Windows System Update Service, or WSUS, is a service that downloads application and operating system updates from Microsoft to a local storage site, a WSUS server. The WSUS server then makes the updates available to any WSUS clients that are configured properly to make use of the WSUS server.
A WSUS client is any computer running a Windows operating system that gets updates for the operating system and/or Microsoft applications from a WSUS server. Windows computers will download and install updates from Microsoft automatically every night by default. This behavior can be changed, and a computer administrator may want to do so in order to control when updates are installed and which updates are installed.
Operating system and application updates are regularly released by Microsoft. Updates may do various things such as fixing bugs, patching security vulnerabilities, adding/modifying/removing features, adding/modifying/removing configuration options, etc.
It is especially important for Windows computers to get and install updates that fix bugs and patch security vulnerabilities.
General Info and Recommendations
- The WSUS server EITS maintains is: eits-wsus.msmyid.uga.edu
- The WSUS service on the EITS WSUS server listens for incoming client communications on the default port: TCP 8530
- The EITS WSUS server only stores installation files for updates for Windows versions and applications that are classified as still in Mainstream Support according to the Microsoft Lifecycle Policy. Updates for products that are out of Mainstream Support will be purged from the EITS WSUS server as necessary to maintain acceptable performance.
- The EITS WSUS server does not store updates classified as Driver Sets, Drivers, Feature Packs, Service Packs, or Upgrades. These types of updates are potentially disruptive even when they work as intended. Therefore, it is better for you to plan the deployment of these types of updates when it will be best for your unit. Updates in all classifications are available for download from the Microsoft Update Catalog.
- Microsoft generally releases new updates on the second Tuesday of the month (Patch Tuesday) and EITS staff will generally approve updates for install on the EITS WSUS server on the second Friday of the month. This delay in approving updates allows time to identify potential issues.
- EITS recommends installing updates to non-production computers first. If any updates cause problems on non-production computers, do not install them to your production computers until new versions are available or you know how to fix any issues.
- EITS recommends making backups and/or snapshots of your production computers before installing updates.