From the course: Windows Server 2016: Manage, Monitor, and Maintain Servers

Overview of Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) - Windows Server Tutorial

From the course: Windows Server 2016: Manage, Monitor, and Maintain Servers

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Overview of Windows Server Update Services (WSUS)

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- [Instructor] I wanted to kick off this course with one of the most basic and most important elements of maintaining a Windows server or a Windows workstation or any platform for any device, really and that is updates. Once Microsoft releases an operating system and the user base grows from a smaller number of beta testers to the entire world, there will be some vulnerabilities that are discovered and others that are created, but even if it were possible for a software company to release a perfect platform, the other operating systems and devices will go through their evolutions and changes to support the growing needs of their user base, which will require Microsoft to update Windows to maintain inner-connectivity with those devices. Pretty much, anyone who has ever owned a Windows computer, has seen some part of Windows Update. Not everybody has warm, happy feelings about Windows Update because most of us have seen this screen in that moment when we really just need our computer to boot up, so we can send an important email or write that report that's due today or find out whether or not Pat updated their relationship status on Facebook. And there are others that have been around server administration long enough to remember an update from Microsoft that caused them some trouble, whether out of inconvenience or out of fear, there are a lot of servers and workstations that don't get the updates they need. Windows Server Update Service, or WSUS, is the service that can help address both of these concerns. With WSUS, you will designate a server in your network to download, but not install, all or selected updates from Microsoft. Once they're downloaded, you can put it all on a timer as to when they're distributed. This overcomes the concern about how disruptive the updates may be. You can also choose to require approval of downloaded updates before they're sent out to the other servers and workstations in your network. In this way, you can give yourself a few days to prevent updates that you fear can harm your network. Distributing these updates to other workstations and servers is done using the built-in web server, IIS. So if your company computers are mobile and occasionally are found outside your network, you can place the WSUS server in the DMZ or in the border between your corporate network and the outside world, and use the web server to allow access to these updates by client machines, not in your environment. At the end of the day, what we're accomplishing with WSUS is keeping our servers and our workstations current, while addressing our largest concerns.

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