This page lists the operating system platforms supported by Chef Infra Client 19.
Support definitions
Certification tiers
Validated & Supported
These platforms are fully tested on every release. These platforms run through the complete Chef automated test suite in CI/CD before each release.
Supported (Untested)
These platforms are fully supported, but not tested in our CI/CD pipelines. Chef stands behind these platforms and will address any reported bugs.
User Reported
These platforms are validated by users. Support is provided on a best-effort basis.
Installer types
Native
Chef is installed using the platform’s native package manager—MSI on Windows, DEB on Debian/Ubuntu, RPM on RHEL/SUSE, PKG on macOS.
Habitat
Chef is installed and run using Chef Habitat commands (hab pkg install) or by extracting a Habitat artifact (.hart or .tar.gz). Used for platforms where a native package isn’t available or where a self-contained runtime is preferred.
Agent and agentless modes
Agent
Agent-based mode includes all software that runs directly on the managed node:
Chef Infra Client
Chef InSpec
Chef Habitat supervisor
Chef 360 skills running in agent mode, including Courier job execution and Node Management
Agentless
Agentless mode includes all software that manages a node remotely without an agent present on the node:
Chef Infra Client agentless mode (formerly Target Mode)—connects using SSH (Linux) or WinRM/SSH (Windows)