PHP Deploy project at customer [duplicate]

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Code obfuscator for php?
How to protect my source code when deployed?

We're developing a PHP project which we intend to sell to end-users. We're licensing this project, so our end-users get a license to use the product (they do not own it).

Our problem is that we want to deploy the code at the customer's server, but we don't want the customer to be able to distribute it any further. With plain PHP code you could easily copy paste the code and give it to your neighbour ;), we would like to prevent that (a bit like preventing piracy). We could work with serials and a activation server, but since customers can easily edit PHP code that is not an option.

Do you've got any thoughts about how to secure this project, so the mean pirates won't be able to illegally resell our project.

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

You can encode the code (or the core/essential files of it) with encoder like ioncube and generate license file that is bound to *.example-domain.com and won't work on any other domain. This way your code is quite well protected from getting distributed.

http://www.ioncube.com/tutorials/encoder_gui/

There are also ioncube alternatives - read more out there for PHP Encoders and licensing, most of the encoders that are suitable for commercial needs (reliable) - are paid to use (eg per line of encoded code). In such case I would encode only the core libraries on which the whole project relies on.

Have in mind that this is likely to make it quite unpleasant for them to do it, but in any case if the product is so good, it will get cracked and distributed eventually. But usually that means you've done something spectacular to gain such attention and many people are getting the legal way.

I hope this helps.