Chef vs Perforce Puppet comparison

Progress Software and Perforce are both solutions in the Configuration Management category. Progress Software is ranked #18 with an average rating of 7.0, while Perforce is ranked #15 with an average rating of 7.7. Progress Software holds a 2.1% mindshare in CM, compared to Perforce’s 1.9% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Progress Software users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Perforce users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 14, 2025

Puppet and Chef compete in the configuration management and deployment automation sector. Chef seems to have an advantage due to its flexible feature set, ease of use, and strong integration capabilities, whereas Puppet is known for its competitive pricing and strong customer support.

Features: Puppet offers robust automation, scalability, and secure infrastructure management. It is suitable for complex environments and provides a stable configuration management solution. Chef, on the other hand, is appreciated for its flexible programming environment, powerful integration options, and strong automation capabilities making it preferred for customizable and dynamic setups.

Room for Improvement: Puppet could improve by offering more intuitive interfaces and streamlined workflows to match the entry-level ease some users desire. Enhancements in deployment flexibility might also be beneficial. Chef might focus on reducing the learning curve for new users and enhancing rollback capabilities in its deployment processes. Simplifying integration setups for less technical users could also be advantageous.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Puppet provides a straightforward deployment model, supported by comprehensive help options for rapid implementation, appealing to users seeking efficient initial setups. Chef, though adaptable in varying environments, may require a steeper learning curve; however, its strong community and support ensure valuable long-term assistance, aiding users throughout their project life cycles.

Pricing and ROI: Puppet is generally positioned with lower initial setup costs, offering significant ROI through its scalability, ideal for expansive deployments. Chef may require higher initial investments, justified by its advanced features and customizability, ultimately providing substantial long-term ROI. Enterprises might find Puppet's pricing attractive for large setups, while Chef's capabilities offer compelling value over time.

To learn more, read our detailed Chef vs. Perforce Puppet Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Chef vs. Perforce Puppet

September 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.4%, down from 9.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Chef is 2.1%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Perforce Puppet is 1.9%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Configuration Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Intune	9.4%
Perforce Puppet	1.9%
Chef	2.1%
Other	86.6%

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble

Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24

Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license

The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.

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Aaron P

DevOps Engineer at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Easy configuration management, optimization abilities, and complete infrastructure and application automation

In terms of improvement, Chef could get better by being more widely available, adapting to different needs, and providing better documentation. There is also an issue with shared resources like cookbooks lacking context, which could lead to problems when multiple companies use them. Chef should aim for wider availability, better flexibility, clearer documentation, and improved management of shared resources to prevent conflicts. Many companies are now moving to Ansible, so I would recommend better documentation, easier customer use, and simpler integration. I have concerns about the complexity of migrating to different servers and would prefer a simpler process.

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Erik Ableson

Owner at Infrageeks

A stable solution that is more suited for larger companies with mature CI/CD structures and image management processes

Puppet Enterprise is more suitable for clients working up much more structured deployment images they manage internally. Before choosing Puppet Enterprise, users should think seriously about what they're trying to accomplish and ensure they put the right pieces in place. Overall, I rate Puppet Enterprise an eight out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The mobile application management, MAM, is the most useful aspect of the solution."

"The most valuable feature is Intune's ability to push out updates for the security and antivirus. I also like Intune's copilot and the ability to automate processes. For example, if you have 5,000 employees who are issued new PCs and you need to set them up with everything they need."

"I can reach devices or computers over the internet. I don't need to worry about the network connectivity between the offices. I can manage any device. That is the most important part."

"We were trying to solve many issues, mainly the lack of centralized management. Before Microsoft Intune, we had to manually support devices one by one, installing applications and configuring policies individually. When we implemented the tool, it became much easier to manage our devices. We enroll them in Microsoft Intune and can manage all devices with a few clicks. For application management, it's the same process. If we want to deploy applications to hundreds or thousands of devices, we can do it easily with just a few clicks. This also applies to policies."

