1. At a computer system including one or more processors and system memory, the computer system executing a plurality of distributed applications that are each instantiated from a template object, the template object defining a plurality of objects that each represent a component of the corresponding distributed application, a method for providing a notification of an update to an object that represents a virtual storage device, the method comprising: detecting that a new version of a virtual disk object has been created, the virtual disk object representing a virtual disk for use in a distributed application; identifying one or more template objects that depend on the virtual disk object; and providing a notification in each of the one or more template objects that depend on the virtual disk object that the new version of the virtual disk object has been created.