+ /**
+ * Checks if the specified role belongs to any application. Usually an
+ * application will call this function when configuring a role, to check if
+ * that role is already being used by another application.
+ *
+ * @param role
+ * The role to check
+ * @return true if the specified role belongs to any application or if the
+ * role is a well-known controller role, false otherwise.
+ */
+ public boolean isRoleInUse(String role);
+