Patent ID: 8798272

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a processor; and memory coupled to the processor, the memory comprising executable instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to effectuate operations comprising: retrieving via a processor, a key list from a smart card containing a first key that has been used for encrypting a first file; obtaining the first key by decrypting the key list using a master key; retrieving the first file; using the first key for decrypting a data description field (DDF) of the first file; executing a first re-keying action that is a part of a background re-keying process, the first re-keying action comprising re-keying the first file, the re-keying comprising replacing the current DDF of the first file with a new DDF encrypted with the master key; determining if the processor is available for performing a second re-keying action that is a part of the background re-keying process; idling the background re-keying process when the processor is unavailable for performing the second re-keying action; performing the second re-keying action upon a second file when the processor becomes available, the second re-keying action comprising: obtaining a second key by decrypting the key list using the master key; retrieving the second file; using the second key for decrypting a DDF of the second file; and re-keying the second file, the re-keying comprising replacing the current DDF of the second file with a new DDF encrypted with the master key.