AWS CloudFormation vs Chef comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Progress Software are both solutions in the Configuration Management category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #7 with an average rating of 8.6, while Progress Software is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.2. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 3.4% mindshare in CM, compared to Progress Software’s 3.4% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Progress Software users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

Chef and AWS CloudFormation compete in the domain of configuration and infrastructure management. Chef seems to possess an upper hand in versatility and multi-cloud integration, while AWS CloudFormation is preferable for AWS-specific tasks due to its ease of use and cost-effectiveness.

Features: Chef stands out in configuration management with support for large-scale environments, flexible integration options, and ease of recipe writing. It allows headless operations with direct database interaction and integrates well with various cloud platforms. AWS CloudFormation excels with infrastructure as code capabilities using YAML and JSON templates, providing automation and predefined templates for fast deployment. It is particularly efficient within AWS ecosystems.

Room for Improvement: Chef could enhance usability by simplifying complex functionalities and improving security features. Better documentation and support for containers would help. AWS CloudFormation might improve by enabling cross-account references and providing more intuitive interfaces. Its AWS-limited use is a significant drawback for multi-cloud environments.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Chef offers hybrid deployment options, but vendor support can be inconsistent. Its flexibility contrasts with AWS CloudFormation's streamlined AWS-focused experience. AWS CloudFormation benefits from Amazon's robust support network, resulting in high user satisfaction in service access and problem resolution.

Pricing and ROI: Chef's costs are based on node usage, which can become complex with scaling, although its automation reduces manual labor. AWS CloudFormation incurs no inherent costs and charges only for deployed resources, simplifying cost management for AWS users. Both solutions achieve strong returns on investment by enhancing delivery efficiency, with AWS CloudFormation offering a more straightforward financial model.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS CloudFormation vs. Chef Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. Chef

March 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 884,328 peers since 2012

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

5.2

Microsoft Intune offers cost savings, enhanced security, and efficiency, reducing administrative tasks and integrating seamlessly into Microsoft ecosystems.

Sentiment score

5.0

Organizations saw 100% ROI with AWS CloudFormation in three years, valuing it for preventing losses during site downtime.

Sentiment score

6.7

Chef enhances work efficiency and ROI by streamlining deployment, reducing manual labor, and supporting scalable infrastructure management.

Everything we've gained from it makes my job easier day after day, and I see value in it as an engineer.

AndreaReynolds

IT Systems Engineer at Syracuse University

Microsoft Intune not only saves costs by reducing the number of personnel needed but also offers a comprehensive solution for managing laptops, applications, security, individual access, and enrollment.

Bharath Bharadwaj

Subject Matter Expert at Engage IT Services Pvt Ltd

With Microsoft Intune, tasks such as device provisioning, policy deployment, application delivery, and compliance enforcement require less manual effort than in more traditional management models.

Simone Termine

Endpoint Cloud Solution Architect at Lutech

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

The return has been far more hours saved than spent.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

We have seen significant improvement in the time and the way we make changes to the infrastructure.

Sai Chandra

Principal Engineer at Wipro Limited

I have seen a return on investment with Chef because we definitely need fewer employees to manage infrastructure.

TariqSiddiqui

Principal DevOps engineer at Autodesk, Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

5.6

Microsoft Intune's customer service is inconsistent; privileged support excels, while standard service and initial support may falter.

Sentiment score

6.2

AWS CloudFormation support is efficient and knowledgeable, though non-production response times and non-critical inquiries need improvement.

Sentiment score

5.8

Chef's customer support varies, with positive presales support, but challenges lead users to community forums and AWS for help.

When a support ticket is submitted, it directly reaches someone with Intune support expertise.

Joseph Merusi

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

When I contacted Microsoft, they had the same expertise, if not more, which is phenomenal because I felt heard and my problem was solved.

AndreaReynolds

IT Systems Engineer at Syracuse University

Sometimes, the support provided is excellent, and the representative is knowledgeable, while other times, the service needs improvement.

Jeff Wickham

Engineer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

While this might be acceptable for some, it can be lengthy depending on the urgency of the issue.

