Abstract: The present invention, generally speaking, provides a software protection mechanism that may be conveniently configured by a software publisher and applied to a software product. Various predefined software protection measures are presented to the software publisher, who selects which protection measures, if any, the software publisher wishes to apply to a software product. The software publisher may select all of the software protection measures, none of the software protection measures, or any logically consistent combination thereof. An option is also provided for the software publisher to provide code implementing a custom software protection mechanism. The software publisher's selections are saved in a license file that is attached to the software product. A Protector Module is also attached to the software product. The Protector Module includes code for each predefined software protection option.

Abstract: An integrated circuit includes an ECC encoder having a normal mode of operation and a test mode of operation. During the test mode, the encoder is operated as a test pattern generator for computing a test pattern that exhaustively stimulates data paths, memory structures and other logic functions on the integrated circuit. A signature of responses to the test pattern can then be computed and compared to a known "correct" signature to determine whether timing faults and other types of faults exist in the integrated circuit. A disk controller chip based on such an integrated circuit can, in addition to testing its own on-chip data paths, memory structures and other logic functions, supply a test pattern to a read/write channel chip and other components on a printed circuit board assembly of a disk drive.

Abstract: In an error recovery procedure (ERP) in a disk drive, the time needed to execute each step of the ERP is stored in a table. A timer measures the elapsed time from the start of the execution of the ERP, and the elapsed time is checked while executing the ERP. There are two types of ERP steps: those steps with (1) short execution times or (2) relatively long execution times. The two types of ERP steps are stored in different tables. An ERP step is selected and executed depending on the remaining execution time for the ERP.