Patent ID: 7143294

Claim:
An apparatus for enabling functionality of a component, said apparatus comprising: a random number generating module for generating a random number; a hash function module in communication with said random number generating module, wherein said random number generating module comprises a linear feedback shift register and a ring oscillator in communication with said hash function module, the linear feedback shift register being configured to output a random number; a host in communication with said random number generating module, said host being configured to receive a guess passcode from a manufacturer of the component; at least one memory in communication with said host; an encryption module in communication with said at least one memory; and a comparing device in communication with said encryption module and said hash function module, wherein said at least one memory further comprises a guess register in communication with said host and said encryption module, said guess register being configured to receive a guess passcode from said host, and a public key module in communication with said encryption module, said public key module being configured to store a public key therein, wherein said comparing device compares a first bit string to a second bit string to generate a function enable output to the component, which enables functionality of the component, and wherein the first bit string comprises a ciphertext bit string generated by the encryption module and the second bit string comprises a hash value generated by the hash function module.