Kubernetes vs Salt

Overview

Salt

Stacks410

Followers449

Votes165

GitHub Stars14.9K

Forks5.6K

Kubernetes

Stacks61.2K

Followers52.8K

Votes685

Kubernetes vs Salt: What are the differences?

Introduction

Kubernetes and Salt are two popular tools in the realm of DevOps and containerization. While both serve a similar purpose of managing and orchestrating containers, they differ in their approach and functionalities. This document outlines the key differences between Kubernetes and Salt.

Clustering and Orchestration: Kubernetes is primarily designed for container orchestration and manages clusters of containers across multiple host machines. It provides features like automatic scaling, load-balancing, and rolling updates, making it suitable for large-scale deployments. On the other hand, Salt is more focused on automation and configuration management. It offers a centralized infrastructure management approach and can be used for managing various types of systems, including containers. Salt's strength lies in its ability to handle complex configurations and perform remote execution tasks efficiently.
Architecture: Kubernetes follows a master-worker architecture, where a cluster consists of a master node that manages the overall state and several worker nodes that run the actual containers. It relies on a distributed key-value store (etcd) to store cluster state and uses a declarative approach to define desired state (through YAML manifests). Salt, on the other hand, utilizes a master-minion architecture, where the master node acts as a central control point and the multiple minion nodes execute instructions from the master. It uses a push-based model where the master pushes configurations and commands to the minions.
Scalability and Flexibility: Kubernetes offers great scalability and can handle a large number of containers and nodes. It provides auto-scaling features, allowing the cluster to scale up or down based on resource usage. Kubernetes supports various runtime environments (like Docker), allowing flexibility in containerization. Salt, on the other hand, is known for its flexibility and extensibility, enabling users to manage diverse systems beyond just containers. It allows the use of different execution modules and states to manage different types of systems (such as servers, network devices, and even cloud infrastructure).
Community and Ecosystem: Kubernetes has a large and vibrant community backing it, with a vast ecosystem of tools and plugins built around it. The community actively contributes to its development and provides extensive documentation and support. Salt also has an active community, but it is relatively smaller compared to Kubernetes. However, Salt boasts a rich set of modules and states that can be readily used for configuration management and automation tasks. It also offers a variety of integrations with other tools, making it a versatile tool in the DevOps landscape.
Learning Curve and Complexity: Kubernetes has a steep learning curve due to its complex architecture and multitude of features. It requires a solid understanding of concepts like pods, services, deployments, and networking. While it provides great control and flexibility, it may be overwhelming for beginners or smaller deployments. Salt, on the other hand, has a more straightforward setup and configuration process. The configuration files are written in a human-readable YAML or Jinja template format, making it easier to understand and manage. Salt's focus on automation and infrastructure management also makes it more approachable for users with diverse backgrounds.
Use Cases and Adoption: Kubernetes is primarily used for managing and orchestrating containers in production environments. It is widely adopted by organizations for deploying scalable and fault-tolerant applications. Salt, on the other hand, is more versatile and can be used for a broad range of use cases, including infrastructure management, configuration management, and orchestration. It is well-suited for both small and large-scale deployments and can handle complex configurations. This versatility has made Salt a popular choice for both system administrators and DevOps engineers.

In Summary, Kubernetes excels in container orchestration, scalability, and large-scale deployments, while Salt focuses on automation, configuration management, and managing diverse systems beyond containers. Both tools have their strengths and use cases, and the choice between them depends on specific requirements and preferences.

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CLI (Node.js)

Manual

Advice on Salt, Kubernetes

Simon

Senior Fullstack Developer at QUANTUSflow Software GmbH

Apr 27, 2020

Decidedon

GitHub

GitHub Pages

Markdown

Our whole DevOps stack consists of the following tools:

