Chef Infra vs LCFG
Chef Infra
chef.ioLCFG
lcfg.orgSide by side
| Figure | Chef Infra | LCFG |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $4.92/mo | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 3 | 1 |
| Spec score · Configuration Management Tools | 8.5 (#7) | 8.2 (#10) |
| Founded | 1981 | 1993 |
| Purpose | Chef Infra configuration management software automates infrastructure configuration and aims to keep it consistent and compliant over its lifetime. | LCFG automatically installs and manages configurations for large numbers of Unix systems, particularly at sites with diverse and rapidly changing configurations. |
| Support | The pricing page lists standard support for Business and Enterprise and premium support for Enterprise Plus. | LCFG provides an archived mailing list for discussion and announcements, and its package documentation directs bug reports and feedback to [email protected]. |
Plans
Chef Infra
- Business$59 a year
- Enterprise$189 a year
- Enterprise PlusPriced on request
In their own words
Chef Infra
Chef Infra automates infrastructure configuration and helps keep systems aligned with a defined desired state. Teams express configurations and policies as code, test them, and deliver them through automated pipelines; Chef Infra can correct configuration drift when systems diverge. It supports Windows and Linux systems, cloud ARM systems, and Mac laptops across on-premises, cloud, and edge environments. Chef Infra Client includes more than 150 resources, while the community provides thousands of configuration templates. Chef Workstation bundles the client with Chef InSpec, Chef Habitat, Test Kitchen, Cookstyle, and Chef Upgrade Lab. The policy language is Ruby DSL, and listed capabilities include policy testing, reporting, and CI/CD integration. The free community version is non-commercial. Business costs $59 a year per node, and Enterprise costs $189 a year per node; Enterprise Plus requires a customized quote. Chef Infra Client 19.x is listed as the current LTS release, while 18.x is deprecated and earlier versions are end of life.
LCFG
LCFG is a free, GPL-licensed system for automatically installing and managing configurations across large groups of Unix machines. It targets sites where systems differ and change frequently. Administrators keep source settings on a central server; LCFG compiles them into XML profiles that clients download when changes occur. Client components react to resource changes by generating configuration files and reconfiguring related daemons. A package component aligns installed software with each machine’s profile. New machines can be installed over a network file system after source files are created, using a boot floppy or PXE. LCFG is self-hosted and agent-based, with patch management and HTTP resource transport. Listed supported platforms include Ubuntu 20.04, 22.04, and 24.04; FAQ material also names Fedora Core 3, 5, and 6 and Scientific Linux 5. Solaris support is weaker and un-packaged, Mac OS X is experimental, and the demonstration Windows client lacks real components. Documentation covers configuration, dynamic networking, and build tools.