When managing Windows server ecosystems, four major configuration management tools dominate discussions: Ansible (agentless), Chef (Ruby-based), Puppet (declarative), and PowerShell DSC (native). Each brings unique advantages for Windows environments requiring MongoDB deployments, IIS configurations, and Java application management.

# Ansible minimal Windows prep (WinRM required)
Enable-PSRemoting -Force
Set-NetFirewallRule -Name "WINRM-HTTP-In-TCP" -RemoteAddress Any

# Chef client bootstrap (requires admin rights)
. { iwr -useb https://omnitruck.chef.io/install.ps1 } | iex; install

# Puppet agent installation
[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [Net.SecurityProtocolType]::Tls12
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://downloads.puppetlabs.com/windows/puppet-agent-x64-latest.msi" -OutFile "puppet-agent.msi"
Start-Process msiexec.exe -Wait -ArgumentList '/qn /norestart /i puppet-agent.msi'

PowerShell DSC demonstrates superior out-of-the-box compatibility with modern Windows Server editions (2012 R2 through 2022). Its resources like xWebAdministration for IIS and xMongoDB provide deep Windows integration:

Configuration MongoNode {
    Import-DscResource -ModuleName xMongoDB
    
    Node "DBServer01" {
        WindowsFeature 'NETFramework' {
            Name   = 'NET-Framework-45-Core'
            Ensure = 'Present'
        }

        xMongoDB 'MongoDBService' {
            Ensure          = 'Present'
            Version         = '4.4.1'
            ServiceName     = 'MongoDB'
            ServiceCredential = $creds
            DataDirectory   = 'E:\MongoData'
            LogPath         = 'E:\MongoLogs'
            Port            = 27017
        }
    }
}

Agent-based solutions show these initialization footprints on Windows Server 2019:

• Puppet: ~150MB RAM (agent) + 80MB (Puppet Server)
• Chef: ~120MB RAM (chef-client) + Ruby overhead
• DSC: 15-30MB (native Windows processes)
• Ansible: 0MB persistent (ephemeral WinRM connections)

The Windows module ecosystem varies significantly:

Many enterprises combine DSC for core Windows configuration with Ansible for orchestration:

# ansible playbook triggering DSC
- name: Apply MongoDB DSC config
  win_dsc:
    resource_name: xMongoDB
    Ensure: Present
    Version: '4.4.1'
    ServiceName: MongoDB
  register: dsc_result

- name: Verify DSC application
  win_debug:
    msg: "DSC state {{ dsc_result.state }}"

When managing Windows servers at scale, the choice between Ansible, Chef, Puppet, and PowerShell DSC often comes down to three critical factors:

• Native Windows support without heavy modifications
• Minimal initialization footprint
• Ability to handle complex configurations (MongoDB, Java apps, IIS)

Here's what each solution requires for Windows bootstrap:

# Ansible (WinRM pre-requisites):
Enable-PSRemoting -Force
Set-NetFirewallRule -Name "WINRM-HTTP-In-TCP" -RemoteAddress Any

# Chef:
. { iwr -useb https://omnitruck.chef.io/install.ps1 } | iex; install

# Puppet:
[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [Net.SecurityProtocolType]::Tls12
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://downloads.puppetlabs.com/windows/puppet-agent-x64-latest.msi" -OutFile puppet-agent.msi
Start-Process msiexec.exe -Wait -ArgumentList '/qn /i puppet-agent.msi'

PowerShell DSC stands out for pure Windows environments:

Configuration WebServerSetup {
    Import-DscResource -ModuleName PSDesiredStateConfiguration
    Node 'localhost' {
        WindowsFeature IIS {
            Ensure = 'Present'
            Name   = 'Web-Server'
        }
        Package MongoDB {
            Ensure    = 'Present'
            Name      = 'MongoDB'
            Path      = 'C:\temp\mongodb.msi'
            ProductId = ''
        }
    }
}
WebServerSetup -OutputPath C:\dsc
Start-DscConfiguration -Path C:\dsc -Wait -Verbose

For mixed environments, Ansible's Windows modules have matured significantly:

---
- hosts: windows_servers
  tasks:
    - name: Install MongoDB
      win_package:
        path: https://fastdl.mongodb.org/windows/mongodb-windows-x86_64-6.0.6-signed.msi
        product_id: MongoDB
        arguments: /quiet
    - name: Configure IIS
      win_feature:
        name: Web-Server
        include_management_tools: yes
        state: present

The initialization footprint comparison:

Combining DSC for Windows-specific configs with Ansible for orchestration:

# ansible playbook snippet
- name: Apply DSC configuration
  win_dsc:
    resource_name: Script
    SetScript: |
      Configuration MyAppConfig {
        # DSC resources here
      }
      MyAppConfig -OutputPath C:\config
      Start-DscConfiguration -Path C:\config -Wait -Force
    TestScript: $false # Always apply
    GetScript: $null