@{GitHub}|tool:27| (incl. @{GitHub Pages}|tool:683|/@{Markdown}|tool:1147| for Documentation, GettingStarted and HowTo's) for collaborative review and code management tool
Respectively @{Git}|tool:1046| as revision control system
@{SourceTree}|tool:1599| as @{Git}|tool:1046| GUI
@{Visual Studio Code}|tool:4202| as IDE
@{CircleCI}|tool:190| for continuous integration (automatize development process)
@{Prettier}|tool:7035| / @{TSLint}|tool:5561| / @{ESLint}|tool:3337| as code linter
@{SonarQube}|tool:2638| as quality gate
@{Docker}|tool:586| as container management (incl. @{Docker Compose}|tool:3136| for multi-container application management)
@{VirtualBox}|tool:774| for operating system simulation tests
@{Kubernetes}|tool:1885| as cluster management for docker containers
@{Heroku}|tool:133| for deploying in test environments
@{nginx}|tool:1052| as web server (preferably used as facade server in production environment)
@{SSLMate}|tool:2752| (using @{OpenSSL}|tool:3091|) for certificate management
@{Amazon EC2}|tool:18| (incl. @{Amazon S3}|tool:25|) for deploying in stage (production-like) and production environments
@{PostgreSQL}|tool:1028| as preferred database system
@{Redis}|tool:1031| as preferred in-memory database/store (great for caching)

The main reason we have chosen Kubernetes over Docker Swarm is related to the following artifacts:

Key features: Easy and flexible installation, Clear dashboard, Great scaling operations, Monitoring is an integral part, Great load balancing concepts, Monitors the condition and ensures compensation in the event of failure.
Applications: An application can be deployed using a combination of pods, deployments, and services (or micro-services).
Functionality: Kubernetes as a complex installation and setup process, but it not as limited as Docker Swarm.
Monitoring: It supports multiple versions of logging and monitoring when the services are deployed within the cluster (Elasticsearch/Kibana (ELK), Heapster/Grafana, Sysdig cloud integration).
Scalability: All-in-one framework for distributed systems.
Other Benefits: Kubernetes is backed by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), huge community among container orchestration tools, it is an open source and modular tool that works with any OS.

12.8M views12.8M

Comments

Detailed Comparison

Salt	Kubernetes
Salt is a new approach to infrastructure management. Easy enough to get running in minutes, scalable enough to manage tens of thousands of servers, and fast enough to communicate with them in seconds. Salt delivers a dynamic communication bus for infrastructures that can be used for orchestration, remote execution, configuration management and much more.	Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers. It handles scheduling onto nodes in a compute cluster and actively manages workloads to ensure that their state matches the users declared intentions.
Remote execution is the core function of Salt. Running pre-defined or arbitrary commands on remote hosts.;Salt modules are the core of remote execution. They provide functionality such as installing packages, restarting a service, running a remote command, transferring files, and infinitely more;Building on the remote execution core is a robust and flexible configuration management framework. Execution happens on the minions allowing effortless, simultaneous configuration of tens of thousands of hosts.	Lightweight, simple and accessible;Built for a multi-cloud world, public, private or hybrid;Highly modular, designed so that all of its components are easily swappable
Statistics
GitHub Stars 14.9K	GitHub Stars -
GitHub Forks 5.6K	GitHub Forks -
Stacks 410	Stacks 61.2K
Followers 449	Followers 52.8K
Votes 165	Votes 685
Pros & Cons
Pros 47 Flexible 30 Easy 27 Remote execution 24 Enormously flexible 12 Great plugin API Cons 1 Dangerous 1 No immutable infrastructure 1 Bloated	Pros 166 Leading docker container management solution 130 Simple and powerful 108 Open source 76 Backed by google 58 The right abstractions Cons 16 Steep learning curve 15 Poor workflow for development 8 Orchestrates only infrastructure 4 High resource requirements for on-prem clusters 2 Too heavy for simple systems
Integrations
No integrations available	Vagrant Docker Rackspace Cloud Servers Microsoft Azure Google Compute Engine Ansible Google Kubernetes Engine

What are some alternatives to Salt, Kubernetes?

Ansible

Ansible is an IT automation tool. It can configure systems, deploy software, and orchestrate more advanced IT tasks such as continuous deployments or zero downtime rolling updates. Ansible’s goals are foremost those of simplicity and maximum ease of use.

Rancher

Rancher is an open source container management platform that includes full distributions of Kubernetes, Apache Mesos and Docker Swarm, and makes it simple to operate container clusters on any cloud or infrastructure platform.

Docker Compose

With Compose, you define a multi-container application in a single file, then spin your application up in a single command which does everything that needs to be done to get it running.

Chef

Chef enables you to manage and scale cloud infrastructure with no downtime or interruptions. Freely move applications and configurations from one cloud to another. Chef is integrated with all major cloud providers including Amazon EC2, VMWare, IBM Smartcloud, Rackspace, OpenStack, Windows Azure, HP Cloud, Google Compute Engine, Joyent Cloud and others.

Terraform

With Terraform, you describe your complete infrastructure as code, even as it spans multiple service providers. Your servers may come from AWS, your DNS may come from CloudFlare, and your database may come from Heroku. Terraform will build all these resources across all these providers in parallel.

Docker Swarm

Swarm serves the standard Docker API, so any tool which already communicates with a Docker daemon can use Swarm to transparently scale to multiple hosts: Dokku, Compose, Krane, Deis, DockerUI, Shipyard, Drone, Jenkins... and, of course, the Docker client itself.

Tutum

Tutum lets developers easily manage and run lightweight, portable, self-sufficient containers from any application. AWS-like control, Heroku-like ease. The same container that a developer builds and tests on a laptop can run at scale in Tutum.

Capistrano

Capistrano is a remote server automation tool. It supports the scripting and execution of arbitrary tasks, and includes a set of sane-default deployment workflows.

Puppet Labs

Puppet is an automated administrative engine for your Linux, Unix, and Windows systems and performs administrative tasks (such as adding users, installing packages, and updating server configurations) based on a centralized specification.

Portainer

It is a universal container management tool. It works with Kubernetes, Docker, Docker Swarm and Azure ACI. It allows you to manage containers without needing to know platform-specific code.

Related Comparisons

Stacks410

Followers449

Votes165

GitHub Stars14.9K

Forks5.6K

Kubernetes

Stacks61.2K

Followers52.8K

Votes685

Kubernetes vs Salt: What are the differences?

Introduction

Clustering and Orchestration: Kubernetes is primarily designed for container orchestration and manages clusters of containers across multiple host machines. It provides features like automatic scaling, load-balancing, and rolling updates, making it suitable for large-scale deployments. On the other hand, Salt is more focused on automation and configuration management. It offers a centralized infrastructure management approach and can be used for managing various types of systems, including containers. Salt's strength lies in its ability to handle complex configurations and perform remote execution tasks efficiently.
Architecture: Kubernetes follows a master-worker architecture, where a cluster consists of a master node that manages the overall state and several worker nodes that run the actual containers. It relies on a distributed key-value store (etcd) to store cluster state and uses a declarative approach to define desired state (through YAML manifests). Salt, on the other hand, utilizes a master-minion architecture, where the master node acts as a central control point and the multiple minion nodes execute instructions from the master. It uses a push-based model where the master pushes configurations and commands to the minions.
Scalability and Flexibility: Kubernetes offers great scalability and can handle a large number of containers and nodes. It provides auto-scaling features, allowing the cluster to scale up or down based on resource usage. Kubernetes supports various runtime environments (like Docker), allowing flexibility in containerization. Salt, on the other hand, is known for its flexibility and extensibility, enabling users to manage diverse systems beyond just containers. It allows the use of different execution modules and states to manage different types of systems (such as servers, network devices, and even cloud infrastructure).
Community and Ecosystem: Kubernetes has a large and vibrant community backing it, with a vast ecosystem of tools and plugins built around it. The community actively contributes to its development and provides extensive documentation and support. Salt also has an active community, but it is relatively smaller compared to Kubernetes. However, Salt boasts a rich set of modules and states that can be readily used for configuration management and automation tasks. It also offers a variety of integrations with other tools, making it a versatile tool in the DevOps landscape.
Learning Curve and Complexity: Kubernetes has a steep learning curve due to its complex architecture and multitude of features. It requires a solid understanding of concepts like pods, services, deployments, and networking. While it provides great control and flexibility, it may be overwhelming for beginners or smaller deployments. Salt, on the other hand, has a more straightforward setup and configuration process. The configuration files are written in a human-readable YAML or Jinja template format, making it easier to understand and manage. Salt's focus on automation and infrastructure management also makes it more approachable for users with diverse backgrounds.
Use Cases and Adoption: Kubernetes is primarily used for managing and orchestrating containers in production environments. It is widely adopted by organizations for deploying scalable and fault-tolerant applications. Salt, on the other hand, is more versatile and can be used for a broad range of use cases, including infrastructure management, configuration management, and orchestration. It is well-suited for both small and large-scale deployments and can handle complex configurations. This versatility has made Salt a popular choice for both system administrators and DevOps engineers.

Advice on Salt, Kubernetes

Simon

Senior Fullstack Developer at QUANTUSflow Software GmbH

Apr 27, 2020

Decidedon

GitHub

GitHub Pages

Markdown

Our whole DevOps stack consists of the following tools:

@{GitHub}|tool:27| (incl. @{GitHub Pages}|tool:683|/@{Markdown}|tool:1147| for Documentation, GettingStarted and HowTo's) for collaborative review and code management tool
Respectively @{Git}|tool:1046| as revision control system
@{SourceTree}|tool:1599| as @{Git}|tool:1046| GUI
@{Visual Studio Code}|tool:4202| as IDE
@{CircleCI}|tool:190| for continuous integration (automatize development process)
@{Prettier}|tool:7035| / @{TSLint}|tool:5561| / @{ESLint}|tool:3337| as code linter
@{SonarQube}|tool:2638| as quality gate
@{Docker}|tool:586| as container management (incl. @{Docker Compose}|tool:3136| for multi-container application management)
@{VirtualBox}|tool:774| for operating system simulation tests
@{Kubernetes}|tool:1885| as cluster management for docker containers
@{Heroku}|tool:133| for deploying in test environments
@{nginx}|tool:1052| as web server (preferably used as facade server in production environment)
@{SSLMate}|tool:2752| (using @{OpenSSL}|tool:3091|) for certificate management
@{Amazon EC2}|tool:18| (incl. @{Amazon S3}|tool:25|) for deploying in stage (production-like) and production environments
@{PostgreSQL}|tool:1028| as preferred database system
@{Redis}|tool:1031| as preferred in-memory database/store (great for caching)

The main reason we have chosen Kubernetes over Docker Swarm is related to the following artifacts:

Key features: Easy and flexible installation, Clear dashboard, Great scaling operations, Monitoring is an integral part, Great load balancing concepts, Monitors the condition and ensures compensation in the event of failure.
Applications: An application can be deployed using a combination of pods, deployments, and services (or micro-services).
Functionality: Kubernetes as a complex installation and setup process, but it not as limited as Docker Swarm.
Monitoring: It supports multiple versions of logging and monitoring when the services are deployed within the cluster (Elasticsearch/Kibana (ELK), Heapster/Grafana, Sysdig cloud integration).
Scalability: All-in-one framework for distributed systems.
Other Benefits: Kubernetes is backed by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), huge community among container orchestration tools, it is an open source and modular tool that works with any OS.

12.8M views12.8M

Comments

Detailed Comparison

Salt	Kubernetes
Salt is a new approach to infrastructure management. Easy enough to get running in minutes, scalable enough to manage tens of thousands of servers, and fast enough to communicate with them in seconds. Salt delivers a dynamic communication bus for infrastructures that can be used for orchestration, remote execution, configuration management and much more.	Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers. It handles scheduling onto nodes in a compute cluster and actively manages workloads to ensure that their state matches the users declared intentions.
Remote execution is the core function of Salt. Running pre-defined or arbitrary commands on remote hosts.;Salt modules are the core of remote execution. They provide functionality such as installing packages, restarting a service, running a remote command, transferring files, and infinitely more;Building on the remote execution core is a robust and flexible configuration management framework. Execution happens on the minions allowing effortless, simultaneous configuration of tens of thousands of hosts.	Lightweight, simple and accessible;Built for a multi-cloud world, public, private or hybrid;Highly modular, designed so that all of its components are easily swappable
Statistics
GitHub Stars 14.9K	GitHub Stars -
GitHub Forks 5.6K	GitHub Forks -
Stacks 410	Stacks 61.2K
Followers 449	Followers 52.8K
Votes 165	Votes 685
Pros & Cons
Pros 47 Flexible 30 Easy 27 Remote execution 24 Enormously flexible 12 Great plugin API Cons 1 Dangerous 1 No immutable infrastructure 1 Bloated	Pros 166 Leading docker container management solution 130 Simple and powerful 108 Open source 76 Backed by google 58 The right abstractions Cons 16 Steep learning curve 15 Poor workflow for development 8 Orchestrates only infrastructure 4 High resource requirements for on-prem clusters 2 Too heavy for simple systems
Integrations
No integrations available	Vagrant Docker Rackspace Cloud Servers Microsoft Azure Google Compute Engine Ansible Google Kubernetes Engine

Kubernetes vs Salt

Overview

Kubernetes vs Salt: What are the differences?