Patent ID: 7302452

Claim:
A method for managing requests for files, the method comprising the computer implemented steps of: receiving a request for a switch file from an application, wherein the application points to the switch file, wherein location information for the switch file points to a set of files; identifying a file from the set of files based on system information to form an identified file; and passing the identified file to the application, wherein the switch file is operable for allowing the application to point to a same desired file which is the switch file, while the application accesses a different one of the set of files when the application subsequently requests the same desired file, based on the system information, wherein the application is a first application and wherein a second application also points to the switch file, and further comprising a step of receiving a second request for the switch file from the second application, such that each one of the first application and the second application requests access to the switch file, and the first application and the second application are passed a different one of the set of files in response to the request from the first application for the switch file and the second request from the second application for the switch file, based on both the system information and the switch file.