Protect You source code

[mosfet]

I have a question I would like to developp an app in .NET but I would like
to keep my source code secret.
However since anyone can decompile a binary to find the source code
(http://www.remotesoft.com/salamander/) how am i supposed to do ?
I have already used a java decompiler and it's amazing to see that you can
have the source code of any .class so if it works as well for .NET I am a
bit worried.

 

[Codemonkey]

I think what you're after is called a "code obfuscator". Have a search on
google for a ".net code obfuscator" and there will be a few links (look at
the sponsored ones too).

HTH,

Trev.

 

[Codemonkey]

Sorry, I sent the previous message too soon:

Look a bit closer on the Remote soft home page
(http://www.remotesoft.com/) - looks like they provide an obfuscator too
(http://www.remotesoft.com/salamander/obfuscator.html).

 

[Robert Jacobson]

There are various third-party tools called code obfuscators. They rewrite
the intermediate language code (MSIL) so that it is difficult to decompile
to human-readable code. They have different techniques, but generally work
by renaming descriptive variables and method names to generic names. For
example, the code:

Function CalculateYearEndBonus(Employeename as String, Salary as Decimal) as
Decimal
Dim BonusRate as Decimal
...
End Function

Might be rewritten to:

Function A(B as String, C as Decimal) as Decimal
Dim D as Decimal
....
End Function

That way, someone won't be able to tell easily what's going on in the code.
Salamander sells one obfuscator. There's one another, called Dotfuscator
Community Edition, that comes included with Visual Studio Profesisional 2003
and higher:

Obfuscation for .NET -- Dotfuscator by PreEmptive Solutions
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dotfuscator/dotf68q6.asp

If you're using a different version of Visual Studio, you can also download
Dotfuscator Community Edition for free from the Preemptive website.

For more information, search groups.google.com in the
microsoft.public.dotnet.* hierarchy.