What is Azure Update Manager?

Azure Update Manager is a unified service to help manage and govern updates for all your machines that run a server operating system. With Update Manager, you can monitor Windows and Linux update compliance across your machines in Azure, on-premises, or in other cloud environments (connected by Azure Arc) from a single pane of management. You can also use Update Manager to make real-time updates or schedule updates within a defined maintenance window.

Features

You can use Update Manager for:

• Unified update management: Monitor update compliance across Windows and Linux servers from a single dashboard.

• Flexible patching options:

  • Schedule updates within customer-defined maintenance for both Azure virtual machines (VMs) and Azure Arc-connected machines.
  • Apply updates in real time.
  • Use automatic guest patching to automatically apply updates to Azure VMs without requiring manual intervention.
  • Use hotpatching to apply critical updates to Azure VMs without requiring a restart, minimizing downtime.

• Security and compliance tracking: Apply security and critical patches with enhanced security measures and compliance tracking.

• Periodic update assessments: Enable periodic assessments to check for updates every 24 hours.

• Dynamic scoping: Group machines based on criteria and apply updates at scale.

• Custom reports and alerts: Build custom dashboards to report update status, and configure alerts to notify you of update statuses and any problems that arise.

• Granular access control: Use role-based access control (RBAC) to delegate permissions for patch management tasks at a per-resource level.

• Software updates, including application updates:

  • Apply updates that are available in Microsoft Update.
  • Apply updates that are available in Linux packages.
  • Apply updates that are published to Windows Server Update Services (WSUS).

• Patching diverse resources:

  • Patch Windows and Linux VMs in Azure (including SQL servers).
  • Patch hybrid machines, including deployments of SQL Server enabled by Azure Arc and Windows IoT Enterprise on Azure Arc-enabled servers.
  • Patch VMware machines.
  • Patch System Center Virtual Machine Manager machines.
  • Patch Azure Local clusters.
  • Perform cross-subscription patching.

• Reports and alerts:

  • Build custom reporting dashboards through Azure Workbooks to monitor the update compliance of your infrastructure.
  • Configure alerts on updates and compliance to notify you or to automate action whenever something requires your attention.

These features make Update Manager a powerful tool for maintaining the security and performance of your IT infrastructure.

Key benefits

Here are some of the benefits of Update Manager:

• Provides native experience with zero onboarding:

  • Built as native functionality on Azure VMs and Azure Arc-enabled servers for ease of use.
  • No dependency on Log Analytics and Azure Automation.
  • Azure Policy support.
  • Available in most Azure VMs and Azure Arc regions.

• Works with Azure roles and identity:

  • Granular access control at the per-resource level instead of access control at the level of the Azure Automation account and Log Analytics workspace.
  • Azure Resource Manager-based operations. Update Manager allows role-based access control and roles based on Resource Manager in Azure.
  • Enhanced flexibility:
    • Take immediate action by either installing updates immediately or scheduling them for a later date.
    • Check updates automatically or on demand.
    • Secure machines with new ways of patching, such as automatic VM guest patching in Azure, hotpatching, or custom maintenance schedules.
    • Sync patch cycles in relation to patch Tuesday, the unofficial term for Microsoft's scheduled release of security fixes on the second Tuesday of each month.

Related content

• How Update Manager works
• Prerequisites for Azure Update Manager
• Check update compliance with Azure Update Manager
• Deploy updates now and track results with Azure Update Manager
• Automate assessment at scale by using Azure Policy
• Schedule recurring updates for machines by using the Azure portal and Azure Policy
• Manage update configuration settings
• Manage multiple machines with Azure Update Manager
• Plan deployment for updating Windows VMs in Azure