AWS CloudFormation vs Perforce Puppet comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Perforce are both solutions in the Configuration Management category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.8, while Perforce is ranked #15 with an average rating of 7.5. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 1.3% mindshare in CM, compared to Perforce’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Perforce users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 8, 2025

Perforce Puppet and AWS CloudFormation compete in the automation and orchestration market. Puppet stands out for its affordable pricing and strong customer support, while CloudFormation is favored for its comprehensive feature set and integration with AWS services.

Features: Perforce Puppet offers configuration management, adaptability across environments, and automation that reduces manual tasks. It supports Linux, Windows, and UNIX and includes a big code repository via Puppet Forge. AWS CloudFormation provides Infrastructure as Code capabilities, seamless AWS integration, and ease of tracking infrastructure changes with version control, making complex deployments simpler.

Room for Improvement: Perforce Puppet could enhance its integration with cloud-native environments, improve real-time monitoring capabilities, and offer more comprehensive analytics. AWS CloudFormation would benefit from extensive documentation refinement, reducing overall complexity for new users, and expanding template automation capabilities to accommodate non-AWS infrastructures.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: AWS CloudFormation's use of the AWS ecosystem offers straightforward deployment and automation of infrastructure changes although it can be complex for new users. Perforce Puppet provides a flexible deployment model aided by robust customer support, ensuring excellent configuration management across multiple platforms.

Pricing and ROI: Perforce Puppet provides cost-effective solutions with significant ROI potential due to lower initial costs and efficient automation features. AWS CloudFormation, while requiring higher initial investment, delivers strong ROI through deep AWS integration and advanced capabilities. Its extensive feature set justifies the higher price for those within the AWS ecosystem.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS CloudFormation vs. Perforce Puppet Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. Perforce Puppet

June 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 10.3%, up from 9.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS CloudFormation is 1.3%, down from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Perforce Puppet is 1.0%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi

Collaborations engineer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

Everything has worked better since we started using it

Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.

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Mbula Mboma

AWS Cloud Re-Start Program Specialist at Orange RDC (Congo)

Facilitates efficient infrastructure deployment with visibility into resource connections

I primarily use AWS CloudFormation for deploying infrastructure efficiently. For instance, if I want to create load balancers with target groups and EC2 instances, I find CloudFormation simplifies the process of deployment and configuration, reducing the possibility of errors AWS CloudFormation…

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Erik Ableson

Owner at Infrageeks

A stable solution that is more suited for larger companies with mature CI/CD structures and image management processes

Puppet Enterprise is more suitable for clients working up much more structured deployment images they manage internally. Before choosing Puppet Enterprise, users should think seriously about what they're trying to accomplish and ensure they put the right pieces in place. Overall, I rate Puppet Enterprise an eight out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The most valuable feature is that we can manage workstations or Android devices remotely without needing the device to be connected to our local network."

"By using Microsoft Intune we can control which websites the users can go to and it provides a secure environment for our employees using their laptops that are having access from home. We have installed Intune to control the user's environment minimizing the chances of any hacking."

"The conditional access policies that we set up are very useful."

"I like the tool's integration with Apple. Anyone who creates an ID in Intune will get an Apple ID."

"It has improve our organization through the remote management of non-domain joined devices."

"The most valuable feature is Intune's ability to push out updates for the security and antivirus. I also like Intune's copilot and the ability to automate processes. For example, if you have 5,000 employees who are issued new PCs and you need to set them up with everything they need."

"I rate Intune 10 out of 10."

"Autopilot is the most valuable feature."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"The CloudFormation template can be reused to create multiple stacks, reducing duplications and improving our infrastructure."

"Automations make it pretty easy to provision AWS, development, or deployment environments."

"By using AWS CloudFormation, I can automate tasks like creating VPCs and load balancers instead of doing them manually each time. The features I like most include improved scalability, resource management, ease of deployment, template creation, and resource provisioning."

"Versioning makes our work easy."

"Scripting does what we need to reinstall something from scratch."

"Since AWS CloudFormation integrates well with the AWS platform, it facilitates faster deployment. Building templates for AWS services within the solution is also straightforward, making the process easier."

"There is a cost-benefit to using CloudFormation that comes about because of the automation that it provides."

"The most beneficial aspect lies in its capability to handle input acquisition and assessment."

More AWS CloudFormation pros

"Puppet3 and 4 series provides optimum deployment solutions for infrastructure and applications."

"Anything that we manage through Puppet always runs perfectly."

"The main purpose for this automation tool would be: deploying, controlling, ordering change for the system and IT Infrastructure."

"Puppet Enterprise is a stable solution."

"I rate the stability of Puppet as ten out of ten."

"Puppet Enterprise has reduced the time of production changes or environment changes."

