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Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Alibaba Cloud vs Puppet

Alibaba Cloud logo

Alibaba Cloud

Cloud & Infrastructure

Asia's leading cloud computing provider

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Puppet logo

Puppet

Cloud & Infrastructure

Infrastructure automation for enterprises

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Alibaba Cloud technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included; Puppet the pricing page publishes no rate and no minimum, and asks you to fill in a form to be sent pricing and plan information
  • They diverge on capability: Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Puppet covers Manifests.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and Puppet actually diverge.

Attributes where Alibaba Cloud and Puppet differ
AttributeAlibaba CloudPuppet
Pricing modelusage-basedopen-source
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Api, CliLinux, Windows, Mac, Api
Founded20092005

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud & Infrastructure).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Alibaba Cloud

  • Elastic Compute Service
  • Object Storage Service
  • RDS Database
  • MaxCompute
  • Function Compute
  • CDN
  • Load Balancer
  • API Gateway

Only in Puppet

  • Manifests
  • Modules
  • Classes
  • Variables
  • Facts
  • Puppet Master
  • Hiera
  • Facter

Both cover

  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • Cloud deployment
  • Linux support
  • Windows support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in China and Asia Pacificnot Puppet
  • Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot Puppet
  • Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot Puppet
  • CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot Puppet

Puppet

  • Declarative configuration management of servers at scalenot Alibaba Cloud
  • Enforcing infrastructure compliance policy continuouslynot Alibaba Cloud

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included
  • Service prices are not shown as a rate card and route through a calculator or sales
  • Committed discounts require savings plans, reserved instances or capacity packages rather than being automatic

Puppet

  • The pricing page publishes no rate and no minimum, and asks you to fill in a form to be sent pricing and plan information
  • Pricing is banded by number of managed nodes, with separate tiers for under 25 nodes and 25 or more nodes
  • The product is split into Puppet Enterprise and a higher Puppet Enterprise Advanced edition, so compliance oriented features sit behind the upper tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Alibaba Cloud

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • Free tier credits
    • ECS instances
    • Cloud storage
  • Pay-as-You-GoFree
    • Flexible billing
    • No commitments
    • Global reach

Puppet

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Puppet Agent
    • Community support
    • Full DSL
  • Puppet Enterprise$100/month
    • Puppet Server
    • Console
    • RBAC

Which should you pick?

Choose Alibaba Cloud if

  • You need elastic compute service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
  • You also want object storage service.
Alibaba Cloud review

Choose Puppet if

  • You need manifests.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want modules.
Puppet review

Questions people ask

Is Alibaba Cloud or Puppet better?
Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and Puppet at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or Puppet?
Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and Puppet at Free.
Does Alibaba Cloud or Puppet run on more platforms?
Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. Puppet runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Alibaba Cloud best used for?
Alibaba Cloud is most often used for cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific, pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment, committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloads, cdn and data transfer packages for content delivery. Of those, cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific and pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment are not what Puppet is typically brought in for.
What can Alibaba Cloud do that Puppet cannot?
Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute. Puppet covers Manifests, Modules, Classes, Variables. Both handle Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud deployment, Linux support.
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