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Comparison · Infra & APIs

Snipe-IT vs Clair

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Snipe-IT and Clair — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Snipe-IT vs Clair: at a glance

FeatureSnipe-ITClair
SectorInfra & APIsInfra & APIs
Velocity score2.52.5
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesit-asset-management, self-hosted, security-patch, phpcontainer-security, vulnerability-scanning, sbom, red-hat
Last editorial update18d ago8h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Snipe-IT?

Snipe-IT re-tags 8.8 within minutes to ship Alpine's patched PHP in its Docker image.

Snipe-IT is a self-hosted IT asset manager whose latest visible release, v8.8.3, is a rebuild for Docker Alpine users after Alpine published patched PHP versions minutes after 8.8.2 went out. It also removes PHP 8.4/8.5 deprecation notices. The project now requires PHP 8.2 and recommends 8.4.

Read the full Snipe-IT trajectory →

What is Clair?

Clair 4.10 RC can read SBOMs to match Java vulnerabilities.

Clair cut its first 4.10.0 release candidate on November 13, eleven months after 4.9.0. Its Java indexers can now read CycloneDX SBOM files and treat them as the source of truth, and Red Hat's VEX data now covers Maven advisories, so Java packages in Red Hat images can be matched. It also reduces memory use when many packages share a source package.

Read the full Clair trajectory →

Snipe-IT vs Clair: editorial side-by-side

S
Snipe-IT
INFRA · APIS
2.5

Snipe-IT re-tags 8.8 within minutes to ship Alpine's patched PHP in its Docker image.

◆ Current state

Snipe-IT is a self-hosted IT asset manager whose latest visible release, v8.8.3, is a rebuild for Docker Alpine users after Alpine published patched PHP versions minutes after 8.8.2 went out. It also removes PHP 8.4/8.5 deprecation notices. The project now requires PHP 8.2 and recommends 8.4.

◆ Where it's heading

The release notes say upcoming features will require PHP 8.3 or newer, so the runtime floor is about to rise again. For now the cadence is maintenance and security hygiene on the 8.8 line.

◆ Prediction

With only one entry visible, the next move is unclear beyond a likely minimum PHP bump to 8.3 tied to new features.

C
Clair
INFRA · APIS
2.5

Clair 4.10 RC can read SBOMs to match Java vulnerabilities.

◆ Current state

Clair cut its first 4.10.0 release candidate on November 13, eleven months after 4.9.0. Its Java indexers can now read CycloneDX SBOM files and treat them as the source of truth, and Red Hat's VEX data now covers Maven advisories, so Java packages in Red Hat images can be matched. It also reduces memory use when many packages share a source package.

◆ Where it's heading

Since 4.8 Clair has moved from Red Hat's older OVAL data to VEX, and each release follows Red Hat's security data more closely. 4.10 adds SBOMs as an input, so Clair can match what an image's own manifest declares, not only what it finds on disk.

◆ Prediction

More 4.10 release candidates and then a final are likely; the long gap between releases suggests that could take weeks.

Alternatives to Snipe-IT and Clair

Other Infra & APIs products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Snipe-IT or Clair.

See all Snipe-IT alternatives → · See all Clair alternatives →

Recent activity from Snipe-IT and Clair

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 13h agoClairClair 4.10 RC reads CycloneDX SBOMs for Java matching
  2. 23d agoSnipe-ITv8.8.3 - Docker Alpine PHP2SHELL security patch
  3. 11mo agoClairClair 4.9 moves CVSS data to NVD's 2.0 feeds
  4. 2y agoClairClair 4.8 replaces Red Hat OVAL data with VEX
  5. 2y agoClairClair 4.7.4 changes the default layer download location
  6. 2y agoClairClair 4.7.3 requires TLS 1.2 or newer
  7. 3y agoClairClair 4.7.2 drops the retired CRDA source

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Snipe-IT and Clair?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Snipe-IT and Clair are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 2.5 vs 2.5, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Snipe-IT better than Clair?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Snipe-IT and Clair are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 2.5 vs 2.5, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Infra & APIs products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Snipe-IT?

Top Snipe-IT alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Snipe-IT alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/snipe-it for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Clair?

Top Clair alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Clair alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/clair for the full list with editorial commentary on each.