EtreCheckPro vs Facter

EtreCheckPro is a macOS diagnostic tool for investigating problems on a Mac. It detects more than 70 specific problems, distinguishes major from minor issues, and produces an anonymous text report for sharing online. It can identify security configuration problems and detect and remove malware. The app also shows storage use and helps address storage problems, but those functions require Full Disk Access. The free version supports command-line use from Terminal or ssh and can run from the Downloads folder without installation. It works on Intel and Apple Silicon Macs running macOS 10.13 through macOS 27. The optional Power User package adds computer-generated step-by-step solutions and detailed views of hardware, operating system, storage, networking, software, and performance, plus system Analytics and Insights charts. The free download costs nothing and includes basic reports and diagnostics. The Power User package costs $19.99, paid once and covers up to six different computers. Technical support is provided by email, with the company striving to respond within 48 hours.

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.