Mbula Mboma

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

Free support for AWS CloudFormation is not provided, and while some support is understandable due to its complexity, assistance for service-related issues should be accessible without a cost.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

We usually work with the Chef teams and community support, who are always willing to assist.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

6.8

Microsoft Intune excels in scalability, efficiently managing diverse deployments with automated policies and centralized management for seamless expansion.

Sentiment score

6.7

AWS CloudFormation is scalable, user-friendly, and praised for security, though it needs better interactivity and tool compatibility.

Sentiment score

7.3

Chef is praised for managing numerous nodes efficiently in diverse cloud environments despite some challenges with scaling.

The scalability of Microsoft Intune is ten out of ten.

reviewer2595288

Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

Ideally, we want to automatically segregate devices based on user properties like primary use, but currently, dynamic groups seem limited to device properties.

reviewer2595294

Engineer, Systems Admin . at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees

It supports organizations with 200 endpoints and those with more than 15,000 endpoints.

Martijn Van De Weijenberg

Director at Provisioned

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

Splitting CloudFormation into multiple formations results in changes to resources like API gateway URLs and Cognito pools, which causes issues, especially when trying to maintain consistency across resources.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

Adjusting capacity and functionality is a fundamental use.

Mbula Mboma

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

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

We leverage both to achieve the best option possible for scaling.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

Chef's scalability is evident as the public sector organization I work at serves a population of 5 million, and we have had no problems with scaling.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

6.8

Microsoft Intune is highly rated for stability and reliability, though occasional policy update lags and minor bugs occur.

Sentiment score

6.6

AWS CloudFormation is considered stable and efficient, with high user ratings despite occasional issues during complex operations.

Sentiment score

7.7

Chef offers reliable performance, minimal disruptions, and effective scalability, with high stability ratings and strong community support.

We have not experienced downtime, bugs, or glitches.

Alan Barrett

Head of IT at TWM SOLICITORS LLP

It appears Microsoft Intune undergoes changes without informing customers.

Jesper Boenigk

Support Engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees

In my experience, Microsoft Intune is a stable platform as it is a cloud-based service, and updates are regularly delivered by Microsoft.

Borhen Issaoui

IT Administrator at Newrest Inflight España, S.A

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

It has been reliable and efficient in all my deployments.

Mbula Mboma

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

Data loss can occur when splitting or scaling applications due to changes in resources.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

It's a service that has been around for years, and it handles large complex deployments and updates with very good consistency.

Sridivya Chillappa

application security engineer at Hyperspace IT India

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

It is a good tool to work with, offering a strong developer experience and community support.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

Chef is stable.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

In my experience, Chef is quite stable most of the time.

Sai Chandra

Principal Engineer at Wipro Limited

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Intune requires better Mac/Linux compatibility, simplified setup, stronger reporting, and cost-effective operation to address user challenges and desires.

AWS CloudFormation is complex, lacks multi-cloud support, and users desire better error handling, GUI, and automation features.

Chef needs improved simplicity, integration, performance, documentation, better error messages, enhanced support, and usability for wider adoption.

Features like unlocking devices sometimes fail, and the support offered for other operating systems is insufficient.

Thomas Howard

Strategy & Portfolio Advisor at a insurance company with 1,001-5,000 employees

There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now.

Joseph Merusi

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

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.

Jeff Wickham

Engineer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

It presents challenges for users unfamiliar with coding, posing as a barrier to fully utilizing CloudFormation.

Mbula Mboma

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

Creating microservices and connecting multiple APIs into a single API gateway can be challenging; documentation should address specific needs.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

Managing the correct order of resource creation and some updates can be tricky, especially with interdependent resources.

Sridivya Chillappa

application security engineer at Hyperspace IT India

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

On support, I think there should be more focus on how we can achieve AI automations in answering questions for beginners and addressing deep concerns without general manual management.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

To improve Chef, making an interface with another language such as Python or Java that is well understood, as capable as Ruby, and even more widely adopted would demystify it a bit.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

The learning curve is steep due to Chef's Ruby-based DSL and the complex components of cookbooks and recipes, which can be challenging for new users, especially those without programming backgrounds.

