Microsoft is going to integrate tools developed by Truffle, an Ethereum startup spun out of ConsenSys, with Azure cloud computing service to enable developers to build and manage enterprise blockchain applications, Forbes reported.

Truffle, which has already been downloaded over 3 million times, is a development environment, testing framework and asset pipeline for the Ethereum blockchain. It provides users with access to built-in smart contract compilation, linking, deployment and binary management.

Truffle’s tools have been available on Azure since last month. Announcing its partnership with Microsoft in a press release dated June 07, Truffle said the integration would enable developers to build sophisticated, blockchain-based production systems. It would help smart contract developers to streamline their workflow and testing environments with direct GitHub integration, and deploy effortlessly on Azure.

"Early on it was very clear Ethereum developers needed professional, modern development tools. With enterprise’s growing adoption of blockchain technology, Truffle recognizes the importance of this opportunity to bring our blockchain-native experience to enterprise developers across the world through our partnership with Microsoft,” Tim Coulter, Truffle CEO and Founder, said.

Truffle said that Microsoft’s recently announced extension to Visual Studio Code, which offers developers an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), leverages “the best of the Truffle Suite and Azure Services.”

“The extension allows developers to create and compile smart contracts, test them locally using the Ganache testing environment and inside Azure DevOps pipelines for private and public chains. Truffle’s integration streamlines enterprise DevOps and enables frictionless deployment to Azure,” the release said.

Marc Mercuri, Principal Program Manager, Azure Blockchain Engineering, said that the integration of Truffle Suite with Visual Studio Code and Azure DevOps will “deliver a world-class developer experience for customers targeting Azure Blockchain Service and public Ethereum."

Truffle has also been integrated with Quorum, a permissioned version of the ethereum blockchain developed by JPMorgan, and AxCore, a blockchain developed by Axoni which is currently being used by the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC).

Last month, Microsoft announced that it has teamed up with the members of Decentralized Identity Foundation (DIF) – ConsenSys and Transmute – to develop a blockchain-agnostic protocol for creating scalable decentralized identity (DID) networks, called Sidetree.