Patent ID: 7343297

Claim:
A method performed on a processor of managing a software license, comprising: issuing a software license to a client, the software license entitling the client to access software resources, the software license having an expiration date, the software license being identified as a previously issued software license; receiving a license request from the client; determining that the expiration date of the previously issued software license has been reached without the client making a license request because the previously issued software license has been lost or because the previously issued software license is not lost but has not been used in a license update period, resulting in the return of the previously issued software license to an available pool of software licenses; reissuing the previously issued software license to the client if the previously issued software license is available because the previously issued software license has been returned to the available pool of software licenses and has not been issued to another client, the reissued software license having a new expiration date; issuing a new software license to the client if a new software license is available and the previously issued software license is not available, the new software license having a new expiration date; and denying the client access to software resources if the previously issued software license is not reissued and a new license is not issued.