Compliance interface for compliant applications

• US 20070124739A1
• Filed: 11/03/2005
• Published: 05/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Gill, Timothy, Wiest, Peter, Culbreth, Aaron, Ahdieh, Keumars, Pennington, Stan, Wynn, Roger, Toll, Roderick
• Granted Patent: US 7,802,267 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/320
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2149 Restricted operating environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications

Abstract

A compliance interface is disclosed that takes in queries from applications which may want to know if they are compliant with associated polices stored on a computing system. The interface can then interpret these queries and provide notifications and instructions to the applications. Notifications may give notice of how a policy may impact an application, and instructions may tell an application how to behave in order to stay compliant with the policies. In one aspect, the interface exposes policies set forth by parents. Via a management control panel, parents can set or alter various policies, stored in a settings store, to protect children from contact with undesirable content. The interface interprets these policies to ensure that applications, such as those provided by third party vendors, are compliant with the wishes set forth in the parents'"'"' policies.

Claims

1. A user control application program interface (API) allowing application compliance according to computer system policies, comprising:

a query interface, wherein the API is configured to receive queries from a compliant application via the query interface, wherein the queries are checked by the API against polices stored in a settings store; and

a notification interface, wherein the API is configured to provide a notification to the compliant application as to which policies are being implemented by a computing system on which the API resides.

2. The API according to claim 1, further comprising an instruction interface, wherein the API is configured to provide an instruction to the compliant application as to which of the policies should be followed by the compliant application.

3. The API according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the query interface, the notification interface, and the instruction interface is configured to at least one of receive arguments from and return arguments to the compliant application.

4. The API according to claim 1, wherein the computer system policies are interpreted by the API and are applied across the entire computing system.

5. The API according to claim 1, wherein the API is extensible beyond the query interface, the notification interface, and the instruction interface.

6. The API according to claim 1, wherein the policies are set by a user via a control panel.

7. The API according to claim 1, wherein the policies are set remotely from the computing system.

8. The API according to claim 1, wherein the policies are based on information provided by a logging service.

9. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application is provided by a third-party vendor.

10. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises a computing system application.

11. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises a web application.

12. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises an instant messenger application.

13. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises a gaming application.

14. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises an email application.

15. The API according to claim 1, wherein the compliant application comprises a media player application.

16. The API according to claim 1, wherein the settings store comprises at least one silo associated with the compliant application.

17. A method for implementing restrictions on compliant applications according to at least one policy, comprising:

receiving at least one query from a compliant application via a query interface;

checking the at least one query against the at least one policy, wherein the policy is stored in an information silo;

sending at least one instruction to the compliant application in response to the at least one query of the compliant application, wherein the instruction is based on the at least one policy.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising sending at least one notification to the compliant application when a policy affecting the compliant application is to be implemented.

19. A computer readable medium bearing tangible computer executable instructions, wherein the instructions provide for a user control application program interface (API allowing application compliance according to computer system policies, comprising:

a query interface, wherein the API is configured to receive queries from a compliant application via the query interface, wherein the queries can be interpreted by the API against polices stored in a settings store; and

an instruction interface, wherein the API is configured to provide an instruction to the compliant application as to which of the policies should be followed by the compliant application.

20. The computer readable medium according to claim 19, further comprising:

a notification interface, wherein the API is configured to provide a notification to the compliant application as to which policies are being implemented by a computing system on which the API resides.