Patent ID: 8370903

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: a first acquiring logic implemented on a hardware processor of the image forming apparatus, configured to acquire first authentication information related to a user, to use said image forming apparatus; a second acquiring logic configured to acquire an authenticated result of said user based on said first authentication information from an authenticating logic; a third acquiring logic configured to acquire second authentication information related to said image forming apparatus, to use a web service with said image forming apparatus, from a memory; a fourth acquiring logic configured to acquire function limit information for limiting a use of the function of said image forming apparatus with respect to said user from said memory logic; a fifth acquiring logic configured to acquire information about a linked function of said image forming apparatus with said web service from said memory logic; an accessing logic configured to access said web service with said second authentication information when said authenticated result establishes the authentication of said user and said user can use said linked function of said image forming apparatus with said web service; and a designating logic configured to designate a use of said web service when said web service is used by using a function other than the functions for which said use is limited even when the use of the linked function of said image forming apparatus with said web service is limited for said user, wherein said accessing logic accesses said web service when said designating logic designates the use of said web service in a case where the use of said linked function of said image forming apparatus with said web service is limited for said user.