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