserName+'"';

- if user exists = Application open                                                                                                                                         

- if user does not exist= display warning then Close application

Is it possible?

Thanks Dmitry, the weakness is that the password is readable in clear in the script.dcu so it is possible to hack the table using an external tool.

Sorry to bother you but any idea regarding the autotransformation of characters in the DB? My own username is using this combination of letters and I cannot use my application if I use the script.