Microsoft Introduces Autopatch Feature To Help Systems Stay Updated

Microsoft which recently marked its 47th anniversary made an announcement about a super-cool new feature called the Microsoft Autopatch. This Autopatch feature is a part of Windows Enterprise E3 which will automatically keep Windows and Office software up-to-date. Windows 10 Enterprise E3 in CSP is a new offering that delivers, by subscription, exclusive features reserved for Windows 10 Enterprise edition. This offering is available through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) channel via the Partner Center as an online service. Microsoft is known to have created some of the wonderful products and services the world enjoys today, this includes the Microsoft Windows operating systems, Microsoft Office, the Xbox gaming console and many more.

Microsoft says the new Autopatch feature will be available starting in July 2022. The aim of the new feature is to enable enterprise customers to obtain Windows 10 and Windows 11 systems quality and feature updates for drivers, firmware and Microsoft 365 Apps like Teams, Word, Excel and Outlook. The company discloses that users who currently have a Windows 10/11 Enterprise E3 or above license will have the ability to use the new feature for free.

Currently, the second Tuesday of every month which is known as the Patch Tuesday, is always a busy day for Microsoft users, as a lot of software upgrades are been carried out. With the introduction of the new feature, Microsoft claims Patch Tuesday will become “just another Tuesday.” The Windows Autopatch is said to be compatible with all supported versions of Windows 10, Windows 11 and Windows 365 for Enterprise. However, the Windows Autopatch feature will not work with Windows Server OS and Windows 365 for Business.

Lior Bela, Microsoft, senior product marketing manager in a blog post said that “This service will keep Windows and Office software on enrolled endpoints up-to-date automatically, at no additional cost.”  The feature is expected to tackle various complexity associated with software updates in enterprise IT environments. Also, the feature is expected to close up security gaps associated with not applying patches on time, this has been noted to open doors to potential new threats.

The service works optimally by applying the updates across four deployment rings, starting with a small set of “test” devices in a corporate network, and then proceeding to the “first” 1% of endpoints, then the “fast” and the “broad” rings, which contain the rest of the machines with a 9%-90% split between them.

Microsoft says the “Updates are applied to a small initial set of devices, evaluated, and then graduated to increasingly larger sets, with an evaluation period at each progression.” The tech giant further said that “The outcome will assure registered devices are always up to date and disruption to business operations is minimized.” The company also noted that “If an issue is encountered, the Autopatch service can be paused by the customer or the service itself. When applicable, a rollback will be applied or made available.”

Customers who want to use Windows Autopatch are expected to have the Azure Active Directory (Azure AD), Microsoft’s Intune mobile device management service, and be running compatible versions of Windows 10 or 11. While Windows Autopatch does not require any special hardware, the current hardware requirements will still apply.