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Chef vs Microsoft DSC: catalog facts
Chef	Microsoft DSC
Paid Commercial enterprise platform with a free trial; demos available on request.	Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	Windows, Command line
Policy-as-code for repeatable server configuration Built-in compliance auditing on a schedule	Declarative, idempotent configuration that is safe to reapply Open source and actively developed by the PowerShell team
Aimed at enterprises, with sales-led pricing Considerable setup and learning before it pays off	Aimed at administrators; there is no graphical interface Configuration concepts take some learning for newcomers
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Downloadable app
Closed source	Open source
License not stated	License: MIT
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.