RTEncoder 2.0 User Documentation

Table of Contents

1.0 Legal Notices

1.1 Copyright
1.2 License for use

2.0 Definitions
3.0 Introduction
4.0 Quickie usage instructions

4.1 Encoding a file
4.2 Decoding a file

5.0 Detailed usage instructions

5.1 Encoding a file
5.2 Decoding a file

6.0 Installing a license file

7.0 Version history
8.0 Contact information
9.0 Closing remarks

1.0 Legal Notices

1.1 Copyright

RTEncoder 2.0 ©2002-2007 by Russell Cook. All rights reserved.

1.2 License for use

The unlicensed version of RTEncoder is freely downloadable from http://www.rtencoder.com. A license may be purchased from http://www.rtencoder.com/purchase.

The user is granted the license to use the software for personal or for commercial purposes on one or more computers under their direct control at a single location. The user may make copies of the software for their own use. The software and any purchased license file may not be redistributed for any reason without the prior written permission of the author.

2.0 Definitions

This section contains definitions for common terms used throughout this manual that may need further clarification for the reader.

Compression

Compression is the reversible process for encoding a stream of data so that is takes up less storage space. For further information see Data Compression.

Decoding

Decoding is the term used for the process of converting an RTE file back into the original source data file.

Encoding

Encoding is the term used for the process of converting a source data file into an RTE file.

Encryption

Encryption is a process used to encode data to protect it, requiring either passwords, or key files for the encryption and decryption process. for further information see Encryption.

Encryption Phrase

An encryption phrase is a password used as the key for the encryption process. The same encryption phrase used to encrypt the data is needed to decrypt the data.

Key File

A key file is any computer file that will be used during the encoding process to create the RTE file. The same key file will be needed when decoding the RTE file.

Key Phrase

A key phrase is a password used to create a random stream of data that is used similarly to a key file during the encoding process to create the RTE file. The same key phrase used during the encoding process will be needed during the decoding process.

RTE File

The RTE file is the encoded version of the original source file. This file can only be decoded using RTEncoder with the same parameters used to encode the file, be they key files or pass phrases.

RTEncoder

RTEncoder is the software utility used for encoding and decoding RTE files.

3.0 Introduction

RTEncoder is a software utility used to protect computer files. The purpose of this application is to allow a user to protect a computer file by encoding it into an RTE file. Then the RTE file would be sent to another user who would use RTEncoder to decode the RTE file back into the original computer file. The goal is that while protected in the RTE file, the original computer file can not be decoded by a user who is not authorized to view that file.

Several methods are available in RTEncoder to protect your source computer files. One such method is to use Key files to encode the original file, such that the identical Key files are needed to decode the RTE file. This process works by the encryption algorithm called a One-Time Pad. A similar approach is available in RTEncoder called a Key Phrase. In this case, a short phrase is used to generate a random stream of data which is used in a similar manner to a Key File.

Another protection method available in RTEncoder is the Blowfish encryption algorithm. When Encoding an RTE file, entering an Encryption Phrase will make use of a 64-bit symmetric encryption algorithm using the Blowfish standard. When Decoding, the user will need to know the Encryption Phrase to successfully decode the RTE file.

A final feature available in RTEncoder is the ability to use Compression on the source file, before the Encoding begins. This extra step will not only help make the output RTE file smaller, but it can add a measure of security by obfuscating the contents of the original file, making brute force attacks on an encoded RTE file more difficult. The compression is done using the standard GZip compression algorithm.

4.0 Quickie usage instructions

4.1 Encoding a file

Select the File, Encode menu option. You must be running a licensed version of RTEncoder to select this menu option.
On the Select Source File wizard page, press the Browse button to select the file to encode. Then press the Next button.
On the Select Output File wizard page, press the Browse button to select a filename and directory to save the encoded RTE file to. Then press the Next button.
On the Select Key Files wizard page, if you want to require certain files to decode your RTE file, select up to three files using the Browse buttons. Then press the Next button.
On the Enter Key Phrase wizard page, if you want to require a simple password to decode your RTE file, enter it here. Then press the Next button.
On the Enter Encryption Phrase wizard page, if you want to require a more secure encryption key phrase to decode your RTE file, enter it here. Then press the Next button.
On the Select Compression wizard page, if you want to compress your source file to save disk space, check the checkbox. Then press the Next button.
On the Verify Encoding Settings wizard page, review your selected encoding settings. Press the Back button to make any changes. Then press the Finish button to encode your file.

4.2 Decoding a file

Select the File, Decode menu option.
On the Select RTE Source File wizard page, press the Browse button to select the RTE file to decode. Then press the Next button.
On the Select Output File wizard page, press the Browse button to select a filename and directory to save the decoded file to. The output filename has a suggested default. Then press the Next button.
If key files are needed, you will see the Select Key Files wizard page next. On the Select Key Files wizard page, you need to select a key file for each of the enabled Browse buttons. The key file filename has a suggested default. Then press the Next button.
If a key phrase is needed, you will see the Enter Key Phrase wizard page next. On the Enter Key Phrase wizard page, enter the key phrase password. Then press the Next button.
If an encryption phrase is needed, you will see the Enter Encryption Phrase wizard page next. On the Enter Encryption Phrase wizard page, enter the encryption key phrase. Then press the Next button.
On the Verify Decoding Settings wizard page, review your selected decoding settings. Press the Back button to make any changes. Then press the Finish button to decode your file.

5.0 Detailed usage instructions

5.1 Encoding a file

Step 1. To begin the encoding process, select the File, Encode menu option. This option will only be enabled if you are running a properly licensed version of RTEncoder. You may purchase a license at http://www.rtencoder.com/purchase.

