In Part 1 I discussed the importance of staying up-to-date with operating systems updates and antivirus definitions. To reiterate, this is a critically important aspect of maintaining a secure system environment. Viruses, trojan horses, rootkits and other types of malicious malware exploit system vulnerabilities and holes, so staying on top of patches for these weak spots can be very time-critical. This sounds like a fairly big job. Time consuming as well, right? Luckily, Microsoft and most other operating systems (not to mention most antivirus software applications) make this process fairly simple and often times somewhat automated. Most of the time you will have scheduling
tools at your disposal to make things easier. For example: To turn on Windows Automatic Updates, do the following: 1) Click on Start and then Control Panel 2) Double click on Automatic Updates 3) Click on the Automatic (recommended) bullet (this looks like a green shield) 4) Below this option there are several scheduling options that allow you to customize update behavior and timeframes.
While this 4-step process is fine for an environment of 3-5 systems, a larger environment can be more of a challenge to manage. Especially when it comes to something as important as managing operating system updates and virus definitions. Server operating systems like Windows Server 2005 usually include very robust management software that will enable you to perform or schedule mass updates to all of the systems on your network. Granted, not all small businesses will be running a server-based environment on a system like Windows Server 2005. However, third party applications are usually available for use in scheduling and deploying mass updates. One such application is the AVG Remote Administration tool which enables you to manage and deploy critical software updates and virus definitions to all of the PCs on your network. Click here for a review I did on AVG Anti-Virus 8.0 Network Edition which includes AVG Remote Administration.
As you start to explore the scheduling tools at your disposal, it's important to keep in mind that a tool is worthless if you don't use it correctly. For example, just because you can push a mass update in the middle of the work day doesn't mean you should. Common sense should rule when devising rollout and deployment schedules. Non-critical updates should always be scheduled to run after hours or
on the weekend when the fewest amount of workers will be affected. Staying on top of security updates is no easy task. It takes vigilance, planning, and a sharp attention to detail. Remember, organization is key to ensuring nothing is missed and every PC in your environment remains happy, healthy, and secure.