Microsoft makes Windows Autopatch available to E3 and E5 licensees

Microsoft has made Windows Autopatch available to all Windows and Microsoft 365 business customers. Autopatch ensures that that software is automatically updated according to rules that system administrators can specify.

Microsoft already announced Autopatch as beta in April, but the software is now available to everyone. Windows Autopatch can be used by system administrators with a Windows Enterprise E3 or an E5 license. A3 licensees cannot use the service. Microsoft also has more documentation for Autopatch put online and specialists are on hand to assist administrators with more than 150 active licenses with implementation. Subscription administrators must sign up users and devices individually for Autopatch.

Windows Autopatch is a paid service that automatically updates Windows, Microsoft 365 software, Edge and Teams within an organization when security updates are available. Rules in Endpoint Manager allow admins to set rules for when which devices can receive which updates. They can set which devices should receive security updates or only feature updates, or which devices should have the browser or Teams upgraded to the Stable Channel. Devices are labeled as Healthy or Unhealthy in Endpoint Manager and that determines whether an update can be made. If problems arise on the device during the rollout of security updates, Autopatch can stop or roll back the update.