Comparison

Stella Ops vs Trivy

Trivy tells you a vulnerable package exists.
Stella Ops tells you if your code actually calls it.

The Core Difference

Both tools scan containers for vulnerabilities. The difference is what happens next:

Trivy: "openssl 3.0.1 has CVE-2024-1234" → You investigate
Stella Ops: "openssl 3.0.1 has CVE-2024-1234, but your code never calls the vulnerable function" → Case closed

Feature Comparison

Capability	Trivy	Stella Ops
SBOM generation	Yes	Yes
CVE detection	Yes	Yes
Multi-source advisories	Yes	Yes (30+)
Offline operation	Yes	Yes
Reachability analysis	No	Yes
Deterministic replay	No	Yes
Audit-ready evidence	No	Yes
VEX support	Partial	Full (OpenVEX)
Regional compliance (FIPS, GOST)	No	Yes
License	Apache 2.0	BUSL-1.1

Real-World Impact

Typical Trivy Scan

Terminal

$ trivy image myapp:latest
myapp:latest (alpine 3.18)
Total: 487 vulnerabilities
  CRITICAL: 12
  HIGH: 89
  MEDIUM: 234
  LOW: 152

Now you spend days investigating which of those 487 actually matter.

Same Image with Stella Ops

Terminal

$ stella scan myapp:latest
✓ 487 CVEs found
✓ 475 NOT REACHABLE
! 12 REACHABLE

Fix these 12. Ignore the rest.

Focus on what matters. Ship with confidence.

Beyond Scanning: Deployment

Trivy is a scanner — it tells you what's vulnerable but doesn't help you deploy.

Stella Ops is a complete release control plane with built-in deployment execution:

Deployment Targets

→ Docker Compose deployments
→ Docker Swarm clusters
→ AWS ECS / Fargate
→ HashiCorp Nomad
→ Scripted deployments (.NET 10)

Infrastructure Integration

→ SSH/WinRM agentless deployment
→ HashiCorp Vault for secrets
→ HashiCorp Consul for service registry
→ Environment promotions (Dev→Stage→Prod)
→ Approval workflows

Scan → Gate → Deploy → Export evidence — all in one platform.

When to Use Which

Choose Trivy if...

• You just need a quick vulnerability count
• You have time to manually triage every CVE
• Audit evidence isn't required
• You prefer Apache 2.0 licensing

Choose Stella Ops if...

• You need to know which CVEs actually matter
• You're drowning in false positives
• Auditors ask "why did you ignore this CVE?"
• You need deterministic, replayable scans
• You require regional compliance (FIPS, GOST)

Already using Trivy?

Stella Ops reads Trivy's SBOM output directly. Add reachability analysis to your existing workflow:

Terminal

$ trivy image --format cyclonedx myapp:latest | stella analyze -
Importing CycloneDX SBOM...
Running reachability analysis...
✓ 487 CVEs → 12 reachable

Methodology: This comparison is based on publicly available documentation, release notes, and hands-on evaluation as of January 2026. Features and capabilities change over time. We encourage you to verify current capabilities with each vendor's official documentation.

Stella Ops is committed to accurate, fair comparisons. If you believe any information is outdated or incorrect, please contact hello@stella-ops.org.

See the difference yourself

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