Hi, I am developing an add-on for trading platforms such as MT4, NT,MC and TS.. Before going to marketing this wonderful Add-on, what do you think the most secure way to protect it from hacking. Plz, share your opinion. Thanks McGene
By "hacking" do you mean figuring out what teh addon actually does or using mutiple copies with just one license?
I mean that the pirates can use multiple copies with just one license. If you refer to "Usage of license' as the way of protection. However, i am asking for the most useful way to prevent piracy. I am planning to rent the add-on with monthly subscription.
IF your software is really that good, then why not take a page out of the early MS handbook....sell it dirt cheap, don't worry about piracy, don't worry about multiple copies on multiple computers, get everyone using your software and continually improve its functions etc, SELL only no free upgrades but the above is IF it is that good, the market will be happy to give you their money more than you could ever get "renting" your software...IF it is not good then the market will tell you
There are 2 ways: 1) Link the addon to something that already can only be used on one computer only. It can be a named broker account, specific license of the charting platform etc. Platform developers go a long way protecting their software from unauthorised use. Some packages require a hardware device to run (say Neoticker), others connect to "License Server" (NinjaTrader), some require connection to a brokerage or datafeed account (eSignal). Some platforms offer addon developers ways to link addon to a specific "platform" license. 2) Build one of the above "protection" tools into the addon itself. An alternative to a hardware device is scanning the user's computer for hardware configuration such as processor type, RAM size, network adapter MAC address etc... but these can be easily duped by deploying the software inside a virtual machine, which can be easily cloned.
Good question with a short answer: there is no secure way to protect software. hackers are one step ahead. They can break everything, most add-ons in 5 minutes.
Thank you , this is what i am thinking about actually at the moment. I know pirates can crack my software regardless its protection. I want to decrease their appetite by selling it dirt cheap. and make it need too much effort to crack than to purchase. Is my thinking valid? However, i didnot get the first part of your post "your software is really that good, then why not take a page out of the early MS handbook.." My english not the first language. so what is " early MS handbook" Thanks for your opinion and time McGene
to share with you more details: the competitor add-ons offer 200-250 $ one time purchase while mine which is 2-3 times much better. So, what do you think the best way to market it? avoid piracy as much as i can? FYI, the logic isnot that difficult to be recopied once seen by professionals. Thanks McGene
Do you think this is a good time to sell trading software? I think this industry has been hit hard both by hackers but also from diminishing demand and skyrocketing supply. IMO the best way to protect software is to never release it. A Russian kid will have your code up and running free of protection in 10 minutes. A Chinese maybe in 5 minutes. US kids do not do it any more because of severe punishment. Then Chinese, Russian and Eurocheap traders will be using it for free and it loses its edge, which I doubt it had any in the first place. So why should I buy a product that is available for free? It is not the moonies, it is the fact that it has lost its edge. Save your time for something more productive IMO.