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SPECIFICTION
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Ralph

github.com

Free plan WebLinuxAPISelf-hosted
Visit github.com
Spec score 7.9 #20 of 39 in CMDB Software

What it is

Ralph is free, open-source software for asset management, data center infrastructure management, and configuration management databases in data centers and back offices. It records hardware purchases, ownership, and asset lifecycles through flexible workflow flows, and includes data center visualization, service mapping, and discovery imports. Ralph can be self-hosted on premises and exposes a REST-style web API for querying and populating its database. API resources support GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, and DELETE, using an automatically generated personal token in the Authorization header. Cloud synchronization supports OpenStack Ocata, with documentation for providers such as AWS. LDAP or Active Directory authentication can be enabled. Ralph is distributed under the Apache 2.0 license and costs nothing. Production Debian packages target Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic on AMD64; Docker Compose installation is experimental. The maintainers provide source without guarantees for issue responses or pull-request support and direct commercial-support seekers to the community forum.

Spec sheet

Purpose
Ralph is an asset management, DCIM and CMDB system for data centers and back offices.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Intended users
The project describes its target environments as data centers and back offices managing hardware assets.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Deployment
The installation guide provides Ubuntu packages for AMD64 and describes Docker installation as experimental.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Support
The maintainers say they publish source under a “Sources only” model without guarantees and do not guarantee issue responses or pull request support; they point users seeking commercial support to the community forum.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
License
The project is open source under the Apache 2.0 license.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
API authentication
API requests use an automatically generated personal token sent in the Authorization header.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
API operations
The API supports GET, POST, PUT, PATCH and DELETE operations on resources.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Asset lifecycle
It tracks asset purchases and lifecycles with a flexible lifecycle flow system.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Authentication integration
The configuration documentation describes enabling authentication through LDAP or Active Directory systems.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Cloud integrations
Cloud synchronization supports OpenStack Ocata; the documentation also describes syncing assets with providers such as AWS using an HTTP endpoint and, for some providers, an adapter.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Community help
The README links to an online forum for the Ralph community.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Data center visualization
The project lists built-in data center visualization as a feature.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Demo
The README links to a live demo and lists the login and password as ralph.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Lifecycle workflows
It includes a flexible flow system for asset life cycles.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Open source
Ralph is provided under the Apache 2.0 license.Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com
Platform requirement
The guide says production Debian packages are provided for Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic on AMD64.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
REST API
Ralph exposes a REST-style web API for querying and populating its database.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Security configuration
The installation guide recommends using a separate database host with a non-default password and configuring SSL traffic termination.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io
Self-hosting
The installation guide provides Ubuntu packages and an experimental Docker Compose installation.Read 7 Oct 2026 · ralph-ng.readthedocs.io

Plans and prices

Ralph Free Open-source software · Apache 2.0 license Read 7 Oct 2026 · github.com

Every Ralph plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Apache 2.0 open-source license
  • Flexible asset lifecycle workflows
  • Built-in data center visualization
  • REST API with full resource operations
  • LDAP and Active Directory authentication

Limits

  • Production packages target Ubuntu 18.04 AMD64
  • Docker Compose installation is experimental
  • Maintainers do not guarantee issue responses
  • Commercial support is directed to the community forum

Who it suits

It suits data centers and back offices that need on-premises hardware asset, lifecycle, and configuration tracking. Teams needing API access or directory authentication can use the documented options.

Verdict

Ralph offers broad, self-hosted infrastructure and asset tracking with an open API and cloud synchronization options. Check the deployment requirements and support expectations before adopting it.

Where Specifiction places it

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