Windows® Server™ 2003/2000 Terminal Server Solutions, Third Edition

Chapter 9. Service Pack and Hotfix Management

Before You Begin

An inevitable part of any system administrator’s job is the testing and implementation of service packs, security patches, and other hotfixes. To many Windows administrators, the steady increase in publicized (and exploited) security vulnerabilities has served as a wake-up call to the importance of effective patch management as part of a secure server environment. Unfortunately, while most administrators and security professionals do acknowledge the importance of system patching, more often than not, this task is improperly managed or completely overlooked as part of an administrator’s regular duties.

The most common complaints I hear from an administrator include the following:

• It is ...