Step 2. You should now see the Select Source File wizard page. Pressing the Browse button will open a File Open dialog where you can select a file from your computer that you want to encode into an RTE file. You can select any type of file to encode. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 3. You should now see the Select Output File wizard page. Pressing the Browse button will open a File Save dialog where you can select the output filename and directory to encode your new RTE file to. If the file already exists, you will be prompted to overwrite the file. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 4. You should now see the Select Key Files wizard page. If you want certain files to be required to decode your RTE file, you can enter up to three of those files on this page. These files are used during the encoding process to create the output RTE file. Decoding the RTE file will be impossible without having these key files. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 5. You should now see the Enter Key Phrase wizard page. If you want to require a simple password to decode an RTE file, you can enter that here. This pass phrase is used to generate a pseudo-random stream of data, and that stream of data is used similarly to a key file during the encoding and decoding process. This is a fairly simple process and not quite as secure as true encryption, which can be done in the next step. If you do not want to enter a key phrase, just leave the field blank. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 6. You should now see the Enter Encryption Phrase wizard page. If you want to require a more secure encryption key phrase to decode your RTE file, you can enter it on this page. This encryption phrase is used in the Blowfish encryption algorithm to encrypt your source file. The key phrase will be required to decode your RTE file. If you do not want to enter an encryption phrase, just leave the field blank. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 7. You should now see the Select Compression wizard page. If you want to compress your source file as the first step of the encoding process, you can select this checkbox. The compression is done using the standard GZip algorithm. It is generally a good idea to take advantage of this compression to save both disk space and file distribution bandwidth for files hosted on web servers. If you do not want to compress your source file, leave the checkbox unchecked. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 8. You should now see the Verify Encoding Settings wizard page. Review the settings you have chosen. If you need to make any changes, press the Back button and make the changes on the appropriate page. When you are satisfied with your settings, press the Finish button to encode your source file into an RTE file using the selected settings.

5.2 Decoding a file

Step 1. To begin the decoding process, select the File, Decode menu option.

Step 2. You should now see the Select RTE Source File wizard page. Pressing the Browse button will open a File Open dialog where you can select an RTE file from your computer than you want to decode back into its original source file. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 3. You should now see the Select Output File wizard page. Pressing the Browse button will open a File Save dialog where you can select the output filename and directory to decode your source RTE file to. The original source filename is automatically suggested to you as the default filename. If the file already exists, you will be prompted to overwrite the file. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 4. If you are decoding an RTE file where key files are needed, you should now see the Select Key Files wizard page. For each key file that is needed, a Browse button will be enabled. Press each Browse button to open a File Open dialog box and locate the needed file. The filename of the needed file is automatically suggested to you as the default filename. When you have selected all the needed key files, press the Next button to continue.

Step 5. If you are decoding an RTE file where a key phrase is needed, you should now see the Enter Key Phrase wizard page. Type in the key phrase needed to decode this RTE file. Do not confuse this page with the encryption key phrase page. When you have entered the key phrase, press the Next button to continue.

Step 6. If you are decoding an RTE file where an encryption phrase is needed, you should now see the Enter Encryption Phrase wizard page. Type in the encryption phrase needed to decode this RTE file. Then press the Next button to continue.

Step 7. You should now see the Verify Decoding Settings wizard page. Review the settings you have chosen. If you need to make any changes, press the Back button and make the changes on the appropriate page. When you are satisfied with your settings, press the Finish button to decode your RTE file into the original source file using the selected settings.

6.0 Installing a license file

In order to encode RTE files, you must purchase a license file from http://www.rtencoder.com/purchase. After your purchase, you should be emailed a small license file that you need to save to your hard drive. Then, inside RTEncoder, select the Help, Register License menu item. A standard File Open dialog will be launched for you to select the license file you saved to your hard drive. If the license file is validated by the software, you should notice the title of the RTEncoder window change to reflect your newly license software. You will also see the license details in the Help, About dialog box.

If there is a problem validating your license file, you should see an error message appear briefly describing the error. If you continue to have problems, please copy the error message and send an email to support@rtencoder.com for assistance.

7.0 Version History

2.0.1 Released 9/21/2007

Improvement to RTE header for forward compatibility to future features

2.0.0 Released 9/8/2007

Added an easy to use Wizard style interface for encoding and decoding
Added support for up to three key files
Added support for a key phrase
Added support for Blowfish encryption
Added support for compression of the source file before encoding
Added support for automatic or manual check for software updates

1.01 Released 12/14/2005

Added better detection of future versions of RTE files
Changing the Encode/Decode radio buttons now clears the selected files
Fixed a potential crash when the source file is an invalid RTE file

1.00 Released 7/12/2002

Added the Dutch translation. Many thanks to Elsina!
Added the German translation. Many thanks to Garibaldi's Cat (and her brother)!
The completed documentation is included.

0.93 Released 7/7/2002

Fixed a situation when decoding where the default file extension was "rte". (thanks Virus!)
Removed the Convert button entirely! The conversion process now keys off the Save As button. (thanks Lemurtek!)
Added support for multiple languages.
Added the Spanish translation. Many thanks to Xurge!
First version of the documentation is included. It is about half complete.

0.92 Released 7/5/2002

The program now stores the original source file name, so when decoding it is suggested to the user. (thanks Tom and Cin-!)

0.91 Released 7/5/2002

Fixed a problem with the expanding dialog when the Windows font size was set to something besides "Normal" (thanks Cin-!)

0.90 Released 7/4/2002

First publicly available beta version

8.0 Contact Information

Please feel free to contact the author with any suggestions, bugs or complaints at support@rtencoder.com.

9.0 Closing Remarks

Many thanks for choosing to use RTEncoder. I hope it meets your needs, but if not, please contact me and let me know how this program could better serve you.

Russell Cook