Azure Update Manager unsupported images and machines

Tom 21

With the introduction of Azure Update Manager and the sunsetting of Azure Update Management through Azure Automation, we as an MSP have been absolutely biting our heads off over some of the limitations of the new product.

We use hundreds of custom imaged VMs in Azure that cannot have the AutomaticByPlatform set because it is not supported. Furthermore, we use CIS marketplace images that are also no longer supported. Even though these VM's have been updated in-place, the original VM still says the source is an unsupported image.

VMs and OSes that were previously supported for patch management are now just full out unsupported and barred from migration because Azure looks at what the VM object metadata has or does not have filled in. It's hard to believe this is the case because if we leverage Arc on the same machine on Hyper-V, it is supported?

We also have entire farms of servers that lose Azure-native update capabilities. And we waited this long only due to promises made by Microsoft to offer enough support to be a full replacement before sunsetting the old Update Management. This is clearly not the case.

Did Microsoft really just push all of their clients in similar scenarios into the hands of third party patch management or are we overlooking options here?

Rahul Podila 195 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-10-15T04:21:19.2566667+00:00

Hi @Tom
Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A Platform! Thank you for asking your question here.

We can use Azure Automation to create custom scripts to give you more control over how and when your VMs are updated, which can work well for constraints.

Using Azure Arc, we can explore how it can help you better manage your hybrid resources and provide additional flexibility.

There are third-party patch management solutions available, such as Patch My PC or Ivanti, that can work seamlessly with your custom image. We can look into these options together.

I’ll keep an eye out for any new features or improvements from Azure that could help in your situation.

Finally, we can train your team on new tools and techniques to ensure they get the most out of it.
If you have any further queries, do let us know.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and "Upvote it".
Rahul Podila 195 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-10-17T04:41:26.6766667+00:00

Hi @Tom
If you had a chance to see my comment to your question. If it was helpful, please click "Upvote" on my post let us know Thank you...!
Tom 21 Reputation points

2024-10-17T07:09:40.08+00:00

Hi @Rahul Podila

Thank you for all your suggestions, but I am sorry, no it is not helpful. These are resources that we could previously manage through a supported Microsoft solution and support for these are just removed from the product that Microsoft claims should be a replacement. We are getting absolutely 0 helpful or hopeful response to our concerns from them.

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Azure Update Manager unsupported images and machines

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