This week marks the first fully digital IBM Think conference! There is no shortage of blockchain content rolling out which can be accessed by anyone around the world, on-demand.

Learn about enabling trusted data exchange in time-critical situations from our Vice President of Blockchain, Jerry Cuomo, and our partners and blockchain leaders from HACERA, SecureKey and Chainyard. Hear from we.trade about how they are making trade finance easier with blockchain. Access these sessions and the rest of the blockchain content at the Think website.

Now, read on to see the latest update from the IBM Blockchain Platform.

The IBM Blockchain Platform team is committed to providing clients with the latest blockchain technology, deployment flexibility, and ease of use so they can quickly build enterprise-grade blockchain solutions.

Deploy the IBM Blockchain Platform across multiple environments

Last quarter, with the release of IBM Blockchain Platform 2.1.3, we delivered a host of features including:

• Additional multicloud options with support of LinuxONE and IBM Z
• Distributed Raft consensus capabilities
• Java smart contract support
• Improved security with Hardware Security Module integration
• Support for Hyperledger Fabric version 1.4.6

Next, we are launching new capabilities around Hyperledger Fabric 2.0 and tighter integrations with Red Hat including additional deployment options on Red Hat OpenShift, availability of Red Hat CodeReady Workspaces, and publishing of Ansible Collections.

Improved usability and security with Hyperledger Fabric 2.0

The Linux Foundation launched Hyperledger Fabric 2.0, which introduced major improvements on usability and security including:

• External chaincode launcher (Eliminating the Docker daemon dependency)
• Decentralized governance for smart contracts
• Private data enhancements
• Improved performance

IBM Blockchain Platform will support Hyperledger Fabric 2.0 and continue to add additional capabilities around the new decentralized smart contract lifecycle management and other new improvements. In addition, the platform will allow the user to choose which version of Fabric to deploy and to migrate from one version to another. These features will be key for the adoption and use of Hyperledger Fabric 2.0.

Improved security with Red Hat OpenShift 4.3

The IBM Blockchain Platform currently supports Red Hat OpenShift 3 and 4, offering automated provisioning, management and scaling of applications. It will soon support the latest version, OpenShift 4.3. It includes key capabilities around security including federal information processing standard (FIPS) compliant encryption, an improved installer and enhanced automation.

It will also support Red Hat OpenShift on IBM Cloud, the only OpenShift as a service to provide full admin access. It has added security and productivity features designed to help minimize time spent on ongoing maintenance like updating, scaling, securing and provisioning, built and supported jointly by IBM and Red Hat.

Pre-configured environment setup with Red Hat CodeReady Workspaces

IBM Blockchain Platform will expand its developer tools ecosystem with CodeReady Workspaces to speed and simplify development environment setup. It provides a pre-configured and shared runtime environment enabling cloud-native blockchain development to be done seamlessly across teams. This solution offers greater security and adheres to enterprise grade compliance for cloud-native developments.

Automation and ease in deploying blockchain networks with Ansible Collections

We are publishing a set of Ansible Collections for IBM Blockchain Platform to enable clients to rapidly deploy components and networks by using automation for improved efficiency and reliability.

This release vastly improves the security and usability of IBM Blockchain Platform for enterprises to launch production blockchain networks faster than ever. We are seeing our clients across industries — like banking, healthcare and manufacturing — adopt these technologies to speed their development times and are very pleased to offer these new features to drive enterprise blockchain adoption and success. Check the release pages here and here for updates as these features roll in.

IBM’s statements regarding its plans, directions, and intent are subject to change or withdrawal without notice at IBM’s sole discretion. Information regarding potential future products is intended to outline our general product direction and it should not be relied on in making a purchasing decision. The information mentioned regarding potential future products is not a commitment, promise, or legal obligation to deliver any material, code or functionality. Information about potential future products may not be incorporated into any contract. The development, release, and timing of any future features or functionality described for our products remains at our sole discretion.

How to get started with IBM Blockchain now