Security Dongles - Expensive Software

[Stitch Up]

As I'm sure many of you will know, some 'high-end, high-cost' software is often dongle protected.

I have several software suites that require a dongle to be present on the PC on which you run the software:
Wilcom Embroidery Studio 3
Sequin Design Software based on SignLab
NeoRIP DTG Rip Software.

As we have a shop just a few doors away from our home, I'm often running )okay, walking) between the two to collect the dongles so I can run the software at the two locations.

On more than one occasion I've mislaid these dongles - once slipping down the back of the sofa!!! This has made me ultra-cautious and scared stiff that I might lose or even damage a dongle by continually swapping them between PCs! I know that if I lose the dongle for NeoRIP, I'm stuffed for DTG printing!

I've been trying out a few solutions to the problem and found a very nifty piece of software that allows me to use any of these dongles wherever I want WITHOUT having them attached to the computer

The software that enables me to achieve this is called VIRTUALHERE. This is a small utility I've installed on my Raspberry Pi 3, attached a USB Hub and attached the security dongles and others. I then install the VIRTUALHERE clients on my many PCs and I'm able to run any of the dongle protected software and no longer have to continually swap around the dongles. When I get around to it, I'll also be able to run the software on a PC across the internet

A great, inexpensive solution that removes the risk of losing or breaking my dongles.

[TerryQ]

Could you just not copy the disk(dongle) image to your dashboard?

[Stitch Up]

Hi Terry,

Protection dongles cannot be copied.

I'm not sure what you mean - dashboard?

Regards

John

[webtrekker]

Neat idea, but why the Raspberry Pi? Would it not be just as effective to plug the dongles into a usb hub on one of your computers instead?

[TerryQ]

Hi Terry,

Protection dongles cannot be copied.

I'm not sure what you mean - dashboard?

Regards

John

ah, sorry John. I didn’t know

the dashboard is the home screen on a Mac computer.
So for example, If Inhave a dongle that’s i need to use formsomething that has data on it, I always copy the image into the dashboard and then i can access the files even if Inforget/loose the dingle

terry

[Earl Smith]

Very interesting John and thanks for the tip.
You do know that if you loose the dongle in transit ( and its not insured) then you will loose the program. Wilcom will not replace it unless you have informed the police and proved that it has been stolen or lost. That wont be easy if you just loose it in transit.
Mine stays in my shop where I do all my work. I never risk taking it home and I loose it. After all, it is a 4,000euro program.

[webtrekker]

ah, sorry John. I didn’t know

the dashboard is the home screen on a Mac computer.
So for example, If Inhave a dongle that’s i need to use formsomething that has data on it, I always copy the image into the dashboard and then i can access the files even if Inforget/loose the dingle

terry

Have you actually tried copying those saved files to a usb stick and tested it? I seriously doubt whether it would work as dongles aren't easily copied or cloned, that would defeat the copy protection.

[TerryQ]

Yes, I use it all the time like that. However, like I said in my reply to John, I didn't know about the security issues of the particular software dongle he was talking about.

The disc image Im copying to dashboard obviously doesn't have any copyright/security preventing copying

[Earl Smith]

Just spoken to the computer boffins in the shop next door about this. They scratch their heads and ask me why don`t I use a virtual remote system that´s built into windows. I have no idea how that works but I believe it the same as what you have. You don´t even need the program on the house computer. You just log into your workshop computer from your house and then use the program remotely from home or wherever you are.

[Stitch Up]

Yes, there are many options Earl and remote control is one. I have used that in the past but find it a bit laggy and often colours don't display properly. Of course while I'm using the Wilcom remotely, Angie can be using other software by attaching to another security dongle.

I had a Raspberry Pi spare and decided it suited my needs and, I can lock the Pi away with dongles and don't have to touch them A raspberry Pi uses very little power so I leave it on 24/7.

I wasn't aware of situation with Wilcom and lost dongles. At present I'm not to happy with them for the problems I've encountered with Coreldraw 6 and its lack of compatibility with Windows 10. Their solution was for me to upgrade to E4!

I don't use a Mac so can't comment on any remarks made about them.