Can a 3rd party product receive certification to connect with SharePoint?

Question

My company enhances performance and scalability of applications that are heavily depend on SQL Server. The product is called SafePeak. It is an automated in-memory caching/storage that works between any SQL application and the SQL Server. SafePeak learns automatically the sql schema structure and the sql queries, and then stores in high performance memory the results of queries, so when the queries are repeated the results are amazing. SafePeak has always the correct data, as it understands the updates as they arrive and applies changes (or clears relevant memory) the millisecond the update command arrives. It is application agnostic (no code involved) and is 99% automated (some initial tuning may be required).

SharePoint applications (all versions) heavily depend on the database. Some pages can send 20-30 and even 40 queries to show a single page. Measured improvements at SharePoint customers were between x2 to x10 per webpage.

Some customers ask us for product certification / endorsement by microsoft, as an OK tool for sharepoint. Their main concern to have be able to continue receiving microsoft support.

Can anyone point me for the right direction?

Thanks

Answer 1

My best guess would be to become a Microsoft partner and achieve one of the competencies like the Application Integration competency. Atlernatively, becoming a certified ISV might meet this criteria.

To my knowledge there isn't any sort of SharePoint development certification program similar to the Windows Logo Program so you can take that however you wish.

And to be honest, I have concerns that a product such that you describe would put farms that it is used on into an unsupported state as interfacing with SQL Server in the manner you describe is usually unsupported. To me this explains why your customers are asking for an endorsement as you are in a gray area -- whether it works or not doesn't matter to most customers when Microsoft Support won't help you with an unrelated issue when it's discovered you're doing something unsupported with SQL Server.