Plugins for cloud automation are the headline feature in Mirantis OpenStack 6.0, the latest version of flagship platform from “pure-play” OpenStack vendor Mirantis, which debuted Jan. 8.

The new release, which is based on OpenStack Juno, implements OpenStack’s Fuel plugin framework. The tool, which is open source, offers Mirantis customers “a wide range of capabilities that they can repeatedly and reliably add to their Fuel-managed OpenStack clouds,” the company said in a statement.

Although Fuel is a part of the broader OpenStack ecosystem, and is not specific to Mirantis, the company said the latest version of its OpenStack distribution is the first “to let partners write plugins that install and run their products automatically.” That feature, according to Mirantis CMO Boris Renski, enhances the company’s ability to deliver a “pure-play” OpenStack platform that mitigates vendor lock-in concerns.

“As the pure-play OpenStack vendor, Mirantis is committed to keeping hardware and software choices completely open and to removing technical barriers to adoption,” Renski said. “Our investment in pluggable architecture makes it much easier for customers to take advantage of their preferred networking and storage solutions in building, deploying and managing their OpenStack clouds.”

The Fuel plugins available in Mirantis OpenStack 6.0 include Load-Balancing-as-a Service with HAProxy, Virtual-Private-Network-as-a-Service, and NetApp (NTAP) and Red Hat’s (RHT) GlusterFS as backend storage for Cinder.