"I like that it's very good and very simple. I found that we just needed to have a proper subscription for an Intune tenant, and from the subscription, if we have the right role assigned, like the global admin role or the owner role, we can use Microsoft cloud resources. With the help of that, we can do many things like setting up Microsoft Intune in the cloud to create our virtual machines. All these can be done, and the steps are very simple. I really liked it. I like features like Windows Auto-Enrollment. I like it very much because whenever you supply it to the end-user, it will be ready to use immediately. The end-user only needs to provide the user credentials, and then they are good to go. I also really like Cloud PC, which was recently launched on Azure."

"One valuable feature of Microsoft Intune is the enrollment process, which is user-based, making it easier to manage compared to AirWatch."

"When managing a large number of devices in an organization, it becomes easy to handle them on one platform using Microsoft Intune."

"Third party integrations are very convenient to use with Microsoft Intune."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"This solution has improved my organization in the way that deployment has become very quick and orchestration is easy. If we have thousands of servers we can easily deploy in a small amount of time. We can deploy the applications or any kind of announcements in much less time."

"I wanted to monitor a hybrid cloud environment, one using AWS and Azure. If I have to provision/orchestrate between multiple cloud platforms, I can use Chef as a one-stop solution, to broker between those cloud platforms and orchestrate around them, rather than going directly into each of the cloud-vendors' consoles."

"The most valuable feature is the language that it uses: Ruby."

"You set it and forget it. You don't have to worry about the reliability or the deviations from any of the other configurations."

"Deployment has become quick and orchestration is now easy."

"The most valuable feature is automation."

"It streamlined our deployments and system configurations across the board rather than have us use multiple configurations or tools, basically a one stop shop."

"The solution is easy to use and learn, and it easily automates all the code and infrastructure."

More Chef pros

"Puppet Enterprise is a stable solution."

"Puppet3 and 4 series provides optimum deployment solutions for infrastructure and applications."

"The versatility is great."

"The agent-based feature helps me by being stable."

"Puppet Enterprise has reduced the time of production changes or environment changes."

"I rate the stability of Puppet as ten out of ten."

"The most valuable features are the agent, high load balancing, and overall robustness and features."

"Puppet Enterprise has good functionalities."

More Perforce Puppet pros

Cons

"Intune does not provide real-time visibility."

"For additional functionality, I suggest that Microsoft could expand on asset management. Since the platform is there, they could develop it into a full-fledged asset management system."

"The reporting could be improved, as it's pretty poor compared to other products of this type."

"I'd suggest adding more features for macOS in Intune. There should be more functionality for managing macOS. There should be a better capability for pushing things down on macOS. Currently, Intune is not capable of managing macOS at the same level as Windows."

"There can be some added features, such as an improved dashboard. Any new feature that could be a benefit to our customers would be good."

"Intune doesn't provide much control over Windows servers. It's something we struggle with."

"Once it's configured it is unobtrusive, but it does take some hands-on to configure and deploy it properly."

"At this time, I do not have any areas for improvement. I have heard about some downtime, but I am not in the local IT team."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"There appears to be no effort to fix the command line utility functionality, which is definitely broken, provides a false positive for a result when you perform the operation, and doesn't work."

"Chef could get better by being more widely available, adapting to different needs, and providing better documentation."

"I would like to see more security features for Chef and more automation."

"The time that it takes in terms of integration. Cloud integration is comparatively easy, but when it comes to two-link based integrations - like trying to integrate it with any monitoring tools, or maybe some other ticketing tools - it takes longer. That is because most of the out-of-the-box integration of the APIs needs some revisiting."

"The AWS monitoring, AWS X-Ray, and some other features could be improved."

"Vertical scalability is still good but the horizontal, adding more technologies, platforms, tools, integrations, Chef should take a look into that."

"If they can improve their software to support Docker containers, it would be for the best."

"In the future, Chef could develop a docker container or docker images."

More Chef cons

"It's a bit of a pain point to make sure that everything works once we've upgraded it because Puppet has been evolving pretty fast."

"The solution has really complex code, you have to understand the Ruby language. However, once you know the code then you can move ahead without any problems."

"Puppet Enterprise should improve the general extensibility for places where they can't install it."

"Clients with less technical expertise may find Puppet complex to configure. Our team may struggle if technical team members leave the organization, leaving others uncertain about using the tool."

"We would like Puppet to add more integration for applications."

"At the beginning the initial setup was kind of complex."

