12.1. Introduction to Patch Management¶
12.1.1. What is a Patch?¶
A patch is a piece of software designed to update a Computer program or its supporting data, to fix or improve it. This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs, with such patches usually called bug-fixes or bug fixes, and improving the usability or performance.
12.1.2. What is Patch Management?¶
Patch Management comes within the domain of Endpoint System Management. It is the process of the acquiring, testing and deploying Patches across administered IT Assets (generally workstations and servers) in a systematic way. It also includes the administrative decision of deciding which Patches are appropriate for deployment and documenting procedures like required configurations.
Patch Management is vital for managing the life-cycle of an Asset, and Motadata provides a comprehensive tool that handles all aspects of Patch Management intuitively and efficiently.
12.1.3. Benefits of Patch Management¶
Some of the benefits of having Patch Management are as follows:
Patch Management ensures that all administered IT Assets are updated with the latest Patch from the Software Vendor; this enhances security and helps in thwarting external and internal cyber-attacks.
Often Patches come with performance improvements and new features. Such enhancements increase the productivity of people using the administered Assets.
Having the latest Patch for all IT Assets (workstations and servers) prevents unplanned breakdowns due to a Software bug.
Laws and regulations are imposing security best practices and having Assets all patched up is the best way to comply with such rules.
12.1.4. What Platforms (OS) are supported for Patch Management¶
Motadata patch management supports the following platform:
windows 7 32/64 bit
windows 8/8.1 32/64 bit
windows 10 32/64 bit
windows server 2012
windows server 2016