Business Benefits of Update Management
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Business Benefits of Update Management
The Update Management component describes the tools and processes that give service providers control over the deployment and maintenance of interim software releases into their production environments. It helps you maintain operational efficiency and effectiveness, overcome security vulnerabilities, and maintain a stable production environment.
Update management discusses several technologies you can use to help you manage the service packs, updates, and security updates that you apply to the servers and infrastructure in your data center. However, the focus is on deploying Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) and configuring Automatic Updates. WSUS delivers core update management infrastructure in Windows with added support for updating Windows Server system products, advanced network optimization, flexible update management capabilities, and essential status reports-all of which significantly increase administrative productivity and efficiency.
The benefits of using update management tools are described in more detail in the following table.
Table: Update Management Features and Benefits
| Benefit | Description |
|---|---|
| Make updates automatically available | When administrators approve the updates, WSUS automatically makes all critical and security updates available to all preconfigured servers running Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2000, and to desktops running the Windows XP Professional operating system. |
| Consistent installation | The ability of an automated software distribution tool to install standard software packages and options to targeted collections of devices ensures a consistent installation throughout the organization. |
| Timely installation | An automated software distribution tool permits software releases and updates to be installed on a precise schedule. |
| Security | Installation of updates typically requires administrative rights. |
| Timely status reporting | Automated monitoring and reporting capabilities of software distribution tools result in feedback on the success or failure of the installation. |
| Return on investment | This investment in using an automated software tool for generic software distribution is offset by the return on investment (ROI) that is offered through low overhead as compared to manual methods. ROI is also directly related to the volume or number of systems that are managed as a set. |
For more information, see Get Started with Update Management.