BizTalk 2006 R3 is coming!

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With the amazing wave of new platforms (Windows Server 2008, .NET Framework 3.5, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server 2008) coming out of Redmond recently, some of the most asked questions are "When will BizTalk be able to utilise these new platforms?", and "When can I use VS2008 with my BizTalk solutions?".

Well, the good news is that the guys at Redmond have been hard at work to update BizTalk in order that it can work with the latest versions of Windows Server, the .NET Framework, Visual Studio, and SQL Server.  Once SQL Server is released as the final part of this technological tidal wave that Redmond has released on us, BizTalk Server will follow hot on its heels with support for these most recent platform releases.  The benefits of this will include providing customers with the ability to take full advantage of the improvements in scalability and virtualisation, and they will have improved support for next-generation web and service oriented applications.

In addition to the support for the latest platforms, a few additional capabilities are planned to be added to the next BizTalk release, to deliver additional customer-requested capabilities for our core SOA infrastructure.  More details will be provided on specific features in the coming months, but at a high level some of the new investments in the release include:

  • New web service registry capabilities with support for UDDI (Universal Description Discovery and Integration) version 3.0
  • Enhanced service enablement of applications (through new and enhanced adapters for LOB applications, databases, and legacy/host systems)
  • Enhanced service enablement of “edge” devices through BizTalk RFID Mobile
  • Enhanced interoperability and connectivity support for industry protocols (like SWIFT, EDI, etc)
  • SOA patterns and best practices guidance to assist our customer’s implementations

Either way, there is something new for the BizTalkers out there to look forward to, with the first CTP expected to be available in the third quarter of this year, and the final release planned for sometime in the first half of next year. 

BizTalk Server 2006 R3 is coming!