"The most valuable features are the agent, high load balancing, and overall robustness and features."

"The versatility is great."

More Perforce Puppet pros

Cons

"I rate Microsoft support between six to eight. The support often involves third parties hired by Microsoft who are knowledgeable, but sometimes the help I receive is not adequate."

"I would like to see easier pushdowns. Currently, we have to package our own software and then push it. Intune can make that way easier and integrate applications, such as Zoom and Adobe Acrobat, that are used by a lot of enterprise or corporate organizations."

"It's the granularity: 'Is your firewall on? Is BitLocker on?' It's not amazing granularity. But I've looked into other products, like Duo, and they're all similar."

"The pricing can be expensive if you are not combining it with other products."

"From my level of analysis, the feature I would prefer to see added to Microsoft Intune is extensive support. Anything that helps to diagnose the problem and solve it would be useful."

"They should make it easier to order it, however, that's generally true for everything from Microsoft."

"Intune could add more Linux security features and more integration with on-prem devices. The application deployments can also be improved."

"Intune has all the features enabled for Windows devices but needs to be improved on iOS and Apple devices."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"The speed of the replication process could improve. It can take some time to replicate that could use a speed increase."

"There are some limitations with JSON, as the code is written in JSON, which doesn't support commands, looping, or conditionals. This can make the code difficult to read and share across teams. Moreover, the tool only supports AWS."

"Creating the inline policies is not great."

"This tool is not intuitive and there are others that are easier to understand."

"Error-handling features can be improved."

"As soon as they manage to parametrize the whole thing and to implement parameters at all levels, it will become automatically a lot more flexible."

"What could be improved in AWS CloudFormation is its user interface, in terms of graphical design, I prefer WYSIWYG."

"Improving the quality of support would be helpful."

More AWS CloudFormation cons

"Puppet Enterprise is more complex and difficult to configure."

"It's a bit of a pain point to make sure that everything works once we've upgraded it because Puppet has been evolving pretty fast."

"Puppet Enterprise should improve the general extensibility for places where they can't install it."

"We would like Puppet to add more integration for applications."

"The solution has really complex code, you have to understand the Ruby language. However, once you know the code then you can move ahead without any problems."

"At the beginning the initial setup was kind of complex."

"Clients with less technical expertise may find Puppet complex to configure. Our team may struggle if technical team members leave the organization, leaving others uncertain about using the tool."

"There's a lot of scope for enhancement on the DevSecOps side. They should definitely include features for compliance, for both the Linux and Windows side of the devices, as well as for network devices. Compliance is something they need to work on."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Intune is moderately expensive. You can get the license bundled with Office 365 E3 or E5 licenses. The E5s are a bit expensive, but you get some cheaper solutions with Intune."

"I rate Intune five out of 10 for pricing. It's expensive."

"Microsoft Intune is reasonably priced for large organizations that already have Microsoft Enterprise licenses, but it is less affordable for smaller businesses."

"Intune is available as an individual product, but it also comes with Office 365 Premium or an Enterprise license, and the price varies for each version."

"As a partner, we always look for how we can generate more revenue from a consulting point of view, but I do not see any complaints from the customer side regarding pricing, so they are satisfied with it."

"They have categorized the licenses according to the size of the business. So, if it's a smaller organization, we can choose the license accordingly. If it's a big organization, then we can choose accordingly. Everything is clearly mentioned, and we can decide. It's suitable for all kinds of infrastructure, and that's very goo"

"The cost of the license and the features are justified for myself as a technical person."

"The product is offered as part of a Microsoft standard bundle. The pricing can be competitive to Airwatch, and Maas360."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"The product is free."

"The price of the solution is good because it is scalable."

"There's no cost for launching any template using CloudFormation."

"AWS CloudFormation doesn't have any cost because it's only the resources that you deploy with the solution that'll incur costs."

"The pricing is not notably high."

"The tool's pricing depends on the page model."

"This solution is free to use and does not require a license."

"The solution's cost is normal, neither cheap nor expensive."

More AWS CloudFormation pricing and cost advice

"Depending on the size of the organization there is a point when the price of Puppet Enterprise should be lower. However, they provide really good functionality, features, and capabilities."

"Puppet Enterprise can be an expensive solution for smaller businesses."

"Puppet Enterprise’s pricing is competitive."

"The main thing that we noticed when we switched from the enterprise version to the community version was the difference in cost — the infrastructure is pretty expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

14%

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

23%

Financial Services Firm

17%

Government

Retailer

Educational Organization

35%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

10%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?

Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...

See all answers

What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...

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How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...

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What do you like most about AWS CloudFormation?

AWS Cloud automation reduces the time needed to create AWS resources.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS CloudFormation?

