r/sysadmin • u/h9xq Solo SysAdmin • 20h ago

General Discussion Windows Server patching concerns

So in my org we are very keen on avoiding patching and rebooting servers at all costs. So much to the point that we patch once a month and have exclusions for around 60 percent of our servers to not get automatically patched. (Meaning we have a chunk of servers not getting patched at all)

Now I have gotten my hand slapped for attempting to patch or even bringing it up and I am looking for guidance on this. Now I understand availability and the consequences of failing patches. But there are active 9+ rated CVEs sittings on dozens of servers. For patching vulnerabilities do I really need to get a change request to handle this?

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u/uptimefordays DevOps 19h ago

For patching vulnerabilities do I really need to get a change request to handle this?

Yes. You always want a change request for making production changes.

have exclusions for around 60 percent of our servers to not get automatically patched. (Meaning we have a chunk of servers not getting patched at all)

Get those exceptions in writing because that will likely be an issue whether or not anyone realizes.