KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs Perforce Puppet comparison

The compared Quest Software and Perforce solutions aren't in the same category. Quest Software is ranked #11 in RMM , with an average rating of 10.0, and holds a 1.7% mindshare in the category. Perforce is ranked #16 in CM , with an average rating of 8.0, and holds a 3.7% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Quest Software users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Perforce users who would recommend it.

KACE Systems Management App...

Read 39 KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) reviews

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341 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Perforce Puppet

Read 14 Perforce Puppet reviews

1,321 Views
1,176 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

KACE Systems Management App...

Perforce Puppet

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 28, 2025

Perforce Puppet and KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) are competing in system management and automation. Perforce Puppet holds the upper hand in automation functionalities, while KACE SMA is known for its extensive device management capabilities.

Features: Perforce Puppet includes agent-based functionality, integrates well with Bomgar, and offers a large code repository. KACE SMA allows mass package deployment, provides comprehensive asset management, and features a powerful scripting tool for automation.

Room for Improvement: Perforce Puppet could improve on ease of deployment and reduce reliance on technical support. KACE SMA may benefit from enhanced integration with non-Windows systems and reducing its overall system complexity for smaller businesses.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: KACE SMA features straightforward deployment models and reliable customer service, making management tasks easier for IT admins. Perforce Puppet offers robust solutions but requires more initial setup and technical guidance.

Pricing and ROI: Perforce Puppet offers competitive pricing with potentially favorable ROI for automation tasks. KACE SMA may demand higher initial costs but justifies them with its comprehensive feature set, delivering substantial value over time.

To learn more, read our detailed KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Perforce Puppet Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Perforce Puppet

January 2025

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Helped 882,207 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:

Categories and Ranking

KACE Systems Management App...

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Client Desktop Management (3rd), Endpoint Compliance (7th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (11th), Patch Management (9th), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (10th)

Perforce Puppet

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Configuration Management (16th)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Systems Management solutions, they serve different purposes. KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is designed for Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) and holds a mindshare of 1.7%, up 1.3% compared to last year.
Perforce Puppet, on the other hand, focuses on Configuration Management, holds 3.7% mindshare, up 0.8% since last year.

Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)	1.7%
Kaseya VSA	15.8%
NinjaOne	11.4%
Other	71.1%

Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM)

Configuration Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Perforce Puppet	3.7%
Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform	12.2%
Microsoft Configuration Manager	9.5%
Other	74.6%

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

Michael Huffman

Server Administrator III at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees

Reliability and adaptability enable efficient application deployment and security management

The best features Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) offers include the scripting function, which stands out to me because I can find specific needs and deploy the applications based on those needs. There was a time when scripting really saved me time by allowing me to find specific registry entries and modify them to patch security vulnerabilities. Scripting has saved us hundreds of hours over the years when patching these vulnerabilities compared to how we did it before. I really enjoy the security features that are enabled to deploy Microsoft and other vendor patches, which stand out to me as key functionalities.

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reviewer2284542

Business Development Manager at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Automated configuration management ensures consistent server setups

The strength of Puppet is in automated configuration management. We can configure a server once and set rules with Puppet so that future server configurations are automatic and consistent with company requests. Puppet is declarative, meaning it finds the best state for itself and corrects any deviations in the configuration.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"There is one place for a lot of different things. If somebody has a problem with their computer, they will put in a ticket. From there, we will know who it is and the assets assigned to them, because there is one place to go look for what we are talking about and with whom we are talking. Just having one place for everything is really convenient. For example, we are able to deploy software to hundreds of computers. We don't need to go to each individual device."

"KACE has made our life much easier since we got off the Microsoft solution. The Microsoft solution was a lot harder to image over different ports and stuff. They would only have this one place where we could do all the imaging. Now, we have a whole building where we can image from. This means that we can image from our storage area, where we have a place to do our imaging. We can also image right at our desks, which is a lot easier."

"The scripting is a very valuable feature, as it saves us time on pushing certain things out to the users, such as software and patches."

"The ability to push an image to a machine, wake that image up, and just blast a new image to a computer without even having to touch it, and then push the software to that machine. This just made things so much more convenient for us and so much more efficient."

"This solution makes it easy to control assets and upgrade all types of software."

"I am impressed by the service desk ticketing and asset management."

"The software asset management has been a big help, even when it comes to license true-ups. I can use it to find out how many Tivoli we have, and boom, there's the number... And you can actually click on the information about the software and it shows, for example, that these five servers are where it's being reported. If you really want, you can log in to them and validate."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to have an overview of all devices that are accessing our environment."

More KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) pros

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

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

"The agent-based feature helps me by being stable."

"Puppet Enterprise is a stable solution."

"Puppet Enterprise has good functionalities."

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

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

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

More Perforce Puppet pros

Cons

"I've had some issues with patch catalogue."

"The initial setup was complex. It is a Linux-based virtual server, where the customer cannot get into the back-end, so you can only follow their prompts. Then, there are specific things that have to be done in their implementation and upgrade phases that have to be done in a certain order or steps. If you don't get those steps right, the system doesn't work. I think that either simplifying that process or providing really good step-by-step documentation would be helpful."

"I still need better communication about which processes are really due and which processes are currently being processed. According to the initial setup service provider, there is still no real management or overview on KACE where you can really see 100 percent of what is going on as well as what is going to be processed next and whether I can influence the overall process. It could really help me if I knew, e.g. exactly in 10 minutes my colleague will be supplied with this or that software. I haven't found this yet. If they could add this, that would be cool. It is still missing and I haven't yet found something like this."

