Xythos Software this week unveiled three new versions of its document and file management software suites aimed at improving content security.

New to version 5.0 of Xythos Enterprise Document Management Suite are automated document classification tools and support for retention schedules, which spare the end user from having to manually keep up with corporate retention policies as a document's status changes. Workflow features for routing documents through predefined review and approval processes are also new to version 5.0.

For the education industry Xythos offers Digital Locker Suite 5.0, which includes features aimed at protecting content that users share on and off campus.

Xythos also upgraded its developer platform, WebFile Development Suite 5.0, designed to help application developers integrate content management functions with their applications and projects. Version 5.0 adds security management and application integration features, including support for JSR 168 portlets and new LDAP management features.

Xythos doesn't intend for its products to compete with full-blown enterprise content management product suites, says Jim Till, vice president of marketing at Xythos. For companies that have high-end content management suites, the Xythos software could be used in tandem to help companies extend Web-based document management capabilities to more users in an organization, Till says.

The idea behind Xythos is to enable core library service functions, such as document sharing, document check-in and check-out, version control, auditing, and access controls. The existence of standards lets Xythos offer these tools at an affordable price, Till says.

One of those standards is Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV ), which describes a set of extensions to HTTP that allows users to collaboratively edit and manage files on remote Web servers. "Open standards such as WebDAV help developers like Xythos to create very cost-effective alternatives to traditional systems," Till says.

Xythos Enterprise Document Management Suite 5.0 costs about $35,000, on average, for an enterprise with between 250 and 500 users, Till says. Per-seat prices range from about $100 per user to $25 per user, depending on volume.

The upgraded product suites from Xythos are available now.