Conky vs Facter
Conky
conky.ccFacter
puppet.comSide by side
| Figure | Conky | Facter |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 4 |
| Spec score · System Information Software | 7.7 (#13) | 8.8 (#2) |
| Configuration | The default configuration file is located at ~/.config/conky/conky.conf or ${sysconfdir}/conky/conky.conf. | Facter can be configured to block fact groups or cache facts with time-to-live settings; this can help when fact collection is slow. |
| License | The project states that Conky is licensed under GPLv3. | Facter is open source and the repository identifies the Apache-2.0 license. |
| Purpose | Conky is a free, lightweight system monitor that displays information on a desktop or in other output formats. | Facter is a command-line tool that gathers facts about systems, including hardware details, network settings, and operating system type and version. |
Plans
Facter
- Puppet Core DeveloperFree
- Puppet Core CommercialPriced on request
- Puppet EnterprisePriced on request
- Puppet Enterprise AdvancedPriced on request
In their own words
Facter
Facter is a free command-line tool that gathers system information such as hardware details, network settings, and operating system type and version. Puppet uses it to collect information before requesting a catalog or compiling one with puppet apply. Its built-in core facts include legacy and structured facts, though some facts do not apply to every system. Users can add custom facts in Ruby, with multiple resolutions available for determining a value, or external facts that return static data or output from a script or program. Facts can be hashes or arrays, and Boolean, numeric, and structured values retain their types. Configuration can block fact groups or cache results with time-to-live settings. Facts are available in Puppet manifests, while the --puppet option loads Puppet-specific facts from the command line. PuppetDB's API can support exploration, search, and reporting on infrastructure facts. Facter runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows and can be self-hosted. Legacy facts are omitted from default command-line output unless --show-legacy is used. Puppet's custom-fact examples require some Ruby familiarity, and facter.conf must be created manually or managed with a module.