AWS CloudFormation is free. However, there may be unexpected costs if developers deploy services incorrectly without ...

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What needs improvement with AWS CloudFormation?

Improvements are needed for sharing resources between template files, especially when using AWS ( /products/amazon-aw...

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What do you like most about Puppet Enterprise?

Puppet Enterprise is a stable solution.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Puppet Enterprise?

Puppet is not cheap. I would rate its affordability as seven or eight out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Puppet Enterprise?

Clients with less technical expertise may find Puppet complex to configure. Our team may struggle if technical team m...

See all answers

Comparisons

Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 12% of the time

Workspace ONE UEM vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 8% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 7% of the time

ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Intune Competitors

AWS Systems Manager vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 65% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 19% of the time

VMware Aria Automation vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 16% of the time

More AWS CloudFormation Competitors

AWS Systems Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 34% of the time

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 26% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 23% of the time

More Perforce Puppet Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

May 2025

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation

June 2025

Download AWS CloudFormation product report

Buyer's Guide

Perforce Puppet

May 2025

Download Perforce Puppet product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

CloudFormation

Puppet

Overview

Microsoft Intune provides centralized management of mobile devices and applications, ensuring security, compliance, and productivity through integration with Microsoft services like Microsoft 365 and Azure Active Directory.

Organizations use Intune for managing mobile devices and applications, enhancing security and compliance across platforms. With features like single sign-on, conditional access, and zero-touch deployment via Autopilot, it facilitates efficient operations. Intune's scalability, easy enrollment, and capabilities such as remote wipe support diverse device management, offering robust data protection and efficient operation. Despite its features, improvement areas include reporting, compatibility with non-Microsoft devices, and better support for macOS and Linux devices.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Seamless Integration: Works with Microsoft 365, Azure Active Directory, and System Center for streamlined management.
Conditional Access: Enhances security with policies that restrict access based on conditions.
Autopilot: Provides zero-touch deployment for setting up new devices efficiently.
Mobile Device Management: Enables control over both personal and corporate devices.
Application Deployment: Facilitates app delivery across a range of devices.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Centralized Management: Reduces complexity by managing devices and applications in one place.
Security Enhancement: Protects data with features like remote wipe and compliance monitoring.
Improved Productivity: Enhances efficiency with seamless integration and automation features.
Device Scalability: Supports diverse device management for growing business needs.

In industries such as finance, healthcare, and education, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure secure and compliant device management. Companies leverage its capabilities to deploy security policies and manage both corporate-owned and BYOD environments, facilitating a unified approach to data protection and compliance.

Microsoft

AWS CloudFormation provides a common language for you to model and provision AWS and third party application resources in your cloud environment. AWS CloudFormation allows you to use programming languages or a simple text file to model and provision, in an automated and secure manner, all the resources needed for your applications across all regions and accounts. This gives you a single source of truth for your AWS and third party resources.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Perforce Puppet provides robust features for configuration management, compatible with Linux, Windows, and UNIX. It simplifies infrastructure management with automation and role-based access control, though it requires mastering command-line operations due to limited GUI.

Perforce Puppet utilizes a hub-spoke architecture to enhance automation across production environments, excelling in provisioning and configuration management for on-prem servers. Its infrastructure as code approach eases deployment and maintenance, supported by community resources for stabilization. Support for diverse devices makes it adaptable for complex configurations, but pricing and integration gaps, especially with Infosec tools, pose challenges for some.

What are the key features of Perforce Puppet?

Remote Package Installation: Centralized server management for remote installations
File Management: Streamlined file operations from a single point
Infrastructure as Code: Simplifies infrastructure maintenance
Scalability: Grows with organizational demands
Role-Based Access Control: Ensures secure user management
Device State Control: Efficient device integration and configuration

What benefits should users expect?

Automation Efficiency: Reduces manual tasks with hub-spoke architecture
Versatility: Supports multiple operating systems
Community Support: Backed by a stable and organized community
Configuration Simplicity: Simplifies and streamlines setup processes

Puppet is implemented across industries for managing production servers, especially in regulated environments. Its security compliance checks ensure adherence to required standards, while public configurations assist in device network integration. Industries benefit from its ability to streamline Linux server automation and explore expansion into Windows systems to meet cross-platform requirements.

Perforce

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Nextdoor, Coinbase, Expedia

Los Alamos National Laboratory, GitHub, IP Commerce, Cedexis, Spiceworks, Server Density, Swisstopo, Chockstone, Constant Contact, NICS, Citrix

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. Perforce Puppet

June 2025

Free Report: AWS CloudFormation vs. Perforce Puppet

Find out what your peers are saying about AWS CloudFormation vs. Perforce Puppet and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.

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