US5559960A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Software anti-virus facility
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1995-04-21
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Granted: 1996-09-24
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Expires: 2015-04-21
Abstract
Abstract A virus-resistant disk has a "hidden partition" in which anti-virus software is stored; the hidden partition not only shields the software from many viruses, but provides storage space that does not reduce the disk's formatted or advertised capacity. The disk includes software to cause the computer to execute the anti-virus software. The invention provides a hidden partition by utilizing storage space on the disk that is not reflected in the size and geometry information stored on the disk, e.g., in the BIOS Parameter Block.
Inventors
- 👤 Jonathan D. Lettvin
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 14:00
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F21/00; G06F21/50; G06F21/57; G06F21/575; G06F21/55; G06F21/56; G06F21/567; G06F9/00; G06F9/06; G06F9/44; G06F9/4401; H; H04; H04N; H04N21/00; H04N21/40; H04N21/43; H04N21/435; H04N21/4351; H04N21/80; H04N21/81; H04N21/8166
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
60 words
A virus-resistant disk for use with a computer, comprising: (a) anti-virus software stored on the disk and configured to cause the computer to detect and remove from a component thereof at least one virus; and (b) means for causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes an ultimate operating system.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
60 words
A virus-resistant disk for use with a computer, comprising: (a) anti-virus software stored on the disk and configured to cause the computer to detect and remove from a component thereof at least one virus; and (b) means for causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes an ultimate operating system.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
45 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 1, wherein the execution-causing means comprises bootstrap software stored on the disk, execution of the bootstrap software causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software prior to post-bootstrap operations, the bootstrap software being executed upon startup of the computer.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
78 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 1, wherein: (a) the computer comprises memory and registers: (b) the computer has an initialization state in which the memory and registers of the computer accurately reflect the amount of memory on the computer and no interrupt vector in the computer contains an address of a routine within a virus; and (c) the anti-virus software is configured to cause the computer, after detecting and removing a virus, to enter the initialization state.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
96 words
A virus-resistant disk for use with a computer, comprising: (a) a hidden partition comprising storage space inaccessible to conventional programs and not reducing conventional storage capacity of the disk; (b) a disk descriptor block describing conventional storage capacity and geometry of the disk but not describing the hidden partition, thereby making the hidden partition inaccessible to conventional programs; (c) anti-virus software stored in the hidden partition and configured to cause the computer to detect and remove from a component thereof at least one virus; and (d) means for causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
96 words
A virus-resistant disk for use with a computer, comprising: (a) a hidden partition comprising storage space inaccessible to conventional programs and not reducing conventional storage capacity of the disk; (b) a disk descriptor block describing conventional storage capacity and geometry of the disk but not describing the hidden partition, thereby making the hidden partition inaccessible to conventional programs; (c) anti-virus software stored in the hidden partition and configured to cause the computer to detect and remove from a component thereof at least one virus; and (d) means for causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
45 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein the execution-causing means comprises bootstrap software stored on the disk, execution of the bootstrap software causing the computer to execute the anti-virus software prior to post-bootstrap operations, the bootstrap software being executed upon startup of the computer.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
87 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein the anti-virus software comprises at least one anti-virus program and the execution-causing means comprises: (d1) bootstrap software stored on the disk; and (d2) a bootstrap-time operating system stored in the hidden partition for causing the computer, upon startup, to automatically execute the bootstrap software, execution of the bootstrap software causing the computer to execute the bootstrap-time operating system, execution of the bootstrap-time operating system causing the computer to execute the at least one anti-virus program prior to post-bootstrap operations.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
54 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 6, further comprising: (e) disk-maintenance software stored in the hidden partition and configured to cause the computer to detect and repair damage to information stored on a component thereof; and wherein (f) the bootstrap-time operating system causes the computer to execute the disk-maintenance software prior to post-bootstrap operations.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
19 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein the execution-causing means comprises an application program stored on the disk.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
35 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein the disk has a plurality of tracks on each of at least one surface and the hidden partition comprises storage space on fewer than all the tracks.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
33 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein the disk has a plurality of tracks on each of at least one surface and the hidden partition comprises storage space on all the tracks.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
78 words
The virus-resistant disk defined in claim 4, wherein: (a) the computer comprises memory and registers; (b) the computer has an initialization state in which the memory and registers of the computer accurately reflect the amount of memory on the computer and no interrupt vector in the computer contains an address of a routine within a virus; and (c) the anti-virus software is configured to cause the computer, after detecting and removing a virus, to enter the initialization state.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
125 words
A method of causing a computer to execute at least one program upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes an ultimate operating system, the method comprising the steps: (a) providing a startup disk comprising a hidden partition comprising storage space inaccessible to conventional programs and not reducing conventional storage capacity of the disk; (b) providing a bootstrap-time operating system stored in the hidden partition; (c) causing the computer to execute the bootstrap-time operating system upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes the ultimate operating system; (d) causing the computer to execute the at least one program under the control of the bootstrap-time operating system; and (e) upon completion of the at least one program, executing the ultimate operating system.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
125 words
A method of causing a computer to execute at least one program upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes an ultimate operating system, the method comprising the steps: (a) providing a startup disk comprising a hidden partition comprising storage space inaccessible to conventional programs and not reducing conventional storage capacity of the disk; (b) providing a bootstrap-time operating system stored in the hidden partition; (c) causing the computer to execute the bootstrap-time operating system upon startup of the computer but before the computer executes the ultimate operating system; (d) causing the computer to execute the at least one program under the control of the bootstrap-time operating system; and (e) upon completion of the at least one program, executing the ultimate operating system.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method defined in claim 12, wherein the at least one program is anti-virus software stored in the hidden partition and configured to cause the computer to detect and remove from a component thereof at least one virus.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
77 words
The method defined in claim 13, wherein: (a) the computer comprises memory and registers; (b) the computer has an initialization state in which the memory and registers of the computer accurately reflect the amount of memory on the computer and no interrupt vector in the computer contains an address of a routine within a virus; and (c) the anti-virus software is configured to cause the computer, after detecting and removing a virus, to enter the initialization state.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method defined in claim 12, wherein the at least one program is disk-maintenance software stored in the hidden partition and configured to cause the computer to detect and repair damage to information stored on a component thereof.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
72 words
A virus-tolerant disk having sectors and a file system allocation table for allocating the sectors to files, the virus-tolerant disk comprising: (a) a predetermined subset of the sectors, comprising sectors attacked by at least one virus; and (b) entries, corresponding to the predetermined sectors, in the file system allocation table for making the predetermined sectors unavailable for allocation to any file, the entries being made prior to an attack by a virus.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
72 words
A virus-tolerant disk having sectors and a file system allocation table for allocating the sectors to files, the virus-tolerant disk comprising: (a) a predetermined subset of the sectors, comprising sectors attacked by at least one virus; and (b) entries, corresponding to the predetermined sectors, in the file system allocation table for making the predetermined sectors unavailable for allocation to any file, the entries being made prior to an attack by a virus.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1999-09-24 | 2000-03-25 | 2000-09-24 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2003-09-24 | 2004-03-25 | 2004-09-24 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2007-09-24 | 2008-03-25 | 2008-09-24 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |