Companies that provide or plan to introduce time or usage-based payment models, such as pay-per-use, for controlling access to their software can use the inventions claimed in the Patents to enable software by using embedded agents that communicate with a server computer.  Software can be enabled for a specific period (e.g., trial period) to allow the user to determine whether he or she wants to pay for the product.  If the user chooses not to pay, the invention allows the company to remotely disable the software.  This embodiment of the invention has numerous applications for transactions involving computer software.  In addition to software activation, SVS client agents could be used to meter and provision access to software programs by enabling and disabling access to programs based on licensing rights or payment schedules. Examples include business applications, virus protection utilities and computer games delivered via online subscription services. The methods described in the Patents are likely already being utilized by software publishers to activate and disable operating system software and application software. Home