Mirrakey FAQ's
Can the License Key be made so it is only valid for one computer?
Can the License Key be made specific for different versions of the same software?
Do
you provide sample programs showing the implementation of Mirrakey?
How do you implement
a web page to generate license keys?
How and where
is the license key stored on the client computer?
Is the
license key information secure or can it be tampered with?
What encryption and security
is used in Mirrakey?
To distribute my application that uses Mirrakey, what files do I need to install
on the client computer?
Mirrakey can generate license keys using properties that are specific to a computer
such as the computer name, or Base Board ID. It is a simple matter to use
one or more computer specific properties in your application that are posted to
a website that generates a License Key specific to that computer. The
installation of Mirrakey 1.2.8+ provides sample source code in VB.Net and VB6 to demonstrate this function.
Yes, simply set the ProductName property to include your version number as well
as your product name, such as "MySoftwareApp 1.0.0", or MySoftwareApp 2.0.0" as
required by the versions that are valid for the license key generated.
Mirrakey comes with comprehensive sample programs in Visual Basic6, Visual Basic
.Net 2008 and Visual Web Developer 2008. Each sample program demonstrates
Mirrakey's methods and properties and includes notations to assist your integration
of Mirrakey in your software development. The sample program source code is
installed with Mirrakey in your "My Documents" folder. There is is also a
shortcut to the sample folders from the Desktop and StartMenu folder for Mirrakey.
Creating a webpage to generate License Keys is a simple matter in ASP or ASP.Net.
Please refer to the sample web application provided with the installation of Mirrakey.
You will find the source code for a sample ASP.Net webpage in the Mirrakey folder
in "My Documents".
Mirrakey is flexible and allows you, as a software developer, to save your license
information in any way that is appropriate for your application and deployment environment.
However, if you use Mirrakey's in-bulit license key manager, the license information for
your software applications are saved to an XML file named "license.xml" in a folder
using the properties you set for your CompanyName and ProductName. The location
of these folders depends on the Windows version and whether you license your application
for "all users" or just the "current user" installing your application. Your software license information can also be encrypted by setting the "EncryptLIcense"
property. Typically,
your license file would be saved in:
- Windows XP All Users:
"C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\MyCompany\MySoftwareApp\license.xml" - Windows XP Current User:
"C:\Documents and Settings\CurrentUserName\Application Data\MyCompany\MySoftwareApp\license.xml" - Windows Vista All Users:
"C:\Program Data\MyCompany\MySoftwareApp\license.xml" - Window Vista Curent User:
"C:\Users\AppData\Roaming\CurrentUserName\MyCompany\MySoftwareApp\license.xml"
If you handle you own license key storage you can use Mirrakey's encryption functions
to secure your license information but where and how you store the information is
up to you. However, if you use Mirrakey's in-built license key manager, you
can encrypt the stored license information by setting the "EncryptLicense" property,
which will invalidate the license information if it is altered or tampered with.
Even if the information is not encrypted, editing the license information is likely
to invalidate the license key.
Mirrakey includes methods for encrypting and decrypting data strings. If you
use Mirrakey's "EncryptLicense" property then all you need to do is provide an encryption
password of your choice for the encryption and decryption process. You can
also use Mirrakey's "EncryptString" method to encrypt any data string, so you can
customize your own license key management system using 256-bit AES Encryption.
The following files should be installed on the client computer and then registered
using your preferred installer program or by running the 'regsvr32" utility.
- Mirrakey.dll
- mirracryptex.ocx
- msxml6.dll
- msxml6r.dll
For example:
regsvr32.exe "c:\windows\system32\Mirrakey.dll"
regsvr32.exe "c:\windows\system32\mirracryptex.ocx"
regsvr32.exe "c:\windows\system32\msxml6.dll"
You will find the files 'Mirrakey.dll' and 'mirracryptex.ocx' in the folder selected
when you installed Mirrakey. The default location for installing Mirrakey
is 'c:\Program Files\Mirrasoft\Mirrakey'. The file named 'msxml6.dll' should
be found in your Windows\System32 folder.