InSpec vs Test Kitchen: What are the differences?

Introduction

InSpec and Test Kitchen are both tools used in the field of infrastructure testing and automation. While they serve similar functions, there are some key differences between the two that set them apart.

1. Purpose: InSpec is a testing framework that focuses on defining and enforcing compliance, security, and policy requirements within infrastructure code. Test Kitchen, on the other hand, is primarily used for the development and testing of infrastructure code and configuration management solutions before deployment.

2. Language: InSpec uses a domain-specific language (DSL) specifically designed for writing compliance tests. Test Kitchen, on the other hand, typically works in conjunction with infrastructure provisioning tools such as Chef, Ansible, or Puppet, using the syntax of these tools to define infrastructure configurations.

3. Testing Scope: InSpec is primarily used for integration testing of infrastructure and compliance requirements against actual nodes in a system. Test Kitchen, on the other hand, focuses on unit testing and validating the behavior of infrastructure code by spinning up virtual server instances and applying configurations.

4. Dependencies: In the case of InSpec, the tool is standalone and does not have dependencies on other tools or frameworks. Test Kitchen, on the other hand, relies on external tools such as Chef, Ansible, or Puppet for infrastructure provisioning and configuration management.

5. User Base: InSpec is more commonly used by compliance and security professionals for validating and auditing infrastructure compliance. Test Kitchen, on the other hand, is popular among developers and operations teams for testing infrastructure configurations in development environments.

6. Execution Environment: InSpec tests are typically executed on target systems directly, while Test Kitchen runs tests on temporary instances or containers to simulate the production environment.

In Summary, despite sharing the goal of testing infrastructure code, InSpec and Test Kitchen differ in purpose, language, testing scope, dependencies, user base, and execution environment.