N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (2024)

Table of Contents

Simple, powerful patching Get more comprehensive patching out of the box Get patch management software you can rely on Increase patch flexibility Patch with more control Patch anytime, anywhere Get comprehensive patch reporting Patching for a growing catalog of third-party apps Powerful patching. Unbeatable expertise. Patching made easy Patching made easy Patching expertise and thought leadership Patching expertise and thought leadership Experience matters Experience matters Out-patching the competition Resources A guide to patch management policies for MSPs Patch Management for IT Pros: A feature available with N-able N-sight RMM Patch Tuesday: Monthly Review of the latest patches and vulnerabilities N‑able N‑central Patch Management FAQ Is there an additional cost for patch management? Is there an additional cost for patch management? What are some patch management best practices? What are some patch management best practices? Can I control what software is installed during patch management? Can I control what software is installed during patch management? Can I patch on a closed network? Can I patch on a closed network? How do I wake devices for patch management? How do I wake devices for patch management? What third-party apps do you patch? What third-party apps do you patch? Ready to secure your business withN‑central patch management? FAQs References

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N‑central RMM

Patch Management

Overview
Patch Management
Apple MDM
Automation

Try it free

Overview
Patch Management
Apple MDM
Automation

N‑central patch management offers reliable, flexible, automated patching that puts you in control. Create patching policies that protect your clients and scale with your business.

Try it free Contact sales

Voted #1 RMM Platform
3 years in a row

Remote working and bring-your-own device (BYOD)

Understand which devices and networks are at risk, and update them easily with minimal end-user impact.

Ready to upgrade to Windows 11

Discover, control, and seamlessly deliver OS updates when you are ready.

Microsoft Out-of-Band (OOB) updates

Be prepared to handle and secure your environment in unplanned situations.

Simple, powerful patching

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (21)

Get more comprehensive patching out of the box

Never miss a Microsoft patch, including OOB patches, feature and OS upgrades, updates for older operating systems, and updates for 100+ third-party applications.

Get patch management software you can rely on

Single-cycle patching reliably handles the entire update process, through patch and reboot.

Try it free

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (22)

Increase patch flexibility

Install only the patches you want, when you want them. Choose from a variety of device reboot options, including forced reboot, delay in and outside the window, and silent reboot.

Patch with more control

Allow a high level of granularity to set patch policies across a multi-tiered hierarchy—all organizations, specific departments and sites, custom groups, and even specific devices.

Try it free

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (23)

Patch anytime, anywhere

Deliver patches in-network, out-of-network, and even across closed network environments. Take advantage of advanced patch caching and deploy on schedule, on-demand, or wake devices as needed.

Get comprehensive patch reporting

Customized notifications, pop ups, and reporting keep you and your team in the loop, and easily help collect data for compliance regulations.

Try it free

Patching for a growing catalog of third-party apps

Powerful patching. Unbeatable expertise.

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (29)

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (30)

Patching made easy

Simple, reliable patching with no scripting or cumbersome setup required.

Patching expertise and thought leadership

Get access to free, expert guidance from N‑able’s Head Nerds as they discuss important patches and give you advice to help to strengthen your practice.

Experience matters

High patch success rate, trusted by some of the largest MSPs, with millions of devices updated every month.

“When it comes to remote monitoring and patch management, for servers, workstations, network devices, and VMware, N‑central is the best of the best. It cannot even be compared with other tools.“

Mijo PejicCEO and Lead System EngineerComversum

Out-patching the competition

N‑able
N‑central

ConnectWise
Automate

Kaseya VSA

Datto RMM

Out-of-the-box OS and feature updates

Fully automated

Requires scripts

Fully automated

Microsoft Release Channels

Every class and severity of Microsoft patch, including OOB

Band B only

Microsoft classifications

Supports all Microsoft classifications

Third-party patching support

100+ supported apps, which are in-house tested and verified for install success

List of supported apps from a third-party supplier leveraging an open community repository

100+ supported apps via a third-party supplier

In-house list of supported apps with some add-on scripted installs

Closed network and offline patching

Natively builds patch lists for use by devices with no internet connection

Not available

Requires manual upload of patches to a central server

Not available

Wake and patch support

Uses both Wake-on-LAN and Windows Power Management to wake both isolated and networked devices

Wake-on-LAN only

Patch auto-approval delay range with countdown

Fully automated and configurable approval delays with countdown

Requires manual interaction

Resources

A guide to patch management policies for MSPs

March 30th, 20215 min read

ByN‑able

Product Information

Patch Management for IT Pros: A feature available with N-able N-sight RMM

Keeping software up to date is critical for keeping your network safe. But patch management can quickly get complicated when managing multiple workstations and servers. That’s where N‑able N‑sight™ RMM...

View Product Information

Resource

Patch Tuesday: Monthly Review of the latest patches and vulnerabilities

Learn about the latest threats, patches, and vulnerabilities. Which applications have them, and how threat actors are using them to exploit devices.

View Resource

N‑able N‑central Patch Management FAQ

Is there an additional cost for patch management?

No. Patch management—including third-party patching—is included as part of N‑central’s base functionality.

