Configuration Management Tools
Alternatives to CFEngine
CFEngine keeps infrastructure secure, compliant and current by letting users define desired states in a domain-specific language. Agents on each managed device converge actual configuration toward those policies and contact a hub by default every five minutes. The platform runs on Linux and Windows across embedded devices, servers, cloud systems and mainframes, with support for very large node counts. Its Enterprise interface adds compliance, inventory, change and performance reporting, dashboards, alerts, file-integrity monitoring and REST APIs. Community Edition costs nothing; Enterprise is free for up to 25 hosts, with pricing on request.
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Puppet Puppet Enterprise is intended for medium and large organizations managing complex hybrid environments that need centralized automation, security, and compliance controls.
From $120/mo Free plan Open source Web · Windows · macOS · Linux8.9 Visit Specs - 02 Canonical Landscape
Landscape suits teams administering large or growing Ubuntu estates across desktops, servers, cloud systems, and embedded devices.
From $571.75/mo Free plan Web · Linux · API · Self-hosted8.8 Visit Specs - 03
Google Cloud VM Manager It suits teams maintaining Compute Engine VM fleets that need patch scheduling, inventory and centralized software policies.
Free plan Web · Windows · Linux · API8.7 Visit Specs - 04
Rudder From $3.33/mo Free plan Open source Web · Windows · Linux · API8.7 Visit Specs - 05 cdist
cdist suits administrators managing Linux, BSD, macOS, or XenServer hosts with shell and SSH access.
Free plan macOS · Linux · Self-hosted8.6 Visit Specs - 06
Chef Infra Chef Infra suits teams managing mixed operating-system fleets that want to define, test, and enforce configuration policies as code.
From $4.92/mo Free trial Windows · macOS · Linux · API8.5 Visit Specs - 07
config.XO It suits teams managing Windows and Linux configurations across on-premises and public-cloud systems.
From €449/mo Free plan Web · Windows · Linux · API8.4 Visit Specs - 08
Salt Salt suits teams managing configuration and operations across multiple systems, including those needing agentless or stand-alone modes.
Free plan Windows · macOS · Linux · API8.3 Visit Specs - 09 LCFG
LCFG suits administrators managing varied, frequently changing Unix installations who can operate a central server and client agents.
Free plan Linux · Self-hosted8.2 Visit Specs - 10
Uyuni Uyuni suits teams managing Linux estates across on-premises or cloud environments.
Free plan Open source Web · Linux · API · Self-hosted8.1 Visit Specs - 11
AWS Systems Manager State Manager State Manager suits AWS customers seeking to manage configuration across nodes and other AWS resources.
Free plan Web · Windows · macOS · Linux8.0 Visit Specs - 12 Quattor
It is aimed at Linux administrators managing automated, policy-driven infrastructure across many systems.
Free plan Linux · Self-hosted7.8 Visit Specs - 13
OpenVox OpenVox suits teams managing system configuration who can host the software themselves.
Free plan Windows · macOS · Linux · API7.7 Visit Specs - 14
pyinfra It suits infrastructure operators who want to automate server tasks through Python deploys and inventories without installing agents on target hosts.
Free plan Windows · macOS · Linux · API7.7 Visit Specs - 15 Tripwire Enterprise Web · Windows · Linux · API7.7 Visit Specs
- 16 Fabric
It suits Python users automating shell commands, Python tasks, and SSH administration across one or many hosts.
Windows · macOS · Linux7.5 Visit Specs - 17 OpenDSC
OpenDSC suits teams managing configurations across infrastructure nodes, including centralized deployments and disconnected environments.
Web · Windows · macOS · Linux7.5 Visit Specs - 18 Mgmt Config Linux · API · Self-hosted7.3 Visit Specs
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Rex Rex suits teams needing self-hosted, agentless automation across local and SSH-accessed systems.
Free plan Windows · Linux7.3 Visit Specs - 20 OpenText Dimensions CM Windows · macOS · Linux · API7.1 Visit Specs
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Azure Machine Configuration From $6/mo Web6.8 Visit Specs - 22
Microsoft Configuration Manager From $1,455/mo Windows6.4 Visit Specs - 23
Microsoft Desired State Configuration Windows · macOS · Linux5.8 Visit Specs - 24 OpenText Server Automation Windows · Linux5.7 Visit Specs
- 25 Radmind Windows · macOS · Linux5.5 Visit Specs
Choosing instead of CFEngine
An alternative may be a better fit when your priority is patching, endpoint administration, software distribution, workflow orchestration or security auditing rather than one policy system spanning varied infrastructure. Compare operating-system and device coverage, deployment model, agent requirements and the depth of enforcement, reporting and compliance controls. Pricing also differs: CFEngine is self-hosted and agent-based, with a free plan and free trial, while some choices charge from a stated monthly or annual rate or provide only a free plan.