a system and method for preventing piracy of a given software application limits the number of times that such software application is activated . a given software application must be activated in order to become fully functional . the user must provide a unique software identification code , relating to the specific software which the user is attempting to activate , to a remote provider . the remote provider determines the number of times that such specific software has already been activated , and provides an activation code to the user unless the number of activations exceeds a predetermined threshold . once activated , the software becomes fully operational , and the user is allowed complete access to its functions .