"There's a lot of scope for enhancement on the DevSecOps side. They should definitely include features for compliance, for both the Linux and Windows side of the devices, as well as for network devices. Compliance is something they need to work on."

"Puppet Enterprise is more complex and difficult to configure."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Even if they charge a premium, they aim to provide equal value."

"Licensing depends on how you are providing support to your enterprise, whether it's device-based or user-based."

"While Microsoft Intune boasts a wide range of features, its user-friendliness and bundled licensing cost are key considerations for me."

"Pricing can be improved."

"The pricing is not cheap, especially with inflation. They've had to increase their prices. It's not excessive, but alright."

"The pricing is good because customers are not complaining about it."

"As a partner, we always look for how we can generate more revenue from a consulting point of view, but I do not see any complaints from the customer side regarding pricing, so they are satisfied with it."

"The licensing costs we leave up to the customer and these vary from one to another."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"The price per node is a little weird. It doesn't scale along with your organization. If you're truly utilizing Chef to its fullest, then the number of nodes which are being utilized in any particular day might scale or change based on your Auto Scaling groups. How do you keep track of that or audit it? Then, how do you appropriately license it? It's difficult."

"We are able to save in development time, deployment time, and it makes it easier to manage the environments."

"Pricing for Chef is high."

"We are using the free, open source version of the software, which we are happy with at this time."

"Purchasing the solution from AWS Marketplace was a good experience. AWS's pricing is pretty in line with the product's regular pricing. Though instance-wise, AWS is not the cheapest in the market."

"Chef is priced based on the number of nodes."

"The price is always a problem. It is high. There is room for improvement. I do like purchasing on the AWS Marketplace, but I would like the ability to negotiate and have some flexibility in the pricing on it."

"I wasn't involved in the purchasing, but I am pretty sure that we are happy with the current pricing and licensing since it never comes up."

More Chef pricing and cost advice

"Puppet Enterprise’s pricing is competitive."

"Depending on the size of the organization there is a point when the price of Puppet Enterprise should be lower. However, they provide really good functionality, features, and capabilities."

"Puppet Enterprise can be an expensive solution for smaller businesses."

"The main thing that we noticed when we switched from the enterprise version to the community version was the difference in cost — the infrastructure is pretty expensive."

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Comparison Review

it_user185772

Senior Software Architect with 5,001-10,000 employees

Oct 27, 2015

Docker v. CFEngine v. Puppet Data Center Automation v. Chef v. Ansible

Originally posted at http://technologyconversations.com/2015/08/26/configuration-management-in-the-docker-world/ Anyone managing more than a few servers can confirm that doing such a task manually is a waste of time and risky. Configuration management (CM) exists for a long time and there is no…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

16%

Retailer

Educational Organization

Government

14%

Comms Service Provider

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Educational Organization

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	116
Midsize Enterprise	46
Large Enterprise	152

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	4

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?

Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...

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What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...

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How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...

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What do you like most about Chef?

Chef is a great tool for an automation person who wants to do configuration management with infrastructure as a code.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Chef?

Chef is priced based on the number of nodes.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Chef?

Chef does not support the containerized things of Chef products. In the future, Chef could develop a docker container...

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What do you like most about Puppet Enterprise?

Puppet Enterprise is a stable solution.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Puppet Enterprise?

Regarding the cost, I find it expensive, always. I don't know how much the license would cost per year or per user ap...

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What needs improvement with Puppet Enterprise?

I don't know what could be improved in Perforce Puppet to make this tool better for the next release. I can't think o...

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Comparisons

Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 10% of the time

Workspace ONE UEM vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 8% of the time

ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 7% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 6% of the time

IBM MaaS360 vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 5% of the time

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BigFix vs Chef

Compared 37% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Chef

Compared 9% of the time

AWS CloudFormation vs Chef

Compared 9% of the time

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Chef

Compared 8% of the time

BMC TrueSight Server Automation vs Chef

Compared 6% of the time

More Chef Competitors

AWS Systems Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 24% of the time

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 21% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 16% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 10% of the time

More Perforce Puppet Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

October 2025

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

Chef

October 2025

Download Chef product report

Buyer's Guide

Perforce Puppet

October 2025

Download Perforce Puppet product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

No data available

Puppet

Overview

Microsoft Intune provides centralized management of mobile devices and applications, ensuring security, compliance, and productivity through integration with Microsoft services like Microsoft 365 and Azure Active Directory.