K. Rajesh

Senior Consultant Development at Infogain

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Setup Cost

Microsoft Intune offers competitive pricing, especially for Microsoft 365 users, though smaller companies sometimes face cost challenges.

AWS CloudFormation is cost-effective and scalable, charging only for deployed resources, but unexpected costs may arise without careful management.

Enterprise users find Chef's pricing flexible but complex, appreciating AWS Marketplace integration despite preferring cheaper open-source alternatives.

Introductory professional services, like a fast-track service, were included with our E5 membership, and there have been no additional costs.

reviewer2595750

Senior Systems Architect IV at a aerospace/defense firm with 10,001+ employees

The Intune suite and add-ons, such as batch management and remote help, are costly.

Mahmoud-Eldeep

Technical Sales Professional (Microsoft Modern Workplace) at Alnafitha IT

It costs approximately forty euros per user per month.

Gintaras_Navickas

Cyber Security Officer at Gudu

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

AWS CloudFormation is free.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

Licensing looks reasonable compared to the manual work of managing whole data centers with even 10,000 servers.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that we sidestepped it by using Cinc because none of the functionality that is exclusive to the paid version was actually in use in the organization.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Valuable Features

Microsoft Intune excels in zero-touch deployment, security, and management, enhancing compliance, productivity, and user experience across devices.

AWS CloudFormation enables automation and scalable deployments with nested stacks, YAML/JSON support, easy configuration, and seamless AWS integration.

Chef automates configuration management, supporting scalability, ease of use, and efficiency, ideal for large-scale cloud environments with community support.

Intune excels in configuration and compliance management for Windows 10, ensuring devices receive timely updates and adhere to organizational standards.

reviewer2563299

Microsoft Practice Lead at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Dynamic groups allow us to set conditions for automatic membership, eliminating the need for user intervention or manual review and ensuring a seamless workflow.

reviewer2595294

Engineer, Systems Admin . at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees

Windows Autopatch is the most valuable because it removes the burden of patch management.

Martijn Van De Weijenberg

Director at Provisioned

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Intune report

I can see the entire infrastructure and its connections through code.

Mbula Mboma

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

Managing, maintaining, and deploying become easier as it allows the creation of the same resources on multiple accounts, making it efficient for infrastructure management.

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

For more quotes and insights, download the AWS CloudFormation report

Security is a key aspect that Chef can automate, monitor new features that are available, and even do patches without you getting involved.

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

When you have infrastructure as code and you already have everything apart from the environment-specific config, which you can specify in variables, then it is not only more repeatable and reliable, it is faster.

reviewer2787969

Technical Architecture Support at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Using Chef for automating infrastructure and applications in my organization has helped us reduce manual tasks by more than forty percent, thereby saving significant revenue for the client.

Sai Chandra

Principal Engineer at Wipro Limited

For more quotes and insights, download the Chef report

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 6.9%, down from 10.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS CloudFormation is 3.4%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Chef is 3.4%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Configuration Management Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune	6.9%
AWS CloudFormation	3.4%
Chef	3.4%
Other	86.3%

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble

Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24

Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license

The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.

Read full review

Kishor Kawale

Full-stack Developer / AWS Architect at Mantiqh Technologies

Infrastructure management becomes more efficient with automated deployments using code

Improvements are needed for sharing resources between template files, especially when using AWS SAM. Documentation can be difficult to understand, and I suggest AWS provide small instructional videos on their website. Additionally, creating microservices and connecting multiple APIs into a single API gateway can be challenging; documentation should address specific needs. The ability to split CloudFormation templates without losing data due to changes in resources like API gateway URLs or Cognito pools is also needed.

Read full review

Walter Ochieng Odhiambo

Software Engineer and Tester at Safaricom

Automation has transformed daily infrastructure work and now frees teams to focus on new challenges

One thing that Chef needs to improve on is making it available in as many languages as possible. There should be a focus on how to make it understandable, not just to infrastructure people, but also to those working in monitoring. How can we ensure that it is part of their daily input? That is something that still has a small missing link. We are almost there, but it can help us achieve outcomes in the future in terms of objectives, not just workflows and visibility. How can we make real-time interactive dashboards more available? Look at what kind of tools can be integrated with them, not just working with the ones like Chef Kitchen and Habitat, but trying to make it even more flexible than what we have right now. On support, I think there should be more focus on how we can achieve AI automations in answering questions for beginners and addressing deep concerns without general manual management.

