Tag: python licensing

Autodesk Revit plugin software licensing

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Autodesk® Revit is a powerful building information software, which allows developers to extend its functionality through plug-ins that can be written in either Python or .NET. In order to monetize your plugin, we need to implement a license verification mechanism and a way to accept payments from prospective customers.

License verification

Python plugins

If your plugin is written in Python, you can use the Python2 version of our Python client. A simple license verification can be performed with the code below (your specific parameters can be found here):

from cryptolens_python2 import *
HelperMethods.ironpython2730_legacy = True

pubKey = "<RSAKeyValue><Modulus>sGbvxwdlDbqFXOMlVUnAF5ew0t0WpPW7rFpI5jHQOFkht/326dvh7t74RYeMpjy357NljouhpTLA3a6idnn4j6c3jmPWBkjZndGsPL4Bqm+fwE48nKpGPjkj4q/yzT4tHXBTyvaBjA8bVoCTnu+LiC4XEaLZRThGzIn5KQXKCigg6tQRy0GXE13XYFVz/x1mjFbT9/7dS8p85n8BuwlY5JvuBIQkKhuCNFfrUxBWyu87CFnXWjIupCD2VO/GbxaCvzrRjLZjAngLCMtZbYBALksqGPgTUN7ZM24XbPWyLtKPaXF2i4XRR9u6eTj5BfnLbKAU5PIVfjIS+vNYYogteQ==</Modulus><Exponent>AQAB</Exponent></RSAKeyValue>"

res = Key.activate(token="WyIyNTU1IiwiRjdZZTB4RmtuTVcrQlNqcSszbmFMMHB3aWFJTlBsWW1Mbm9raVFyRyJd",\
                   rsa_pub_key=pubKey,\
                   product_id=3349, key="ICVLD-VVSZR-ZTICT-YKGXL", \
                   machine_code=Helpers.GetMachineCode())

if res[0] == None or not Helpers.IsOnRightMachine(res[0]):
    print("An error occurred: {0}".format(res[1]))
else:
    print("Success")
    
    license_key = res[0]
    print("Feature 1: " + str(license_key.f1))
    print("License expires: " + str(license_key.expires))

C# or VB.NET

If your plugin is either written in C# or VB.NET, you can use our .NET library instead. To add it to your project in Visual Studio:

  1. Right click on your project in the Solution Explorer and click on Manage NuGet Packages.
  2. Search for Cryptolens.Licensing and install it.
  3. Add the code-snippet form this page in the code where the plugin loads for the first time.

Accepting payments

One way to sell an Autodesk Revit plug-ins is by publishing them in the Autodesk App Store, where a basic licensing mechanism is already provided. The problem with this approach is that the licensing models available are quite limited (eg. you can only charge your customers once for the plug-in and they will be able to use it in perpetuity). For instance, selling your plug-in as a service (subscription model) is not supported.

A better approach is to still publish your plug-in in the Autodesk App Store and set it to be a free app. You can then ask your customers to get a separate license key to be able to unlock all features.

You can read more about various ways of selling your software in our help pages. I would also recommend to check out the available licensing models.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out!

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Tips on monetizing Python applications

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Python can be used to develop a variety of applications, either as plugins (eg. for Discord, AutoCAD, Autodesk Maya, etc) or standalone applications. In this post we will focus on how to monetize a standalone Python application.

Let’s say you have developed a Python application that classifies images (eg. using tensorflow or pytorch). To start selling it, there are just three things we need in place:

  • Code obfuscation – to ensure that no one can reverse engineer the application.
  • License verification – to ensure that customers need a license key before they can use the application (eg. so that you can restrict which features they can use and how long the license is valid).
  • Webshop – so that customers can obtain a license key to unlock functionality.

Code obfuscation

To obfuscate your application, multiple tools can be used. You can either use packages such as pyarmor that are made to obfuscate Python code or open source tools such as pyinstaller in combination with cpython (for most sensitive code).

License verification

A license key can be easily verified using the code below. You can find more information about the parameters here. 

from licensing.helpers import Helpers
from licensing.models import Response, RSAPublicKey
from licensing.methods import Key

pubKey = "<RSAKeyValue><Modulus>sGbvxwdlDbqFXOMlVUnAF5ew0t0WpPW7rFpI5jHQOFkht/326dvh7t74RYeMpjy357NljouhpTLA3a6idnn4j6c3jmPWBkjZndGsPL4Bqm+fwE48nKpGPjkj4q/yzT4tHXBTyvaBjA8bVoCTnu+LiC4XEaLZRThGzIn5KQXKCigg6tQRy0GXE13XYFVz/x1mjFbT9/7dS8p85n8BuwlY5JvuBIQkKhuCNFfrUxBWyu87CFnXWjIupCD2VO/GbxaCvzrRjLZjAngLCMtZbYBALksqGPgTUN7ZM24XbPWyLtKPaXF2i4XRR9u6eTj5BfnLbKAU5PIVfjIS+vNYYogteQ==</Modulus><Exponent>AQAB</Exponent></RSAKeyValue>"

