Comparing Configurations

I was reading David Bombal's "Cool IOS Commands Networking Tips Newsletter*" the other day and in it he has a link to a video showing you how to use ExamDiff to compare configurations. I had never heard of ExamDiff before and so decided to compare it to the file comparison tool that I use. I must say that ExamDiff is a very nice little tool. It has a lot of sophisticated functions and in my opinion it displays the differences in configurations nice and clearly, which is a must when you are scrolling through hundreds of lines of configuration at 3 in the morning and your eyes are stinging like hell. My only problem with it is that you need to upgrade to ExamDiff Pro at a cost to be able to compare directories.



Comparing directories of configuration files is a feature that is very important to me. I use this feature to download all the configuration files I am working on before a change and then download them after a change and compare directories to see the differences. So for the moment I will keep using Microsoft's WinDiff which allows me to compare directories and is still free. On the downside it has a lot more of a basic feel to it compared to ExamDiff (see below). Does anyone else have any configuration comparing utilities that they can recommend?


* If you have not subscribed to the newsletter then head over to http://www.configureterminal.com/ and subscribe. David Bombal is also the guy who produces the CCIE command memorizer and I was thinking of getting it. I have seen a couple of blogs asking people for their opinions on it, so I will join the club has anyone else used this tool and if so what did they think?