Frequently Asked Questions About Dinkey Pro/FD

What is a Product Code?

A Product Code is a string that identifies one product from another. This makes it possible to have some dongles that protect one piece of software and other dongles that protect another piece of software. For Dinkey Pro Lite and Dinkey FD Lite dongles you need to specify the Product Code when ordering. For other dongle models you can specify the Product Code when you program the dongle.

Can another software developer purchase Dinkey Pro/FD and re-program my dongles?

No! Each of our customers has a unique SDSN allocated to them. This is burnt into each dongle we send them. It is also used to encrypt the SDK software so that the SDK is unique to each customer too. This means that you cannot access another customer's dongles and vice versa. For each SDSN we have a registered postal and e-mail address(es) and we only send a customer's dongles to their registered postal address and send SDK updates to their registered e-mail address.

Is it possible to add protection to my software without modifying the source code?

Yes, using our Shell method of protection you can automatically add protection to 32-bit and 64-bit Windows EXE and DLL files (including .NET assemblies), as well as Linux binaries and shared libraries for x86 and x64 platforms. Not only that but it also encrypts your file to make it much more secure and prevent de-compilation.

Does Dinkey Pro/FD work with my programming language?

Dinkey Pro/FD is a very flexible system that will work with just about any programming language or even files that have a programming element e.g. Access databases. Click here for a list of supported languages.

Which operating systems do you support?

All our dongles and software tools are compatible with Microsoft Windows (x86 and x64 platforms), macOS 10.10 Yosemite and higher and Linux 2.6 and higher (x86, x64, ARM Aarch32 and ARM Aarch64).

Do I need to install a large framework or drivers in order to access the dongle?

Unlike some of our competitors' products, you do not need to install any drivers or frameworks for the Dinkey Pro and FD dongles to work with your software.

What if I need to send out an update to my program?

You can protect updates to your software without having to issue new dongles or ask for the existing dongles to be sent back for modification.

What if I want to change protection parameters after I have sent the dongle to the customer?

All our dongle protection systems allow you to modify the protection parameters stored in the customer's dongle by issuing the customer with a secure update code that can only be used once, and with only one specific dongle.

Does Dinkey Pro/FD work with virtual machine environments?

In virtually all cases Dinkey Pro/FD does work with virtual machines, however we do not guarantee that this will be the case for every virtual machine setup. Some virtual machines offer limited (or no) USB support or in some cases the USB emulation is imperfect. For a more detailed answer see our knowledge base article on this subject.

Do your dongles contain their own real-time clock?

You can use our dongles to securely set an expiry date limit on your software. However, our dongles do not use a real-time clock. This is because it would require extra chips and a battery - which would make the dongle larger, more expensive and have a limited lifetime. Instead we use software methods which are just as effective. One very simple technique is to store the date and time the dongle was last accessed and make sure this does not go backwards, but we also use other more sophisticated methods.

If I use a Dinkey FD and just copy a file to the flash drive is it automatically protected?

No. The FD dongle is comprised of a dongle and a normal USB flash drive in one unit. Files can be copied to and from the flash disk in the usual way (you cannot stop this - if a file is to be run by the operating system then it must be read and if it is read then it can be copied). However, if an executable has been protected by the Dinkey Pro/FD SDK then it will not run unless the dongle is present. You can use the flash drive to distribute your software or store files specific to the user.

What can I do if my customer damages or loses their dongle?

In this case you can issue a Temporary Software Key to your customer so that they can still run your protected program on one computer for a limited time period before the replacement dongle arrives.

How can I securely distribute Demos of my Software?

There are two different approaches to distributing demos:

1. Restricted-use time-unlimited demo In this case you protect your software with our dongle calling our API. If a dongle is not found then you can run your software in a restricted demo mode. However, if the customer has purchased a dongle from you then your software will run with no restrictions. In this way you can use the same code for a demo and your full system.
2. Fully functional time-limited demo In this case you can use a Demo Software Key so that your protected software can function for a limited period of time. If the customer decides to purchase your software then you can send them a dongle and your protected software will continue working. The customer is limited to one demo install per computer.