Organizations use Intune for managing mobile devices and applications, enhancing security and compliance across platforms. With features like single sign-on, conditional access, and zero-touch deployment via Autopilot, it facilitates efficient operations. Intune's scalability, easy enrollment, and capabilities such as remote wipe support diverse device management, offering robust data protection and efficient operation. Despite its features, improvement areas include reporting, compatibility with non-Microsoft devices, and better support for macOS and Linux devices.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Seamless Integration: Works with Microsoft 365, Azure Active Directory, and System Center for streamlined management.
Conditional Access: Enhances security with policies that restrict access based on conditions.
Autopilot: Provides zero-touch deployment for setting up new devices efficiently.
Mobile Device Management: Enables control over both personal and corporate devices.
Application Deployment: Facilitates app delivery across a range of devices.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Centralized Management: Reduces complexity by managing devices and applications in one place.
Security Enhancement: Protects data with features like remote wipe and compliance monitoring.
Improved Productivity: Enhances efficiency with seamless integration and automation features.
Device Scalability: Supports diverse device management for growing business needs.

In industries such as finance, healthcare, and education, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure secure and compliant device management. Companies leverage its capabilities to deploy security policies and manage both corporate-owned and BYOD environments, facilitating a unified approach to data protection and compliance.

Microsoft

Chef, is the leader in DevOps, driving collaboration through code to automate infrastructure, security, compliance and applications. Chef provides a single path to production making it faster and safer to add value to applications and meet the demands of the customer. Deployed broadly in production by the Global 5000 and used by more than half of the Fortune 500, Chef develops 100 percent of its software as open source under the Apache 2.0 license with no restrictions on its use. Chef Enterprise Automation Stack™, a commercial distribution, is developed solely from that open source code and unifies security, compliance, infrastructure and application automation with observability. Chef provides an unequaled developer experience for the Coded Enterprise by enabling users to express infrastructure, security policies and the application lifecycle as code, modernizing development, packaging and delivery of any application to any platform. For more information, visit http://chef.io and follow @chef.

Progress Software

Perforce Puppet provides robust features for configuration management, compatible with Linux, Windows, and UNIX. It simplifies infrastructure management with automation and role-based access control, though it requires mastering command-line operations due to limited GUI.

Perforce Puppet utilizes a hub-spoke architecture to enhance automation across production environments, excelling in provisioning and configuration management for on-prem servers. Its infrastructure as code approach eases deployment and maintenance, supported by community resources for stabilization. Support for diverse devices makes it adaptable for complex configurations, but pricing and integration gaps, especially with Infosec tools, pose challenges for some.

What are the key features of Perforce Puppet?

Remote Package Installation: Centralized server management for remote installations
File Management: Streamlined file operations from a single point
Infrastructure as Code: Simplifies infrastructure maintenance
Scalability: Grows with organizational demands
Role-Based Access Control: Ensures secure user management
Device State Control: Efficient device integration and configuration

What benefits should users expect?

Automation Efficiency: Reduces manual tasks with hub-spoke architecture
Versatility: Supports multiple operating systems
Community Support: Backed by a stable and organized community
Configuration Simplicity: Simplifies and streamlines setup processes

Puppet is implemented across industries for managing production servers, especially in regulated environments. Its security compliance checks ensure adherence to required standards, while public configurations assist in device network integration. Industries benefit from its ability to streamline Linux server automation and explore expansion into Windows systems to meet cross-platform requirements.

Perforce

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Facebook, Standard Bank, GE Capital, Nordstrom, Optum, Barclays, IGN, General Motors, Scholastic, Riot Games, NCR, Gap

Los Alamos National Laboratory, GitHub, IP Commerce, Cedexis, Spiceworks, Server Density, Swisstopo, Chockstone, Constant Contact, NICS, Citrix

Buyer's Guide

Chef vs. Perforce Puppet

September 2025

Free Report: Chef vs. Perforce Puppet

Find out what your peers are saying about Chef vs. Perforce Puppet and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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