What are some patch management best practices?

Take a complete inventory of your customer’s infrastructure to make sure no software has been forgotten.
Leverage automated patch management whenever possible and develop patch management policies to establish procedural standards for patching.
Standardize configuration, hardware, and operating systems whenever possible to speed up patch management.
Prioritize your patches and deploy the most critical ones first.
Fully read the documentation on patches before deploying—this can help you determine whether or not a potential patch will help or harm your customer’s system.
Deploy patches during off-peak hours so updates will not disturb your customer’s day-to-day operations.
Document everything that happens before, during, and after the patching process for compliance and reporting purposes.

Can I control what software is installed during patch management?

Yes. N‑central lets you optimize patch management by detecting software inventory and creating automation polices to remove unwanted software or install new software to right-size your application footprint.

Can I patch on a closed network?

Yes. N‑central lets you automatically create patch caches that can be stored and vetted before being automatically delivered to and deployed on the closed network.

How do I wake devices for patch management?

N‑central maximizes the number of devices that you can patch by letting you use either Wake-on-LAN or Windows Power Management to wake devices for patching.

What third-party apps do you patch?

You can find a list of N‑central’s growing library of third-party applications supported for patching here.

Ready to secure your business with
N‑central patch management?

N-central RMM Patch Management - N-able (2024)

FAQs

What is n-able patch management? ›

The Patch Management module in N-able N-central provides the capability to effectively manage the downloading and installation of Microsoft and third party software patches across your customers' networks.

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What is RMM patch management? ›

Datto RMM Patch Management allows you to both control and automate the deployment of patches to your Windows devices. The main objective of Patch Management is to create a consistently configured environment that is secure against known vulnerabilities in the operating system.

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What is n-able RMM? ›

Remote monitoring and management solution for MSP

N‑able^™ N‑central^® provides near-real-time remote monitoring for all your devices so you can maintain order in even the most chaotic IT environments.

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What is centralized patch management? ›

Centralized patch management uses a server software application that checks network hardware for missing patches, downloads the missing patches and distributes them to computers and other devices on the network.

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How does RMM work? ›

RMM, meaning Remote Monitoring and Management, is a type of software that empowers IT service providers to remotely monitor and manage their clients' IT assets. It allows businesses to proactively identify and resolve issues before they impact operations.

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What are the risks of patch management? ›

Another risk of patch management deployment is that the patches may degrade the performance of the system, applications, or devices. This can happen if the patches introduce new bugs, consume more resources, or conflict with other patches or software.

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What does RMM stand for? ›

RMM stands for Remote Monitoring and Management. It's a software platform that helps Managed Service Providers (MSPs) manage their clients' IT systems, even when they're not physically on site.

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What are the three types of patch management? ›

The three most common types of patches are security patches, bug fixes, and feature updates.

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What does RMM track? ›

Remote monitoring and management (RMM) is also known as remote IT management. These technologies are designed to help IT administrators and managed service providers (MSPs) remotely monitor PCs and other devices. Remote monitoring includes proactive maintenance to improve overall IT reliability and productivity.

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What is the difference between RMM and N Central? ›

RMM: With RMM, IT teams can monitor, manage, and secure their remote or on-premise IT infrastructures. Patch management: N-central patch management helps IT teams secure and update their endpoint devices.

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What is N-Central used for? ›

N‑able^™ N‑central^® provides unmatched customizations, automation, and integration to help your IT departments manage and secure your business. It is an ideal solution for large networks looking to scale IT operations.

Who owns N-able? ›

7. Ownership: After the spin-off, N-able shares will be traded as a publicly held company. The company's owners will be familiar names: SolarWinds, Solarwinds shareholders, Thoma Bravo and Silver Lake.

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Who is responsible for patch management? ›

Who's Responsible for Patch Management? In most businesses, the IT department will be responsible for keeping devices patched with updates provided by OEMs and software vendors. In smaller businesses, individual users may need to install their own patches.

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Is SCCM a patch management? ›

SCCM, or System Center Configuration Manager, is a paid patch management solution from Microsoft. SCCM relies on WSUS to check for and apply patches, but offers some more desirable features and gives users more control over how and when patches are deployed.

How often should you perform patch management? ›

An ideal patch management routine should consist of two patch deployment schedules a week. For zero-day vulnerabilities, they should be patched as soon as possible. However, always ensure that the patches are thoroughly tested on a test group before deploying them to production machines.

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What does a patch management system do? ›

Patch management is the practice of deploying firmware, driver, operating system (OS), and application updates to your computing endpoints. Patch management is critical to keeping systems updated, reducing attack surfaces, and ensuring employee productivity.

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What is BigFix patch management? ›

BigFix Patch Management for Windows keeps your Windows Clients current with the latest security updates from Microsoft. Patch Management is available through the Enterprise Security Fixlet site from BigFix.

What does patch manager do? ›

The ultimate goal of patch management software is to provide timely updates, reduce rework from mistakes, and improve the security of endpoints. Patch Management software has evolved over the past few years by incorporating several new features and functionalities to meet the ever-changing needs of end-users.