Canonical MAAS vs MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator

Canonical MAAS9.4Visit MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator7.8Visit

Higher score Canonical MAAS #1 in Bare Metal as a Service (BMaaS) Software 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 3 features Visit Canonical

vs

MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator #5 in Bare Metal as a Service (BMaaS) Software 7.8/10 Pricing on request ✓ 0 of 3 features Visit MetalSoft

• Canonical MAAS fits best

  Teams automating bare-metal fleets at scale

• MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator fits best

  Multi-site lifecycle orchestration with self-service

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Side by side

Feature	Canonical MAAS 9.4/10 Visit ↗	MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator 7.8/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	7.8
Ranking	#1 in Bare Metal as a Service (BMaaS) Software	#5 in Bare Metal as a Service (BMaaS) Software
Best for	Teams automating bare-metal fleets at scale	Multi-site lifecycle orchestration with self-service
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Paid
Starting price	$30/device/yr	Pricing on request
Free plan	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Platforms	Web, Linux	Web
Support	Phone, Tickets, Docs · 24/7	Email, Tickets, Docs · 24/7
Compliance	SSO/SAML	SSO/SAML
Integrations	5 integrations	11 integrations
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Canonical MAAS 0/3 · MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator 0/3
Lifecycle automation	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
OS imaging	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Network configuration	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Specs
Provisioning method	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Deployment model	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Hypervisor support	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Automates discovery, commissioning, deployment, allocation, and release Combines BMC power control with DHCP, DNS, IPAM, VLAN, and subnet management Supports varied storage layouts, OS images, and HA region and rack controllers	Automates server discovery, enrollment, inventory, and OS deployment. Manages firmware baselines and lifecycle workflows across sites. Offers self-service access, an OpenAPI REST API, and AI-assisted diagnosis.
Cons	Self-hosted deployment places infrastructure operations with your team Paid support costs scale per managed machine each year Standalone support eligibility requires Ubuntu Pro for controllers	Pricing requires contacting sales. Deployment is self-hosted, not a hosted service. Its broad infrastructure scope may exceed simpler server-provisioning needs.
Our verdict	Canonical MAAS is open-source infrastructure software for discovering, commissioning, deploying, and managing physical servers. It is aimed at infrastructure teams, data-center operators, DevOps engineers, and organizations running server… Read the review →	MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator provisions, re-provisions, and manages general-purpose and specialized physical servers across vendors. It is aimed at mid-market and enterprise teams operating on-premises, edge, hybrid, AI, or HPC… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Canonical MAAS — where it wins

  • Automates discovery, commissioning, deployment, allocation, and release
  • Combines BMC power control with DHCP, DNS, IPAM, VLAN, and subnet management
  • Supports varied storage layouts, OS images, and HA region and rack controllers

  Where it doesn't

  • Self-hosted deployment places infrastructure operations with your team
  • Paid support costs scale per managed machine each year
  • Standalone support eligibility requires Ubuntu Pro for controllers

• MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator — where it wins

  • Automates server discovery, enrollment, inventory, and OS deployment.
  • Manages firmware baselines and lifecycle workflows across sites.
  • Offers self-service access, an OpenAPI REST API, and AI-assisted diagnosis.

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires contacting sales.
  • Deployment is self-hosted, not a hosted service.
  • Its broad infrastructure scope may exceed simpler server-provisioning needs.

• Canonical MAAS9.4/10 · Free plan

  A broad toolkit for automating physical-server lifecycles, with optional per-machine support.

  Visit CanonicalFull verdict →
• MetalSoft Bare Metal Orchestrator7.8/10 · Pricing on request

  Multi-site bare-metal lifecycle orchestration with self-service and automation.

  Visit MetalSoftFull verdict →