Read full review

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Computer Software Company

13%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Comms Service Provider

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	124
Midsize Enterprise	51
Large Enterprise	166

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	17

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	19

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 ...

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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.

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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?

When it comes to the challenges with AWS CloudFormation, I faced a few challenges. One challenge is associated with l...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Chef?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that we sidestepped it by using Cinc because none of the fun...

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What needs improvement with Chef?

I would add that Ruby is a domain-specific language in the Chef dialect, which is a learning curve, but so is Terrafo...

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What is your primary use case for Chef?

My main use case for Chef is configuration and deployments. We receive blank servers and use Chef to build predefined...

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Comparisons

Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 10% of the time

IBM MaaS360 vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 8% of the time

Workspace ONE UEM vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 8% of the time

ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 4% of the time

More Microsoft Intune Competitors

HashiCorp Terraform vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 12% of the time

VMware Aria Automation vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 9% of the time

AWS Systems Manager vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 9% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 9% of the time

BigFix vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 3% of the time

More AWS CloudFormation Competitors

BigFix vs Chef

Compared 10% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Chef

Compared 7% of the time

Jenkins vs Chef

Compared 6% of the time

GitHub Actions vs Chef

Compared 5% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs Chef

Compared 4% of the time

More Chef Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

February 2026

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation

March 2026

Download AWS CloudFormation product report

Buyer's Guide

Chef

March 2026

Download Chef product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

CloudFormation

No data available

Overview

Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based service designed for device management, security, and compliance. It supports automation and facilitates endpoint management for Windows, iOS, and Android devices, ensuring data protection and efficient policy enforcement.

Microsoft Intune offers seamless integration with tools like Windows Autopilot to automate device setup and deployment. Integrated with Azure Active Directory, it enhances policy management while providing robust reporting and analytics tools for compliance tracking. Despite its intuitive interface aimed at simplifying navigation and device security management, there are challenges such as compatibility issues with Linux and Mac, limited policy support for Android, and demands for better third-party integration. It's widely used for both corporate-owned devices and BYOD scenarios in dynamic IT environments.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Windows Autopilot: Automates device setup for rapid deployment.
Azure Active Directory Integration: Enhances user policy management.
Reporting and Analytics: Improves compliance visibility.
Mobile Application Management: Ensures app security without compromising personal data.
Cloud-Based Management: Allows management from any location.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Time Efficiency: Automation reduces time in policy enforcement and configuration updates.
Enhanced Security: Ensures data protection across corporate-owned and BYOD devices.
Improved Compliance: Advanced reporting tools enhance compliance visibility.
Flexible Management: Cloud-based nature supports management from any location.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure data protection and compliance with regulatory standards. Manufacturing sectors utilize Intune for managing a distributed workforce across global locations, while educational institutions employ it to secure and manage devices in learning environments supporting both students and faculty.

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)

Chef, is the leader in DevOps, driving collaboration through code to automate infrastructure, security, compliance and applications. Chef provides a single path to production making it faster and safer to add value to applications and meet the demands of the customer. Deployed broadly in production by the Global 5000 and used by more than half of the Fortune 500, Chef develops 100 percent of its software as open source under the Apache 2.0 license with no restrictions on its use. Chef Enterprise Automation Stack™, a commercial distribution, is developed solely from that open source code and unifies security, compliance, infrastructure and application automation with observability. Chef provides an unequaled developer experience for the Coded Enterprise by enabling users to express infrastructure, security policies and the application lifecycle as code, modernizing development, packaging and delivery of any application to any platform. For more information, visit http://chef.io and follow @chef.

Progress Software

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Nextdoor, Coinbase, Expedia

Facebook, Standard Bank, GE Capital, Nordstrom, Optum, Barclays, IGN, General Motors, Scholastic, Riot Games, NCR, Gap

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. Chef

March 2026

Free Report: AWS CloudFormation vs. Chef

Find out what your peers are saying about AWS CloudFormation vs. Chef and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.

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