WSUS 3.0 SP1 is out, and IT administrators should take a good look at the technology. For those that spend time updating clients or servers on a network, the task can be arduous and time consuming. WSUS gives administrators a one-stop-shop to quickly report on the Enterprise and know where your clients and servers stand with regards to being patched with the latest updates, roll-ups, service packs, and hot fixes.

I recommend installing WSUS on its own VM with at least a 30 GB partition. You’ll be downloading the updates directly from Microsoft and creating your own update server in-house, so be sure to give it some room to house the updates. Next you’ll want to configure Group Policy (Default Domain), so all the machines check your server for updates. Once all the machines have checked in with the WSUS server, you can begin grouping them into logical containers for updates. There are a couple additional configuration items that should be considered environment specific especially considering how every IT shop differs with how they want updates installed. Preferably you will want a test group or pilot group that represents a small microcosm of your organization that can report back to you on how the latest updates went. Your next task is to approve the updates you want to rollout, and approve them to be deployed. WSUS handles the rest. You can track monitor and report on the all the related activities.

The overall simplification of the update process, quick and easy reporting capabilities, and not to mention the savings bandwidth utilization are just some of the really beneficial considerations that IT organizations should think about regarding implementing WSUS.

Did I mention it’s FREE.

Travis Baird, eGroup