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BMC TrueSight Server Automation vs Chef comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Intune lowers costs and boosts efficiency by automating management, enhancing security, and integrating with Microsoft services.
Sentiment score
1.0
BMC TrueSight Server Automation improves efficiency, reduces costs and errors, enhances security, and delivers high ROI through seamless integration.
Sentiment score
8.1
Chef improved deployment time, reduced human error, enhanced scalability, optimized resource use, and strengthened compliance and security management.
Everything we've gained from it makes my job easier day after day, and I see value in it as an engineer.
Importantly, when someone leaves the company, it helps protect document access on their devices.
Applications are deployed through Intune, and we see fewer tickets for common issues because we can resolve them through the solution.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.3
Microsoft Intune support is helpful but needs faster response and consistent technical knowledge, with premium support being more effective.
Sentiment score
9.0
BMC TrueSight Server Automation support is highly rated, though quality varies, especially from third-party vendors.
Sentiment score
6.1
Customers commend Chef for its responsive support, active community, comprehensive documentation, and efficient issue resolution despite occasional delays.
When a support ticket is submitted, it directly reaches someone with Intune support expertise.
When I contacted Microsoft, they had the same expertise, if not more, which is phenomenal because I felt heard and my problem was solved.
Sometimes, the support provided is excellent, and the representative is knowledgeable, while other times, the service needs improvement.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.3
Microsoft Intune's cloud-based design enables seamless scalability, efficiently supporting organizations of all sizes by easily managing numerous devices.
Sentiment score
7.1
BMC TrueSight Server Automation scalability is rated high but has mixed feedback, with some preferring alternatives like Ansible.
Sentiment score
7.8
Chef is highly scalable, efficiently managing infrastructures of all sizes and accommodating numerous clients based on server capacity.
The scalability of Microsoft Intune is ten out of ten.
Ideally, we want to automatically segregate devices based on user properties like primary use, but currently, dynamic groups seem limited to device properties.
It supports organizations with 200 endpoints and those with more than 15,000 endpoints.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Microsoft Intune is praised for high stability, reliable performance, and is supported by continuous updates and strong cloud infrastructure.
Sentiment score
6.6
BMC TrueSight Server Automation is stable but experiences performance issues during extensive patching and when managing many servers.
Sentiment score
7.7
Users rate Chef's stability 8-9/10, comparing it favorably to competitors like Ansible, and find it stable for various use cases.
We have not experienced downtime, bugs, or glitches.
Microsoft Intune has been very stable.
A couple of years ago, the performance was not as good as it is now, but there are noticeable backend improvements.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Intune needs enhancements in app deployment, remote management, UI, scalability, security, and non-Microsoft device support.
BMC TrueSight Server Automation faces challenges with integration, resource management, performance, usability, and lacks vital features like cloud connectivity and better scripting.
Chef needs better support, pricing, role management, flexibility, documentation, integration, and improved automation to compete with Ansible.
Features like unlocking devices sometimes fail, and the support offered for other operating systems is insufficient.
There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now.
Many third-party companies offer single-pane-of-glass reporting that shows you what your update environment looks like, how your patch is doing, application status, etc., but Intune's reporting is not intuitive.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Intune is cost-effective for large enterprises, especially when bundled with Microsoft 365, despite high standalone pricing.
BMC TrueSight Server Automation can be costly but offers strong support, essential services, and potential discounts based on server number and customer size.
Chef offers subscription plans with valuable automation features, but enterprise pricing is high and requires contacting sales for quotes.
Introductory professional services, like a fast-track service, were included with our E5 membership, and there have been no additional costs.
The Intune suite and add-ons, such as batch management and remote help, are costly.
It costs approximately forty euros per user per month.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Intune offers seamless integration, comprehensive management, and flexibility across platforms for secure, efficient hybrid work environments.
Standardized patching, automation, compliance, GUI/CLI operation, vulnerability management, and one-click deployment enhance server management and security.
Chef offers compliance, easy configuration management, and automation for IT infrastructure, integrating with CI processes and supporting multiple clouds.
Intune excels in configuration and compliance management for Windows 10, ensuring devices receive timely updates and adhere to organizational standards.
Dynamic groups allow us to set conditions for automatic membership, eliminating the need for user intervention or manual review and ensuring a seamless workflow.
Windows Autopatch is the most valuable because it removes the burden of patch management.
The overall role of BMC TrueSight Server Automation in managing configuration drift brings return on investment through its automation, which helps save me the time and effort of my operations team.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Configuration Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
277
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
BMC TrueSight Server Automa...
Ranking in Configuration Management
12th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Chef
Ranking in Configuration Management
18th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
Build Automation (20th), Release Automation (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 10.2%, up from 9.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of BMC TrueSight Server Automation is 2.9%, up from 3.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Chef is 2.0%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Configuration Management
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
SumitSrivastava1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Patches can be deployed easily with a single click, making deployment straightforward
More use cases can be automated. The user interface of BMC TrueSight Server Automation could benefit from enhancements, as it currently lacks refinement. However, the stability of the platform is commendable. While there are occasional fluctuations, overall, it maintains a high level of stability. In terms of automation capabilities, it performs satisfactorily. Additionally, it handles gateway activities smoothly, demonstrating its capability.
Aaron  P - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy configuration management, optimization abilities, and complete infrastructure and application automation
In terms of improvement, Chef could get better by being more widely available, adapting to different needs, and providing better documentation. There is also an issue with shared resources like cookbooks lacking context, which could lead to problems when multiple companies use them. Chef should aim for wider availability, better flexibility, clearer documentation, and improved management of shared resources to prevent conflicts. Many companies are now moving to Ansible, so I would recommend better documentation, easier customer use, and simpler integration. I have concerns about the complexity of migrating to different servers and would prefer a simpler process.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Educational Organization
8%
Financial Services Firm
36%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Government
5%
Financial Services Firm
21%
Computer Software Company
15%
University
7%
Retailer
6%
 

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 ...
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...
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 ...
What do you like most about BMC TrueSight Server Automation?
The product's valuable feature is its ability to conduct patching for multiple servers simultaneously.
What needs improvement with BMC TrueSight Server Automation?
More use cases can be automated. The user interface of BMC TrueSight Server Automation could benefit from enhancement...
What do you like most about Chef?
Chef is a great tool for an automation person who wants to do configuration management with infrastructure as a code.
What needs improvement with Chef?
Chef does not support the containerized things of Chef products. In the future, Chef could develop a docker container...
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
TrueSight Server Automation, BladeLogic Server Automation, BladeLogic Automation Suite
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
State of Michigan, Fujitsu FSAS, Transamerica Life Insurance Company, SAP
Facebook, Standard Bank, GE Capital, Nordstrom, Optum, Barclays, IGN, General Motors, Scholastic, Riot Games, NCR, Gap
Find out what your peers are saying about BMC TrueSight Server Automation vs. Chef and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.