Patent ID: 8176564

Claim:
A computing device, comprising: a first memory device storing an operating system of the computing device; a tamper resistant memory device that is separate from the first memory device, the tamper resistant memory device storing a supervisory program; a processor coupled to both the first memory device and the tamper resistant memory device; when a user turns on the computing device, the supervisory program being booted up and readied for operation prior to a time when the operating system of the computing device starts running, the supervisory program having precedence over and operating independently of at least one other boot device in the computing device; when the computing device is powered up and ready for use by the user on a pay per use or pay as you go basis, the supervisory program generating an initial compliance score that is representative of the computing device's compliance with a plurality of policies that indicate the operating system is metering usage of the computing device on the pay per use or the pay as you go basis; while the computing device is being used on the pay per use or the pay as you go basis, the supervisory program: receiving data that is representative of a then current operational state of the computing device, calculating an updated compliance score, and when the updated compliance score is less than a first threshold, invoking a first sanction mode that limits the ability of the computing device to be used on the pay per use or the pay as you go basis until the user takes corrective action that raises the value of the updated compliance score above the first threshold; and the supervisory program, during an interval of time for which the user has fully paid for use of the computing device, causing the computing device to enter a non-operational state when, during the interval of time, the supervisory program determines that the updated compliance score falls below a second threshold that is lower than the first threshold, wherein the operating system stored on the first memory device and the supervisory program stored on the tamper resistant memory device that is separate from the first memory device both execute on the processor concurrently, the supervisory program having guaranteed access to computing cycles on the processor while the processor is also executing the operating system that meters the usage of the computing device.