res = Key.activate(token="WyIyNTU1IiwiRjdZZTB4RmtuTVcrQlNqcSszbmFMMHB3aWFJTlBsWW1Mbm9raVFyRyJd",\
                   rsa_pub_key=pubKey,\
                   product_id=3349, key="ICVLD-VVSZR-ZTICT-YKGXL", machine_code="test")

if res[0] == None:
    print("An error occured: {0}".format(res[1]))
else:
    print("Success")

Webshop

When you have obfuscation and license verification in place, we need a way for customers to be able to order a license key. If you already have Stripe, you can use the recurring billing module, which acts like an interface for plans defined in your Stripe account. In other cases, you can either use payment forms or a different platform (please read more here).

Questions? Please reach out to us at [email protected] 🙂

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Python Code for Software Licensing

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How do you create license keys for software in Python? Well, setting up a Python license key system is effortless with Cryptolens. Instead of coding your own solution from scratch, we have detailed guides and SDKs so you can set up key verification and protect your Python code. If you want to read more about the code-it-yourself VS outsourcing route, please read this blog post.

We have also made the following YouTube video that goes into detail about how you implement a Python license key manager:

Creating License Keys for a Python Application

A software license management solution has to establish a lock in your software code that only allows entry to people who put in a valid digital license key. If the key is invalid, or if they are unable to insert a key, the system should deny entry to the application. Without this system in place, anyone can access your software app, and it becomes very difficult to sell such a product. That is why a software licensing solution is important when protecting your code against unauthorized users.

License key verification is effortless with Cryptolens in any coding language!

A Licensing as a Service (LaaS) provider such as Cryptolens allows you to set up a license manager for Python within minutes that performs full key verification. This enables quicker software license implementation and you gain access to all of the advanced licensing techniques you will need, such as usage-based pricing, offline license verification, floating and node-locked licenses, and user-account-based licensing.

Implementing a Python License Key System

Getting started with a cloud-based software license manager such as Cryptolens can be done by following 3 easy steps:

1. Install our Python SDK.

2. Create a free Cryptolens account.

3. Insert a code snippet into your code

1. Let us begin with the SDK. Cryptolens offers comprehensive SDKs in your favorite programming languages, including Python, to make it effortless to implement a Licensing as a Service (LaaS) platform within minutes. Install our Python SDK here.

2. Create a free Cryptolens account to get access to our easy-to-use dashboard where you can create and manage license keys and restrictions. You can also find your access tokens and other parameters that you have to insert into your code. Cryptolens offers you a way to implement licensing for free at your own pace, and you only have to pay when you get customers of your own. Check out our pricing plans here, and you can always get started for free.

3. The last step for implementing a Python license key system is to insert a code snippet into your application’s code. We provide comprehensive help guides to make the implementation seem effortless. See the full code snippet in your programming language here. This is an overview of what the Python code snippet looks like:

from licensing.helpers import Helpers
from licensing.models import Response, RSAPublicKey
from licensing.methods import Key

pubKey = "<RSAKeyValue><Modulus>sGbvxwdlDbqFXOMlVUnAF5ew0t0WpPW7rFpI5jHQOFkht/326dvh7t74RYeMpjy357NljouhpTLA3a6idnn4j6c3jmPWBkjZndGsPL4Bqm+fwE48nKpGPjkj4q/yzT4tHXBTyvaBjA8bVoCTnu+LiC4XEaLZRThGzIn5KQXKCigg6tQRy0GXE13XYFVz/x1mjFbT9/7dS8p85n8BuwlY5JvuBIQkKhuCNFfrUxBWyu87CFnXWjIupCD2VO/GbxaCvzrRjLZjAngLCMtZbYBALksqGPgTUN7ZM24XbPWyLtKPaXF2i4XRR9u6eTj5BfnLbKAU5PIVfjIS+vNYYogteQ==</Modulus><Exponent>AQAB</Exponent></RSAKeyValue>"

res = Key.activate(token="WyIyNTU1IiwiRjdZZTB4RmtuTVcrQlNqcSszbmFMMHB3aWFJTlBsWW1Mbm9raVFyRyJd",\
                   rsa_pub_key=pubKey,\
                   product_id=3349, key="ICVLD-VVSZR-ZTICT-YKGXL", machine_code="test")

if res[0] == None:
    print("An error occured: {0}".format(res[1]))
else:
    print("Success")