How To Update Azure Virtual Machine

Here, I am going to explain Azure Update Management Solution. The main role of this solution is to provide you easy access to all available updates of your Azure VM. The Update Management Solution allows you to manage updates for your Windows and Linux computers deployed in Azure VMs. Right now, this is not available for public but in case you want to access this, you need to fill this form. OMS Update Management is one of the solutions across Windows and Linux.

Key Features

1. Provides detailed reports of all compliance across Windows and Linux. Gives a quick snap shot on how many computers are there, what updates are there, and what updates are missing etc.
2. Provides time estimate to install updates.
3. Supports WS2008 R2 and above for the insight parts. (For Windows) 
4. Using Windows update agent for scanning machine, it creates reports every 12 hours. (For Windows)
5. Linux: Red Hat Linux 6 & 7, Ubuntu Server 12.04 LTS, 14.04 LTS, 15.10, and 16.04

If you are new to OMS Update Management, you can view Manage updates across on-premises and clouds for Windows Server & Linux by Ravi Kiran.

How to enable Update Management

In Virtual Machines blade, go to “Automation+control”, then Select “Manage updates”. If the Update Management solution is not enabled to your VM, then it will give you an option to enable the solution. The log data starts to flow the workspace when the solution is enabled. Then, this data would be available for analysis in the dashboard. This entire process will take 30 minutes.

NOTE

While enabling the process, don’t close the browser; it will take around 15 minutes.

You can see the graphical representation of the number of updates missing on the VM from the Missing updates by severity tile at the Update Management solution in OMS, you can see required updates for Windows Server and Linux VMs running on Azure.



In the main view of the Update Management solution just scroll to the right side to get to the point of managing update deployments. There you can define a one time, a weekly or monthly schedule. The possibility adding different VMs to different schedules ensures that your services running on Azure VMs will be always available during this process.

After a run you can check the update deployment result, when you need information about which update got installed on which VM.As you can see, Microsoft does not do an automatic updating of your Azure VMs. But you get the freedom of choice, if you want to update your VMs manually or automate the update deployment with a few simple steps through the Operations Management Suite.

Create a new Update Deployment for the VM by clicking the “Schedule deployment for this VM” button at the top of the blade and specify the required values. After you have completed configuring the schedule, click the “OK” button and you return to the status dashboard. You will notice that the Scheduled table shows the deployment schedule you just created.

The table below shows how the tile categorizes the updates missing by update classification.



View update deployment state

After executing the scheduled deployment, Double-clicking the completed update deployment takes you to the detailed deployment status page.

Select “All Logs and Output Tiles” or you can use log search For Viewing Detailed Activities Performed. This Will Show the Job Stream of The Run Book Responsible for Managing The Update Deployment On The Target VM.



Last point - In case you are new here, do not forgot to read more details about OMS Management.