"Paying for the product should come with full and extended training anytime it is needed."

"When we have to do a rebuild on these machines, although it is rare, I would like to be able to do more than 10 at a time. With the current limit, it slows me down because I have to set up 10, then the next 10, and so forth."

"The GUI needs some work. I love all that it can do, however, it can be just be so cluttered at times."

"I have complaints about smart label adaptation and because of this, I recommend a 24 to 48 hour bake-in period."

"I would like for there to be improvement when it comes to Microsoft and Windows updates. It has the ability to do it but the control of it is not there like I have in the Windows Server Update Services. The way KACE does it is still very granular. You don't really see the process like it is in the Windows Server Update Services. I think that would be one of the biggest things that I would like to see KACE really put some work into and really make that a big enhancement."

More KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) cons

"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."

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

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

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

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Based on other solutions that we had implemented, its pricing seems to be quite competitive. It is not inexpensive, but it is also not more expensive than any other solution. They have the standard licensing fees and support fees."

"We buy consulting fees from Software Factory, then we pay extra for it."

"n terms of pricing and licensing, my advice is that you need to assess what you need and then look at what they offer. It's easy to get caught up in the things that you want, but don't really need."

"The product is reasonably priced."

"It was a very attractive price. This is a huge feature of this product. If you would "credit score" this product versus others out there on the market, this one has a very attractive price."

"Some of the other solutions were just astronomical in price compared with KACE and didn't necessarily have the ease of use either. So, we chose Quest KACE for its easy-to-use features and cost."

"The pricing is great. It's billed annually and it's very reasonable."

"We need it, so we have to pay the price. It is what it is. If you need a gallon of milk, then you have to pay the price for it. You don't want to buy the cheap stuff. You want to buy the stuff that is organic and good for your body, which doesn't have all this other junk in it. You want it clean for your body. Quest has done that for our deployment and management systems."

More KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) pricing and cost advice

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

"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’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

University

11%

Non Profit

10%

Government

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

13%

Financial Services Firm

Outsourcing Company

Marketing Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	8
Midsize Enterprise	20
Large Enterprise	15

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	4

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Quest KACE Systems Management?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is that, hands down, it beat all of the others in simplicity and pricing.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Quest KACE Systems Management?

I wish Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) would have a top-down approach since we use orgs; currently, we have to go into each org to deploy applications when we need them all across the...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Quest KACE Systems Management?

My main use case for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is to deploy applications and maintain security, and we use it day-to-day to handle those tasks. With Quest KACE Systems Managemen...

See all answers

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

Regarding the cost, I find it expensive, always. I don't know how much the license would cost per year or per user approximately.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Puppet Enterprise?

I don't know what could be improved in Perforce Puppet to make this tool better for the next release. I can't think of anything for now, except maybe the price, which I consider high at 50%.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Puppet Enterprise?

My main use case for Perforce Puppet is for configuration management.

See all answers

Comparisons

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BigFix vs KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

Compared 7% of the time

ManageEngine Patch Manager Plus vs KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

Compared 5% of the time

GFI LanGuard vs KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

Compared 5% of the time

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AWS Systems Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 12% of the time

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 12% of the time

Microsoft Intune vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 9% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 8% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Perforce Puppet

Compared 7% of the time

More Perforce Puppet Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

February 2026

KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) report

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Buyer's Guide

Perforce Puppet

January 2026

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Also Known As

Dell KACE Systems Management

Puppet

Overview

KACE Systems Management Appliance offers integration capabilities, efficient image deployment, and comprehensive asset management. It supports centralized management across diverse devices and locations, simplifying IT processes and enhancing security.

KACE Systems Management Appliance provides single-pane visibility for endpoint management, mass software deployment, automated patch management, robust scripting, and detailed inventory tracking. It streamlines IT management and improves cyber-security compliance through remote software updates and centralized IT request handling. Despite struggles with scalability and the need for interface improvements, it enables efficient device imaging, script automation, and network management through detailed reporting. Organizations find it effective for software deployment, asset management, and endpoint monitoring, serving thousands of IoT devices and desktops.

What are the key features of KACE Systems Management Appliance?

Integration capabilities: Seamlessly connects with existing IT systems.
Efficient image deployment: Facilitates quick and effective distribution of system images.
Comprehensive asset management: Provides detailed tracking and management of IT assets.
User-friendly helpdesk: Simplifies handling IT requests and issues.
Automated patch management: Ensures devices are up-to-date with security patches.
Robust scripting: Allows for automation of complex IT tasks.
Detailed inventory tracking: Maintains accurate records of all IT assets.

What benefits should users expect from KACE Systems Management Appliance?

Simplified IT processes: Centralized management enhances operational efficiency.
Improved security: Streamlines cyber-security compliance through automated updates.
Flexibility in customizations: Adapts to specific IT environment needs.
Increased productivity: Efficient ticketing and reporting ease organizational operations.
Remote software updates: Ensures all devices are current, reducing security risks.

In healthcare, KACE Systems Management Appliance is used for maintaining device compliance and security standards. Educational institutions benefit from its capabilities to manage large numbers of endpoints across campuses. In finance, it aids in strict compliance requirements through automated patch management and detailed reporting. Retail sectors leverage its asset management features to streamline operations across numerous locations.

Quest Software

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

Waypoint, Mattos Filho, Meetic, Gems Education, Green Clinic HealthSystem, Service King

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

Buyer's Guide

KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Perforce Puppet

January 2025

Free Report: KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Perforce Puppet

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