CodeMeter in the Automation Industry

At the heart of modern plants and manufacturing equipment we find the integrated control systems that operate and monitor the industrial processes. For the manufacturers of control systems and machinery, software enables the required functions and applications and can be a key differentiator in the effort to stand apart from the competition. As such, not only should proprietary software be protected against theft (illicit copying), reverse engineering, and counterfeiting, but also against malicious tampering, manipulation, and even sabotage that might not just damage equipment, but also put human lives at risk.

Creative software license management can also help reduce production costs and empower producers to launch new business models and expand their portfolios with minimal effort.

This white paper discusses the integration of Wibu-Systems’ CodeMeter protection, licensing, and security technology to safeguard machinery and industrial control systems and enable new business opportunities by orchestrating a vast array of licensing models, like pay-per-use, subscription, features on demand, and others.

Security at the foundation of the machine or plant engineering process extends to controls and development environments, hardware, runtime environments and operating systems, and the programming language and applications.

CodeMeter provides protection at every juncture across the entire process. CodeMeter AxProtector en- cryption technology can be easily integrated into new control systems or retrofitted into existing systems by simple software updates. CodeMeter offers a single and standardized means for managing access rights, certificates, keys, and licenses in a fully scalable solution. The CodeMeter licenses are stored in a dedicated license container, either a dongle or license file; and each container can store licenses for multiple rights holders, like the makers of the control systems or production machines or the commissioning client. Wibu-Systems’ CodeMeter dongles are designed to be industry-ready.

CodeMeter licensing options enable the makers of industrial controllers to deploy a rich selection of usage rights as part of their products, managing granular licensing rights provided at the time of need, and thus facilitating lean production processes. Time or volume-limited licenses can be used to closely monitor service technicians and make sure that they can only access the system for the period they are working on site.

CodeMeter protection, licensing, and security tools are available for most common operating systems and architectures, including ARM, x86, and PowerPC. For PLC programmers, CodeMeter has been integrated into B&R Automation Studio, CODESYS, Phoenix Contact PC Worx, Rockwell Automation Studio 5000, and Siemens TIA Portal.

Download the complete white paper here.