Boundless unveils Geospatial software stack, OpenGeo Suite 4.0

NEW YORK, USA: Boundless, formerly OpenGeo, has released version 4.0 of OpenGeo Suite. This release brings new features and improvements, including component upgrades to PostGIS 2.1, GeoServer 2.4, GeoWebCache 1.5 and support for OpenLayers 3 and QGIS.

These enhancements expand the capabilities of OpenGeo Suite, enabling enterprises to replace legacy software with a web-based open source geospatial stack.

When reached for comment about the release Juan Marin, CTO of Boundless, said, "OpenGeo Suite 4.0 represents a significant step forward for our production-ready geospatial software stack. We've made a number of upgrades and enhancements, making it easier for customers to develop applications and set up their production systems. We're also supporting new technologies such as OpenLayers 3.0 and QGIS. OpenLayers 3 in particular promises many improvements over the previous version and I'm proud that Boundless helped fund and develop it."

Boundless offers OpenGeo Suite installation packages for all major operating systems. The 4.0 release includes completely reworked packages for each system, making it easier to evaluate the software, develop applications and most importantly deploy in production. Packages for Linux, Mac OS X, and application servers will be available immediately, with a Windows-specific release coming soon.

Additional developments include a GeoServer clustering extension, which allows high availability and better scaling under load. With the extension OpenGeo Suite users can configure GeoServer in a database as opposed to a file system, as well as automatically synchronize multiple instances. The extension supports the configuration of GeoServer clusters in production.

OpenGeo Suite 4.0 also includes open source component upgrades and developments. Boundless has committed support for OpenLayers 3 and also has developed a QGIS plugin for OpenGeo Suite, allowing customers to utilize the latest open source developments.

The OpenLayers library has been one of the most fully featured options for web mapping, and the new version, a complete rewrite, comes with many new features, leveraging modern web standards like HTML5, CSS3 and WebGL.

In July of 2013 Boundless announced support for QGIS and the QGIS community. To enhance the integration between QGIS and OpenGeo Suite this release includes a QGIS plugin, which allows for seamless management and publishing of geographic information from QGIS to OpenGeo Suite. Users familiar with desktop applications now have an easy and powerful way of configuring OpenGeo Suite components. By integrating QGIS with OpenGeo Suite Boundless offers a complete solution for creating, analyzing, publishing, and consuming geospatial data and services without the need for proprietary software.

When reached for comment on the QGIS developments, Marin said, "The QGIS plugin adds important points of integration for desktop application users, who can now easily configure OpenGeo Suite components from QGIS. This furthers our efforts to offer our customers a comprehensive spatial data platform and enables organizations interested in replacing proprietary tools with a full featured end-to-end alternative."