Cinc Auditor

Overview

Cinc Auditor is a free distribution of Chef InSpec for compliance and audit workflows. It suits individuals and teams that want to run InSpec-compatible checks locally or in CI without a software charge. Its compatibility and range of installation routes are compelling, but the lack of formal support and standard yum or apt repositories can make it a poor fit for teams that need vendor-backed help or conventional package management.

Key features

Auditor supports configuration compliance, deployed checks and policy as code, with local execution and cloud support for AWS, Azure and GCP. Its profiles are fully compatible with upstream counterparts, and its tools are compatible with InSpec. An inspec wrapper redirects to cinc-auditor, which can keep existing automation working without changing the command it calls.

Installation is available through scripts, Bundler, RubyGems or plain packages, with options for Linux, macOS and Windows. Cinc also publishes a Docker Hub image described as a drop-in replacement for chef/inspec. It can run InSpec-compatible profiles in CI or against containers, and is suited to GitLab CI and GitHub Actions. That makes the container route useful for teams embedding checks in pipelines; teams relying on yum or apt repositories will need a different installation approach.

Auditor is included in Cinc Workstation. Cinc licenses its binaries under Apache 2.0, with no additional EULAs or licensing. Security vulnerabilities in Cinc binaries, build pipelines or supporting libraries can be reported privately by email to [email protected]. Cinc describes its projects as community distributions alongside the commercial Chef product line, but provides no formal warranties or support; it recommends contacting Progress if those are required.

Pricing

Cinc Auditor has one free plan: free. It is a free distribution of Chef InSpec with no formal warranties or support. There is no separate free trial, paid tier or stated usage cap, so the plan is suitable for readers who can work without formal support and want to avoid software fees. The no-cost license does not remove the practical cost of finding another installation route if standard yum or apt repositories are essential.

Platforms

Auditor supports Linux, macOS and Windows. The available installation instructions cover Linux and macOS as well as Windows, while scripts, Bundler, RubyGems and plain packages provide several ways to deploy it. The Docker Hub image adds a pipeline-oriented option for CI and container checks.

Who it's for

Choose Cinc Auditor if you need a free, local compliance and audit tool that preserves compatibility with InSpec profiles and automation, or if you want to run those checks in CI. Its AWS, Azure and GCP coverage also makes it relevant for teams writing policy-as-code checks across those cloud environments. Look elsewhere if formal warranties or support are a requirement, or if your deployment process depends on standard yum or apt repositories.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Free distribution with Apache 2.0 binaries and no additional EULAs, making software licensing costs straightforward.
• Pros: InSpec-compatible profiles and a redirecting inspec wrapper help preserve existing workflows.
• Pros: Linux, macOS and Windows installation options, plus a Docker image suited to CI, give teams multiple deployment paths.
• Cons: No formal warranties or support, which matters to organizations that need vendor-backed assistance.
• Cons: No standard yum or apt repositories, adding friction for systems managed through those package tools.

Alternatives

Chef InSpec is the direct alternative to consider if you want the upstream product rather than Cinc’s distribution; its free plan is limited to non-production workloads and personal, non-commercial use, and it also offers a trial.

Conftest is another free, Apache 2.0-licensed option for readers comparing open-source infrastructure testing tools. For CloudFormation-focused work, AWS CloudFormation has a free service, though the AWS resources it provisions are billed separately.

Other free options include kube-score, cfn-lint, KICS, kubeconform and OpenSCAP. Compare them if you are considering alternatives, without assuming they match Auditor’s InSpec compatibility or workflow.

Browse the wider Infrastructure Testing Tools category to compare more options.

Verdict

Cinc Auditor is a strong choice for individuals and teams that want a free way to run InSpec-compatible compliance checks locally or in CI, especially when keeping existing profiles and automation matters. Choose it for compatibility and deployment flexibility; look elsewhere if formal support or standard yum and apt repositories are non-negotiable.