Microsoft Releases Free Commerce Server 2007 Developer Edition

The free version, available on Microsoft's Web site, is a complete, full-function version of Commerce Server 2007 that's restricted to test and development environments. Production use of the software requires licensing the standard or enterprise editions, which are scheduled for release next month.

Commerce Server 2007 likely marks the end of the road for the e-commerce system's development and creation software. Microsoft executives have avoided commenting on Commerce Server's road map, and much of the product's functionality is expected to be farmed out to other Microsoft products, such as BizTalk Server and SharePoint Portal.

The first new version since Commerce Server 2002's release four years ago, Commerce Server 2007 is built on the ASP.Net 2.0 framework. The update offers new integration, deployment and reporting features, among other changes.