OpenLogic finally launched CloudSwing, a so-called open platform-as-a-service the company first announced back in August.  CloudSwing seeks to differentiate itself from other solutions by being completely vendor-agnostic and providing a lot of customization options:  the offering leverages lot open-source software, enabling customers to completely customize stacks and add third party code.

CloudSwing includes stack support for Java, Ruby, PHP, and JavaScript with platforms based on Rails, Tomcat, LAMP, node.js, and nginx, as well as support for popular IaaS offerings such as Amazon Web Services.

“To successfully leverage PaaS solutions, enterprises require the flexibility to choose and customize their technology platform.  They also require a unified approach to managing the costs and operations of applications across multiple clouds,” said Kim Weins, senior vice president of marketing at OpenLogic.”

OpenLogic hopes to achieve this by building on top of its platform’s openness and adding additional tools, primary cross-deployment built-in cost-tracking and enterprise monitoring via New Relic integration.

Just prior launching CloudSwing, OpenLogic unveiled the latest version of its OLEX Enterprise Edition visibility software.  The product is designed to scan through code and check whether or not all the third party components used comply with every agreement the developer has with the original maker. This functionality extends to detect such obligations on a per project basis rather than based on a single set configuration.

The launch of the new PaaS platform represents a big addition to OpenLogic’s portfolio, and the company is not alone in extending their strategy to the as-a-service market. Zend launched a PHP platform-as-a-service called PHPCloud.com a little over a week ago, which is rather similar to CloudSwift in terms of openness and support for other technologies. Zend will have to compete with EngineYard’s Orchestra, Microsoft Azure and AppFog; a few of the PaaS’s that can run PHP apps.