Patent ID: 8533468

Claim:
An image forming apparatus capable of communicating with an information processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus comprising: a storage unit configured to store a program module providing a function that can be executed on the image forming apparatus; a server unit configured to provide an operation screen for designating license information of the program module to be sent to the image forming apparatus from the information processing apparatus, in response to an access from a web browser application of the information processing apparatus, wherein the license information of the program module is stored in the information processing apparatus and the license information designated on the operation screen displayed on the information processing apparatus is transmitted from the information processing apparatus to the image forming apparatus; a license confirmation unit configured to confirm whether the license information of the program module transmitted from the information processing apparatus is valid; a setting unit configured to set a launching flag of the program module from an OFF state to an ON state in which the program module is launched when the image forming apparatus is started, after the license confirmation unit confirms that the license information of the program module is valid; and a program control unit configured to control operation of the program module, wherein the program control unit executes the program module stored in the storage unit when a launch of the program module is instructed, and wherein, when the launching flag of the program module is set to the OFF state, the program module is not launched when the image forming apparatus is started, and, when the launching flag of the program module is set to the ON state, the program module is launched when the image forming apparatus is started.