Chef InSpec
Turn your compliance, security, and other policy requirements into code.
Overview
Chef InSpec is an open-source framework for testing and auditing your applications and infrastructure. It works by comparing the actual state of your system with the desired state that you express in easy-to-read and easy-to-write InSpec code. While often used for testing live servers, it can also be used to test IaC by provisioning temporary infrastructure and running tests against it.
✨ Key Features
- Human-readable testing language (RSpec-like)
- Test local or remote systems over SSH or WinRM
- Extensive resources for checking files, packages, services, ports, etc.
- Cloud provider resources for checking AWS, Azure, GCP configurations
- Can be used for compliance and security auditing
🎯 Key Differentiators
- Human-readable, domain-specific language (DSL) makes tests easy to write and understand.
- Strong focus on compliance and security auditing.
- Extensive library of resources for inspecting system state.
Unique Value: Express and automate your security and compliance requirements as human-readable code.
🎯 Use Cases (4)
✅ Best For
- Writing compliance tests to verify that a server provisioned by IaC has the correct security settings, packages, and service configurations.
💡 Check With Vendor
Verify these considerations match your specific requirements:
- Pure static analysis of IaC files (InSpec generally requires a live system to test against).
🏆 Alternatives
Compared to Terratest, which uses a general-purpose language (Go), InSpec provides a specialized DSL that can make writing compliance and security checks simpler and more declarative.
💻 Platforms
🔌 Integrations
🛟 Support Options
- ✓ Email Support
- ✓ Live Chat
- ✓ Phone Support
- ✓ Dedicated Support (Enterprise tier)
💰 Pricing
✓ 14-day free trial
Free tier: The open-source InSpec framework is free.
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