OpenCloud, which supplies in-network application servers for next-generation convergent telecommunications services, has announced the launch of its Rhino 2.0 Developer Preview Release. Aimed at developers designing flexible, in-network applications for the telecoms industry, the release preview features new JAIN SLEE 1.1 enhancements, such as the ability to port Resource Adapters between any JAIN SLEE-compliant environment.
Designed to give developers early access to new JAIN SLEE 1.1 enhancements, the Rhino 2.0 Developer Preview Release enables developers to create applications that that allow customisation of services on a per-user basis. The updated JAIN SLEE 1.1 standard provides a portable Resource Adapter (RA) architecture, which standardises how network events are communicated between the Resource Adapter and the JAIN SLEE application server. This means that Resource Adapter implementations that use this release can be deployed and run in any compliant JAIN SLEE container without modification.
Read-write application parameters are also possible, the company says, meaning that application and user data can now be maintained within the JSLEE environment. Operators implementing applications developed in this environment will be able to offer more highly personalised services as a result.
JAIN SLEE enables operators to break free from proprietary infrastructure vendors and offers innovative applications from competitive third-party developers, leading to much faster development and deployment of innovative, new services at a significantly lower cost. Providing a bridge between existing and next-generation networks, OpenCloud says Rhino is the only carrier-grade and event-based application server available that allows operators to provide both next-generation and convergent services.
With the Rhino 2.0 Developer Preview Release, in-network application developers will be able to create new, fully portable telecommunications applications and to port existing ones, says David Ferry, CTO at OpenCloud and JAIN SLEE specification lead. The enhancements within the JAIN SLEE 1.1 Resource Adapter specification mean that operators have more choice when it comes to choosing application developers and this will stimulate innovation in the industry. The Developer Preview Release gives developers a head start for the launch of the full Rhino 2.0 software development kit next year and provides us with valuable developer community feedback. 
The Rhino 2.0 Developer Preview Release is available to download here. OpenCloud says that feedback on the Rhino 2.0 Developer Preview Release will be taken into consideration for the final version that it is working towards.
Rhino 2.0 builds on the previous 1.4.x releases from OpenCloud and will be compliant with the soon-to-be-released JAIN-SLEE 1.1 specification. The new JAIN SLEE specification will also allow backwards compatibility between JAIN SLEE 1.0 and JAIN SLEE 1.1. Any 1.0-compliant platform will run unmodified when the platform is upgraded to a 1.1-compliant version. JAIN SLEE 1.0 applications will run unaltered on JAIN SLEE 1.1 containers, provided no proprietary application programming interfaces, libraries or features of a particular vendor platform are used by the application.