Minimum RTE/API Version

The level of security provided by Sentinel LDK for a protected application depends in part on the following components:

>Version of Sentinel LDK-EMS or of the License Generation API used to generate the license

>Version of Licensing API libraries used to protect the application (using the Licensing API, Envelope, or both)

>Version of the Run-time Environment (if any) used to manage and enforce the license (for SL licenses)

(The “security” referred to above consists of the security of the license and the protection application against vulnerabilities and disassembly.)

As a general rule, use of the latest version of each of the components above provides the most advanced and comprehensive security and reliability for the protected application.

However, providing your customers with a protected application and license that incorporates the latest version of all the components is not always practical. For example:

>Your existing customer base may include applications that were protected and licensed with Sentinel LDK 7.6. You now want to send a license update using Sentinel 8.0. However, the license update includes security features that are not supported by the original 7.6 license. As a result, the updated license may not be valid.

>When you are ready to issue an updated version of your protected application, you don’t necessarily want to force your customers to update the Run-time Environment at their site. However, you want the application to be protected with the most advanced clone protection schemes that can be supported by the existing RTEs at the customer sites.

You can balance the security and reliability of your applications against the convenience of your customers by choosing the appropriate value for the Minimum RTE/API Version configuration parameter in Sentinel LDK-EMS. (For the License Generation API, this value is specified using the <minimum_rte_api_version> tag.) The value that you choose determines:

>the minimum version of the RTE (for SL AdminMode licenses or HL keys with concurrency), and

>the minimum version of the Licensing API libraries (for SL UserMode licenses)

that must exist on the end users’ machines that will receive the license update.

As a result of the value that you choose:

>The licenses generated by Sentinel LDK-EMS (or the License Generation API) are compatible with your existing customer base. Only newer security and reliability enhancements that can be supported on the end users’ machines will be implemented.

>For SL licenses that include the Platform Default option, Sentinel LDK will use the most advanced clone protection scheme that is supported by the value that you have selected. (For more information, see Using the "Platform Default" Scheme.)