CodeMeter µEmbedded

CodeMeter µEmbedded is the CodeMeter variant especially made for field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and microcontrollers. With CodeMeter µEmbedded, software developers can protect application code and intellectual property against reverse engineering also on FPGAs and microcontrollers, as well as implement a license control system. For larger systems, such as PLCs or PCs, CodeMeter Embedded and CodeMeter Runtime are also available.

CodeMeter µEmbedded is characterized by an extremely small footprint for the loader code accounting for less than 60 kBytes. To reach this goal, we have reduced the functions to the bare minimum. The licenses generated are fully compatible among all CodeMeter variants and they can all be handled by CodeMeter License Central.

The license is bound to a unique ID of the FPGA or microcontroller. Licenses can be activated directly in a production environment during manufacturing time. In addition, Features On Demand can be enabled later via remote file update.

CodeMeter µEmbedded is license compatible with CodeMeter Runtime. Transferable licenses can be moved from a CmDongle or a CmActLicense into a device.

Furthermore, with CodeMeter µEmbedded, the application firmware is protected by strong encryption and cannot be read by external devices trying to copy the firmware. The symmetric and asymmetric keys as well as the secure loader are located in a protected memory area, and can only be used on the device with a matching ID.

Typical applications of CodeMeter µEmbedded are:

• License control of devices and device functionality (microcontrollers and FPGAs)
• Monitoring of production volumes through licensing of individual devices
• Secure encrypted transmission of the application code into the device