ActiveState, a software development solutions maker, launched the latest version of its so-called private, development-centric PaaS. The multi-stack, platform-agnostic moto persists, only with a few extra touches that aim to make Stackato a bit better than what it used to be.

Version 1.2 features several new additions. One of the major updates is support for file-system services, which means that an application like Drupal can more easily share data across multiple instances within the cloud environment.

ActiveState also added ‘app store features’ for admins to better manage applications’ lifecycle. That includes a simplified deployment console and a configurable Stackato App Store that can support multiple online storefronts and comes with a built in search function.

On top of all that a permissions system has been installed so that developers accessing the code on a company’s Stackato deployment can only modify the portion they’re working on.  And debugging their code should be easier thanks to integration with Komodo, ActiveState’s rather popular IDE.

“Stackato 1.2 is all about control,” said Jeff Hobbs, VP of Engineering and CTO at ActiveState. “It’s the only Cloud Foundry-based PaaS solution to offer group and user-specific controls, a powerful tool for enterprises looking to maintain transparent oversight of cloud application development and deployment processes. With Stackato 1.2, IT administrators can set memory, service and application quotas for individual users, or even groups.”

The latest release is available in the commercial edition and a single freely downloadable VM that customers can play around with before signing up to the former.

Stackato is based on VMware’s Cloud Foundry, and the open-source PaaS’s original developer is looking to make the most out of it as well.  Earlier this week we learned that BOSH, a tool originally made for Foundry, is going to be usable in OpenStack deployments as well.