Patent ID: 8458488

Claim:
A system that allows analysis of software running in a tamper-resistant environment, the system comprising: a processor which monitors at least one instance of software execution, wherein the one instance is identified and selected by an end-user to be monitored by the processor, wherein the end-user is a user that initiates execution of the software at a system associated with the end-user, and wherein the processor creates a log entry with at least one set of data derived from the one instance of software execution in response to the one instance being identified and selected to be monitored, whereby the set of data is used to diagnose the software execution; an encryption system which generates at least one symmetric key and encrypts the log entry for the at least one set of data using the symmetric key, wherein the encryption system encrypts the symmetric key using a public key associated with the encryption system; a log file of a relatively-fixed size which stores the log entry for the at least one set of data which has been encrypted, and wherein the log file includes the symmetric key which has been encrypted with the public key; random data in the log file when it is originally created and which is replaced by log entries so that a size of the log file including log entries appears to be a substantially constant size; and a pointer which identifies a next storage location for a next log entry so that a last log entry can be determined and the next log entry can be positioned in a location in the log file after a previous log entry.