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Microsoft DSC vs CFEngine: catalog facts
Microsoft DSC	CFEngine
Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.	Freemium Free Community edition, with a commercial Enterprise edition.
Windows, Command line	Linux, Self-hosted, Command line
Declarative, idempotent configuration that is safe to reapply Open source and actively developed by the PowerShell team	Lightweight agent suited to large fleets Configuration drift prevention and compliance reporting
Aimed at administrators; there is no graphical interface Configuration concepts take some learning for newcomers	Own policy language to learn Web UI and reporting belong to the Enterprise edition
Downloadable app	Downloadable app, Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License: MIT	License not stated
No account needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026

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