16 BEST Software Configuration Management Tools (SCM Tools in 2020)

Details: Last Updated: 24 March 2020

Configuration management (CM) is a system engineering method for establishing and maintaining consistency of a product's performance, functional, and physical attributes with its design, requirements, and operational information throughout its life. They bring cost efficiency, better time management for your organization.

Today's market is flooded with an array of Configuration Management tools. Following is a curated list of Top 16 handpicked Configuration management software with popular features and latest download links. This comparison list contains open source as well as commercial tools.

1) CFEngine Configuration Tool

CFEngine is a configuration management framework. It allows you to manage your mission-critical tasks securely. This system configuration management tool is available as both open source and commercial software.

Features:

Helps you to define the desired state and configuration of your IT infrastructure
Allows you to automate roll out updates and changes to every node in your infrastructure
It uses autonomous agents which run on every node of your infrastructure.

Download link: https://cfengine.com/

2) Puppet Configuration Tool

Puppet is an open source Configuration management tool for centralizing and automating the configuration management process. It is used to configure, manage, deploy various applications and services.

Features:

Automate provisioning across your IT infrastructure
Allows you to take full control and visibility over your software delivery process.
Allows you to make quick changes or remediate urgent problems alongside your model-driven automation management.
Helps you to manage infrastructure as code using your favorite version control systems

Download link: https://puppet.com

3) CHEF Configuration Tool

The chef is an automation platform that offers a method to configure and manage infrastructure. In this tool, Infrastructure as code implies by executing coding instead of performing manual execution. The chef tool works on Ruby and DSL for writing the configurations.

Features:

Chef follows the Push model and offers an easy cloud adoption.
It helps you to increase service resiliency, to develop more defect-free software.
Chef offers automation abilities which helps you to reduce the risk and improve compliance at all stages of development.
Configure various cloud-based SaaS services, and integrate cloud provisioning APIs and third-party software.

Download link: https://www.chef.io/

4) Ansible Configuration Tool

Ansible tool offers simple IT automation solution. It helps you avoid t performing repetitive tasks and frees up developer teams for more strategic work.

Features:

Ansible allow you to easily model complex processes
You will be informed of your automation status via integrated notifications.
Ansible Tower allows you to manage your entire infrastructure.
Run simple tasks on any host or group of hosts in your inventor

Download link: https://www.ansible.com/

5) SALTSTACK Configuration Tool

SaltStack is another effective configuration tool. It works on a master-client setup model or a non-centralized model. This tool is based on the Python programming language. SaltStack offers push and SSH methods to communicate with clients.

Features:

Salt Cloud integrates with various cloud providers like Google Cloud, Amazon web services, etc.
It is simple, and easy to use as you can run through the setup process.
Saltstack has DSL feature, so it doesn't need any logic and states.
Introspection feature offers by salt could make simple for you to look at what is happening inside Salt.

Download link: https://www.saltstack.com/

6) JUJU Configuration Tool

Juju is an open source tool which mainly emphasizes on decreasing the operational overhead of new generation software. Juju offers features like configuring, scaling, quick deployment, integration, etc.

Features:

Offers software provisioning capabilities.
Allows instant integration and scaling.
Helps you to resolve most of the complexities regarding service scaling by using charm.
You can use this tool to multiple PaaS on a platform.
Feature for Kubernetes cluster deployment.

Download link: https://jujucharms.com/

7) Rudder

Rudder is an open source Continuous Configuration solution. The tool is used to satisfy the need of production infrastructure. This multi-platform tool allows you to automate and maintain your production infrastructure.

Features:

Web Interface feature helps you to manage the nodes and define policies of your environment.
Allows you to automate the simple tasks of administration like installing or configuring.
Rudder offers FULL REST API to communicate with Rudder Server.
Allows you to generate host policies dynamically.
It offers automated inventory for hardware and software both.

Download link: http://www.rudder-project.org/site/

8) TeamCity Configuration Tool

TeamCity is an open source continuous integration server developed by Jet Brain. TeamCity offers up to 100 build configurations (jobs) and runs unlimited builds.

Features:

Extensibility and Customization
Provides better code quality for any project
Helps you to maintains CI server healthy and stable even when no builds are running
Project level cloud profiles
Comprehensive VCS integration
On-the-fly build progress reporting

Download link: https://www.jetbrains.com/teamcity/

9) Octopus Deploy

Octopus Deploy tool enables automation for complex application deployments. Whether the application is on-premises or in the cloud.

Features:

Offers repeatable & reliable deployments
Complex deployments made easy.
Octopus can promote release between environments.
Offers world-class platform support like ASP.NET, Node.js, Java and many other scripting languages, and platform

Download link: https://octopus.com

10) ConfigHub

ConfigHub helps teams manage, secure and deliver configuration across the entire stack. The tool allows you to store, manage and distribute software configuration for a single application or a distributed system.

Features:

Eliminate config duplication and errors
Dynamic modeling for any system topology
Helps you to control all config from one place

Download link: https://www.confighub.com/

11) Alibaba Application Configuration Management

Application Configuration Management, which is also known as ACM. It allows you to centralize the management of application configurations. The tool enhances service capabilities for DevOps, Big Data and Microservices.

Features:

Separates sensitive data from application code and running environments.
Offers real time configuration for your environment.
Offers multi-level cache service and ensures 99.99% server availability
Supports push log for configuration during the entire life cycle.
Supports version management

Download link: https://www.alibabacloud.com/product/acm

12) Spinnaker

Netflix offers Spinnaker configuration management tool. It is an open source multi-cloud platform for releasing software changes with high velocity and greater accuracy.

Features:

Helps you to create deployment pipelines which run through integration and system tests.
It helps you to spin up and down server groups, and monitor your rollout.
Helps you to leverage an immutable infrastructure in the cloud

Download link: https://www.spinnaker.io/

13) AWS OpsWorks

AWS OpsWorks is a configuration management service which offers managed instances of Chef and Puppet. OpsWorks Stacks offer flexibility to define your application architecture and resource configuration.

Features:

The interface is intuitive which allows you to quickly find what you want to do and what other features are within OpsWorks.
It allows you to handles the provisioning and management of your AWS resources.
Provides a flexible and straightforward method to create and manage stacks and applications.
Allows you to include multiple applications in a stack that are configured to work together as a system.

Download link: https://aws.amazon.com/opsworks/

14) IBM Rational Synergy

IBM Rational Synergy is an easy to use software configuration management tool. It offers capabilities which allow your teams to work and collaborate faster and easier. The tool helps you to automate process and tasks.

Features:

Increase productivity
Helps you Manage artifacts on a single repository
Offer an advanced baseline and release management capabilities.
Support software reuse and component-based development
Deliver a highly scalable platform

Download link: https://www.ibm.com/in-en/marketplace/rational-synergy

15) ZENworks Configuration Management

ZENworks Configuration Management tool helps your organization to automate and enforce IT management processes across the lifecycle of all devices in physical, virtual, and cloud environments.

Features:

Automate and accelerate your Windows 10 migration
Helps you to boosts user productivity
Automatically enforce resource and policies with identity-based management of users and devices.
Allows you to manage the lifecycles of all your current and future assets

Download link: https://www.microfocus.com/en-us/products/zenworks-configuration-management/overview

16) HyScale

HyScale to standardize container based app delivery. It allows your team to focus on applications while the platform handles the complexities of delivering them to Kubernetes.

Features: