Ansible and SaltStack Orchestration Tools | Generated by AI
In the context of “orchestration (Ansible/Salt)”, Salt refers to SaltStack (commonly just called Salt) – a popular open-source configuration management and orchestration tool, very similar to Ansible.
So the phrase means:
“We’re talking about orchestration tools, specifically Ansible or SaltStack.”
Quick comparison to clarify what “Salt” is here:
| Feature | Ansible | Salt (SaltStack) |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Configuration management + orchestration | Configuration management + orchestration |
| Architecture | Agentless (uses SSH) | Agent-based (minions) + optional agentless mode |
| Communication | Push model (Ansible pushes changes) | Push + Pull model (very fast event bus) |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Configuration language | YAML (playbooks) | YAML (SLS files), also supports Jinja) |
| Speed | Good | Extremely fast at scale (ZeroMQ bus) |
| State management | Yes | Yes (very powerful “state” system) |
| Orchestration | Yes (playbooks) | Yes (Salt Orchestrate / Reactor) |
| Learning curve | Easier for beginners | Slightly steeper |
| Company behind it | Red Hat | Originally SaltStack Inc., acquired by VMware, now part of Broadcom |
Why people write “Ansible/Salt”
They are the two most popular Python-based, open-source tools that do both:
- Configuration management (applying desired state to servers)
- Orchestration (coordinating complex, multi-step, multi-server operations)
So when someone says “orchestration (Ansible/Salt)”, they mean “we use either Ansible or SaltStack for orchestration tasks”.
Short answer: Salt = SaltStack, the configuration management and orchestration platform (https://saltproject.io).