Automated Windows 10 OS Updates

[Jeff_burns]

Assistance needed,

We have Meraki MDM and i am wanting to know if we can use this tool to automate the deployment of Windows OS updates.  We currently use a patch management tool and want to replace that tool with this one

Any help you can provide would be great

Thanks
Jeff

[DHAnderson]

I use JumpCloud for user / group / computer / policy management.  They also offer RADIUS.

I wish Meraki or Cisco would buy then and roll those features into SM!

[ErikSRQ]

I am also looking for a way to accomplish this and REALLY am hoping it will be incorporated in a subsequent build. Curious, given that the command prompt feature is available and that wuauclt /detectnow could be launched using this feature, if there might be a way to deploy a batch script/process using Meraki to one or all Windows devices within a network.

[PeterJames]

Hi @ErikSRQ,

Yes and No.

What you want is here, albeit lightly documented; https://documentation.meraki.com/SM/Apps_and_Software/Deploying_Scripts_in_Systems_Manager_using_Sof...

I would highly recommend learning PowerShell. PowerShell is "god mode" for windows and once you learn it, you will find you might not need tool a,b,c,d,e or f. Every environment I was walked in to historically I have stripped out third party tools that cost money and used this native tool.

Thank you,

Peter James

[ErikSRQ]

Thanks very much Peter!

[ErikSRQ]

I looked into JumpCloud and it looks like it leverages an open source system called Chocolately. Was just wondering if you had run into any associated security concerns with this approach.

Thank you

-Erik

[DHAnderson]

@Eric 

I do not use Jump Cloud or Chocolatey to install applications.  I just JumpCloud to push policies (Windows Update for instance), RADIUS for VPN and WiFi, and user and computer management. 

[PeterJames]

Hi @Jeff_burns ,

Once you learn Microsoft SCCM you will never go back to using any third party to manage windows updates. It was one of those rare products that I would say gives you back a 5:1 (in its first year of adoption) in time spent learning vs time saved. Microsoft gave up with Mobiles due to having a low market share and left it to Apple/Android of which Meraki support both.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/system-center/

December 2019 however, it got put under the Endpoint Manager suite.

The page I wanted to link at this point unfortunately takes you to a competitor product for Meraki SM, so I will link the actual tool called "Microsoft Endpoint: Configuration Manager": https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/mem/configmgr/

Most reference documentation will be MS SCCM (Pre 2020) and to avoid to confusion try to focus on materiel that only talks about MS Endpoint Configuration Manager.

I hope that helps.

Thank you,

Peter James