How Ansible is different from Chef and Puppet

If you are in information technology, you must have heard about DevOps. As it is the latest technology, and the IT industry is going gaga about it. DevOps is the methodology of encouraging teamwork in the organization that helps the team perform better, which eventually brings out better results in the end. If we look at the name itself, DevOps is the combination of two names, where dev goes for development, and Ops goes for operations. It is a methodology that is usually applied in the IT industry in software development projects.

The actual logic behind the DevOps methodology is to make the software development cycle quick by automating different processes of SDLC.

Benefits of DevOps

When it comes to the benefits of DevOps, there is a lot to mention. As we know, how popular DevOps methodology is in the IT industry. Not only in the IT industry, but it is getting popular in the enterprise industry as well. The major reason for applying this methodology is because it maximizes efficiency by using automation. Optimization is another factor that catches the eyes of business owners. By using this methodology in the organization, the focus turns towards the manpower, and then it turns into the fruitful results for the organization.

Top DevOps Tools

When there is a methodology or a process, there is some tool on it's back that is making everything possible, same is the case with DevOps. When it comes to this methodology, there are a lot of configuration tools used at different times to make it possible for DevOps. Some of those tools are Ansible, Puppet, Chef, Jenkins, and many more. Let us see how Ansible is different than other configuration tools. For now, we will see how it is different than Puppet and the Chef.

How Ansible is different from Chef and Puppet

We know how valuable DevOps is for the modern era of information technology. DevOps, with all its components working together, provides ways for teams to work together to achieve an objective. When talking about DevOps methodology, configuration management is the most crucial thing. Isn't that obvious because we are discussing the configuration tools right now like how one is different and more effective than others?

The most common configuration tools used in DevOps are Ansible, Chef, and Puppet. In configuration management, the most important things are the configuration items that DevOps uses for making projects successful. These items include tools, source codes, servers, binaries, and other files. Configuration audit, configuration control, and configuration identification are three important processes of configuration management. As we know, the object of DevOps is to make the software development lifecycle quick by automating different processes like production, configuration, deployment, and delivery. It is only possible through proper planning and management.

Let's talk about how Ansible is different from Chef and Puppet, even though all three are configuration management tools. It is just to confirm if Ansible is the ultimate configuration tool we should go for, or there is any other? Although, all three of these tools have powerful capabilities for the automation of critical IT applications. We will now discuss further to know how Ansible is different than the other two configuration tools.

Start your 30-day FREE TRIAL with CloudInstitute.io and begin your DevOps career journey today!

• Configuration Language

The first point of discussion will be the programming language of these tools. It is an essential tool as it decides how easy it is to use the tool.

Ansible: In this tool, there is support for python as it is a python-based tool. With python, it also supports the YAML command script. Python is a very common language that humans can read, and it is also in-built in Linux. Having python with it, Ansible has an edge over other tools.

Puppet: In this tool, Ruby is the primary language, so it supports ruby. Puppet DSL is the language used in this tool that is a hard language to learn. This tool supports only these two languages.

Chef: In this configuration tool, there is support available for Ruby DSL and the prototype programming which is very hard for users to learn. It is an ideal tool for developers due to the prototype programming option.

• Availability

Availability is a factor that affects DevOps operations the most. Nothing is possible if there is no availability. When it comes to availability, all three of the configuration tools claim to offer the best availability. In case of an emergency, there needs to be a back up available that tells the importance of availability.

Ansible: In this configuration tool, there is a primary instance Ansible runs on, and there is a second instance available in case of any failure or emergency.

Puppet: In this tool, there are multiple masters, and one runs at a time. In case of any failure, another master replaces the current one, and the system keeps running.

Chef: In this tool, there are backup servers available, and when there is a failure, the backup server replaces the chef-server that shows the constant availability.

• Ease of Setup

Before running a configuration tool comes a part of setting it up. It makes a difference when comparing different tools. The installation process is an important part when selecting a configuration tool.

Ansible: Ansible is a tool on which there is a server machine that has a master running on it, whereas all the agents run on the client machine. One of Ansible's prominent features is its architecture that makes it different than puppet and chef. The SSH connection is used in Ansible to connect to the clients and nodes. All of these things make it easy to set up the Ansible.

Puppet: In this configuration tool, there is the master and slave architecture, and the master machine plays the role of the platform to run the server of the puppet. The same way the client machine plays the role of platform for puppet clients. The setup in the puppet is not as straightforward as it is Ansible.

Chef: The setup in the Chef is exactly like the puppet, as the master machine works as the master server, and the client machine works as a platform for clients and agents. Well, apart from being the same as the puppet, it has a workstation that has all the configuration of the chef.

• Ease of Access

When choosing the configuration tool, the main focus is always on the ease of access. As it is the only thing that is necessary to keep the process going. You can learn all about Ansible, Puppet, and Chef by doing Ansible certification, Puppet certification, and Chef certification.

Ansible: In Ansible, the complete framework depends on one running node. It uses the SSH configuration system to configure the nodes, that too according to the user preferences.

Puppet: When it comes to ease of access, the puppet stands out with an edge over other tools. As we know, it follows the architecture of master and slave, so it only enables the puppet users to configure the server of the puppet for master or client machine.

Chef: As we know, it also follows the same architecture as the Puppet, so it also gives an advantage to its users, as they can configure the master and client machine.

• Management

When it comes to deciding which configuration tool is the best, there is one prominent thing that is management. And when it comes to management, it is all about the configuration that is of two types. One is the push configuration and one is the pull configuration. In the later one, the slave nodes can pull all the configuration from the master server without any command. While on the other hand, in push configuration, the configuration will be pushed to the nodes from the master server with commands.

Ansible: As YAML is the foundation language of the Ansible, it is easy to learn how to manage the configuration. Yet another markup language (YAML) is an easily readable language for humans. All the real-time executions and remote executions are done faster as the server pushes the configuration to all the nodes. When management is the deciding factor, Ansible has an edge over the other two, as it can do both push and pull the configuration.

Puppet: As the puppet has DSL as its foundation language and follows the pull configuration mode, it is a little hard to manage the puppet server. In puppet, the remote execution is not that fast as in this one, nodes have to pull the configuration from the master server.

Chef: As the chef also follows the DSL language in terms of Ruby, and it does not follow push configuration too, it is also hard to manage the chef configuration. It has complicated steps when it comes to management, and nodes have to pull the configuration as well.

These are some of the factors we mentioned and according to these factors how Ansible is different than the puppet and chef. All three of these configuration tools have their pros and cons. The selection of configuration tools totally depends on the project requirements we have.