Quali is adding a virtualized component to its CloudShell sandbox platform, targeting greater use of cloud environment to hasten DevOps automation.

The CloudShell Virtual Edition (VE) provides on-demand access to virtualized environments in public and private cloud deployments. Access is through a standardized template, or “blueprint-driven approach to spin up and spin down complex IT environments,” according to Quali.

The VE platform provides access to replicas of production environments across an organization. Access can be through private, public, and hybrid cloud deployments.

The CloudShell VE product supports cloud sandboxes over private clouds running VMware vCenter and OpenStack. Initial public cloud support includes Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, with trials being conducted in AWS environments and production in Azure environments.

Quali plans to add support to other cloud providers “based on business demand.”

Platform subscriptions begin at $1,500 per month, which includes licenses for five concurrent environments in a single cloud. Customers are also able to access a three-month trial of Quali’s analytics tool.

The VE version differs from the company’s established Pro platform by removing integration with physical infrastructure. Quali CMO Shashi Kiran said the VE product caters to customer demand for a platform designed for virtualized environments and at lower price points.

“It offers a compelling new price point for these customers to create on-demand IT environments on different clouds of their choice (public or private) to accelerate their IT transformation and digitization initiatives,” Kiran said.

In an interview with VMware’s VMblog, Kiran cited a trio of CloudShell use cases. These include converting IT labs into a cloud-based resource pool; tapping into cloud environments to accelerate cloud adoption across an organization; and working as a non-disruptive adjunct to DevOps integration.

Kiran described sandboxes as being similar to containers, “but more flexible as they can model infrastructure and applications.” Containers is a more focused environment that encompasses all the needed resources to run a single application.

Analysts noted enterprises are looking to leverage different options to accelerate application development.

"With accelerating growth of multi and hybrid cloud infrastructure, enterprises are seeking to leverage different options including public clouds, private clouds, and on-premise environments to speed and improve secure application releases and application experiences," said 451 Research Principal Analyst Jay Lyman, on the Quali news. "This means choice and flexibility of different infrastructures and combinations without being locked in to any particular cloud or deployment path.”