Windows Server Update Services Life Cycle and Road Map: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Published: December 20, 2007 | Updated: August 26th, 2009
This FAQ answers questions about the Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) support life cycle and road map. Click a question to view its answer.
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Q. I have been using WSUS for the last few years to keep my organization up to date. It has become an integral part of how we do business. What is the plan for WSUS?
A. WSUS 3.0 has been available since April 2007. It was a significant update from the previous versions of WSUS and incorporated customer feedback to enhance the experience. WSUS 3.0 Service Pack 1 (SP1) was released in February 2008 and provides support for Windows Server 2008. Additionally, there will be another incremental release, WSUS 3.0 Service Pack 2 (SP2), which will support the release of Windows Server 2008 R2. WSUS will continue to provide customers with a way to keep their Microsoft software updated.
Q. What are the new capabilities provided by WSUS 3.0 SP1?
A. WSUS 3.0 SP1 provides the following new capabilities:
- Installation on Windows Server 2008, including a consistent user experience with other Windows components in Windows Server 2008.
- Proxy servers can now support just HTTP, instead of also requiring HTTPS.
- Compression of the remoting channel reduces the amount of traffic between the console and the server.
- Updates can be approved in bulk without overwriting existing approvals.
- Bug fixes.
Q. What is the migration path for WSUS 3.0 SP1?
A. WSUS 3.0 SP1 installs as a simple in-place upgrade on top of WSUS 3.0 or WSUS 2.0 SP1, preserving all your settings, approvals, and reports.
Q. When does support end for WSUS 3.0?
A. Support for WSUS 3.0 will end one year after WSUS 3.0 SP1 is released.
Q. Is there a new version of WSUS coming up to support Windows Server 2008 R2?
A. Yes. WSUS has released Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 2 (WSUS 3.0 SP2) to integrate with Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 clients. Visit the Windows Server Update Services site to download WSUS 3.0 SP2, get documentation, and find out more about the new release.
Q. What are the new capabilities provided by WSUS 3.0 SP2?
A.
New Windows Server and Client Version Support
- Integration with Windows Server 2008 R2
- Support for Windows 7 client
- Support for the BranchCache feature on Windows Server 2008 R2
WSUS Feature Improvements and Fixes
Auto-Approval Rules
- Auto-approval rules now include the ability to specify the approval deadline date and time for all computers or specific computer groups.
Update Files and Languages
- Improved handling of language selection for downstream servers includes a new warning dialog that appears when you decide to download updates only for specified languages
Easy Updates
- WSUS 3.0 SP2 can be installed as an in-place upgrade from earlier versions of WSUS and will preserve all of your settings and approvals. The user interface is compatible between WSUS 3.0 SP1 and SP2 on the client and the server.
Reports
- New Update and Computer Status reports provide the ability to filter on updates approved for installation. You can run these reports from the WSUS console or use the API to incorporate this functionality into your own reports.
Software Updates
- Stability and reliability fixes for the WSUS server, such as support for IPV6 addresses greater than 40 characters
- The approval dialog now sorts computer groups alphabetically by group name
- Computer status report sorting icons are now functional in x64 environments
- Fixed setup issues with database servers running Microsoft SQL Server 2008
Q. What will be the migration path for WSUS 3.0 SP2?
A. WSUS 3.0 SP2 will install as a simple in-place upgrade on top of WSUS 3.0 SP1 or WSUS 3.0, preserving all your settings, approvals, and reports.
Q. When does support end for WSUS 2.0?
A. Support for WSUS 2.0 has already ended. WSUS 2.0 SP1 support will end April 2009 (two years after WSUS 3.0 was released).
Q. After support ended for Software Update Services (SUS), no new updates were available for SUS servers. Will the same be true for WSUS 3.0 and WSUS 2.0?
A. We plan to make most new updates, including the latest version of WSUS itself, available to older versions of WSUS. The exception will be updates that require features only present in the newer version of the WSUS server.
Q. I have a specific problem with or requirement for WSUS 3.0. When will it be addressed?
A. Microsoft is committed to continuing to deliver a solution for our customers to keep their Microsoft software up to date. WSUS is that solution. All WSUS 3.0 feature requests and requirements will continue to be evaluated.
Q. Where can I find more information about WSUS?