Patent ID: 8074288

Claim:
In a computing system associating multiple applications with a same user account, a method for isolating data specific to a first application from a second application that share the same user account, the data being native to a central repository of application settings for applications sharing the same user account, the method comprising: loading the data native to the central repository of application settings, upon receiving a request for the data from the first application, from the central repository of application settings for applications sharing the same user account to a location specified by an access path; creating a handle to the data native to the central repository of application settings, at the location specified by the access path; passing the handle to the first application; determining whether the data native to the central repository of application settings is designated as application-specific data for the first application that is inaccessible to other applications; when it is determined that the data native to the central repository of application settings is designated as application-specific data for the first application, preventing creation of handles to the data other than the handle passed to the first application and denying one or more access requests that do not use the handle, from the second application sharing the same user account as the first application, for the data native to the central repository of application settings for applications sharing the same user account because the second application does not possess the handle, and; when it is determined the data native to the central repository of application settings is not designated as application-specific data for the first application, allowing the one or more access requests for the data native to the central repository of application settings from the second application.