ConnectWise Automate: Patch Approval on Zero-Day Patches

May 23rd, 2022


Tech Tuesday

Pushing patches through for Zero-Day can be tricky through Patch Manager. Especially if you have a stage delay setup, you'll want to push them to production right away to get them installed during the next patching cycle. Let ProVal Tech's MSP Consultant Alex show you the way! Click on ‘Show More’ to read the step-by-step transcript to follow along with how to do this in your Automate.

Step by Step:

  1. Today I wanted to go over how to get a patch pushed out to your clients.
  2. So, once you log into the patch manager here you come over and make sure that you either do or do not have a stage delay, if you do you will likely have a secondary step to get some of these zero-day patches out first. 
  3. So come over to the configuration screen.
  4. First, we'll check to make sure that we do have a stage delay in our environment.
  5. I’ll come down to approval policies, I have a default policy here it does have a stage delay with the requires routine approval it has a six day wait plus a six day wait so I’m waiting day of release plus six days, plus six days then into production some of these zero-day patches you went out first basically as soon as humanly possible or as soon as automatic automatically possible.
  6. So, we'll come over to the patch approval screen so the top right the checkbox will have a red dot most likely next to it.
  7. Once all these patches load here, I’m going to filter out by the patches that I have set.
  8. So, I just right-click contains, and then I’ll pick the dropdown user that I’m using.
  9. I hit apply and I haven't approved anything through this account yet but let's say this top one here was a zero-day patch and I want to get it pushed out, I will hit approve it will come down here towards the bottom, it will say approval setting. Approve, install is the action and of course, it's set by me and then it does say approval policy.
  10. It's set on the default policy here means I didn't go through and approve it to a bunch of policies on the left it's just the one and that's okay.
  11. You'll notice that if I didn't scroll to the right there's a secondary area that’s hidden.
  12. If you have a stage delay it will be hidden, this scroll bar will appear you have to scroll to the right and right now if I don't do anything it will wait the six days and then the six days and then push out to production so all I have to do is scroll to the right left, click on test set to production, and click ok.
  13. Now once that kicks through you'll actually see the stage say production and now I can't go back there's no undoing that or sending it back to a test or pilot which is fine. They are still considered a production machine if you push it out that quickly it will then get deployed to any machine that is basically getting patch approved.