Windows configuration management, one binary.

For kiosks, signage, and exhibit PCs: no runtime dependencies.

4phases: fetch, plan, stage, apply

1static binary, no runtime deps

6posix-over-ssh modules

0modules that skip Check() before Apply()

Check() before Apply()

Every built-in and plugin module answers Check() before Apply() ever runs. Dry-run and real execution share one code path, not two.

Offline-capable staging

stage writes a per-target bundle: plan, manifest, plugins, secrets. apply --bundle converges a target with no network at all.

Explicit phases

Fetch pins actions. Plan builds a DAG without touching targets. Stage writes the bundle. Apply is the only phase that mutates anything.

Preflight’s Key Features

What Preflight handles out of the box.

Run the same path everywhere.

Local, remote, or staged-and-offline: apply converges the same playbook the same way.

Select targets by host, group, or tag.

Inventory variables cascade from inventory to group to host, and CLI commands fan out across a selector instead of one target at a time.

Facts and templating built in.

{{ facts.os.arch }}, {{ target.name }}, and friends resolve at plan time, so one playbook reads the same across every target.

Repo-backed, `age`-encrypted secrets.

Secret values travel with the project’s config and decrypt only at apply time. No plaintext, no central vault.

Identity-aware execution.

become runs a task under a different user account when the outcome depends on whose registry keys or files get touched.

A stdlib that ships with the binary.

Embedded actions like windows-machine and autologin are versioned with the release and resolved before any project-local action.

tutorialRun your first playbook

Validate, plan, dry-run, and apply a minimal project in one sitting.

how-toDeploy across an air gap

Stage a bundle, move it by hand, apply it with no network involved.

referenceCLI reference

Every command and flag, and which phase each one touches.

explanationWhy use Preflight (and when not to)

Where it fits, and where Ansible, DSC, or Intune fit better.

More tools from Bluecadet

Other open source tools built for exhibit and installation work.

Launchpad

Content & App Orchestration

Toolkit for exhibit and installation work: content syncing from your CMS, app launching and restart-on-crash, and logs forwarded somewhere you'll actually see them.

Unity Packages

Installation Utilities

Open source Unity packages for interactive installations: GPU-compressed HAP video, physics-based UI animation, multi-touch input, a client for Launchpad's staged content sync, and more.

Start with the tutorials.

read the docs →github ↗