Request for opinions

[Professur]

At work, we're looking for a third party alternative to MS update server. Our field laptops are not attached to the domain, and they'd have to be (3000 machines) for us to use WSUS. Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[paul_valaru]

nope.

you mean the server you download updates for windows etc. from. the one with the annoying pop-up thing?

what did they change?

 

[Professur]

The WSUS is a local version of the one that MS keeps. It's a way of avoiding having the 5000 computers in your local DLing the hundred meg updates that MS chucks out every Tuesday across your internet link. This way, only one machine DLs it, and passes it out over the local net.

 

[Mirlyn]

Last I used WSUS (years ago; beta/v1.0), I didn't think you had to be a member. Can you add it to the workstations via registry insted of a GPO?

It was a pain back in the day to manage and use. Each update had to be approved, and there wasn't a way to filter language packs (imagine each update duplicated by the number of available languages).

Haven't used it since. I've instead gone towards unattended installs, but that doesn't fix your core issue.