WP7: New Capabilities Security Model

Jamie Rodriguez has a post on the new capabilities security model in Windows Phone 7 which is introduced in the latest CTP release:-

It is interesting to read how this will be handled at runtime, here are the key facts:-

If you try to use a feature and you didn’t specify the capability you’ll get an UnauthorizedAccessException when you first call that feature
There is no API to check if you have been granted a specific capability
The disclosure to the user will vary depending on the capability and marketplace – Either listed on the Marketplace page, a user prompt at purchase or a user prompt when the capability is about to be accessed.
A new project created in the latest CTP will request all of the currently documented capabilities (you can remove those you don’t need later)
There are other capabilities specific to OEMs and operators which are not documented
The table of example features lists a few items yet to be shipped in the developer tools giving an interesting insight into what is still to come – Microsoft.Devices.Radio and Microsoft.Devices.MediaHistory

By Peter Freeman Foot