Which tools manage systems in a declarative manner, defining the desired state without concern for implementation?

The answer identifies Puppet and Ansible as tools that manage systems in a declarative manner, meaning they allow users to define the end state of the system without needing to specify the exact steps to achieve that state. This approach contrasts with imperative management, where the exact commands to execute are defined.

Puppet is built around a declarative language that specifies how resources should look on the system. Users can define the desired configuration of servers, and Puppet takes care of ensuring that the servers reach that state, managing the underlying complexities.

Ansible, while often viewed as procedural, also employs a declarative style in its playbooks. In Ansible, you can define the desired state of your systems using YAML syntax, and the Ansible engine handles the implementation details to reach that state.

Both of these tools prioritize end results rather than the step-by-step process needed to achieve those results, showcasing the benefits of the declarative approach in configuration management.

The other options either include tools that do not focus solely on a declarative methodology or mix tools that have a more procedural approach, such as Chef, which primarily uses recipes that dictate how to configure systems step-by-step, rather than declaring the desired state as a goal to be achieved directly.