This article answers frequently asked questions about Windows Autopatch.
General
Is Windows 365 for Enterprise supported with Windows Autopatch?
Windows Autopatch supports Windows 365 for Enterprise. Windows 365 for Business isn't supported.
Will Windows Autopatch support local domain join Windows 10?
Windows Autopatch doesn't support local (on-premises) domain join. Windows Autopatch supports Microsoft Hybrid Entra join or Microsoft Entra join.
Will Windows Autopatch be available for state and local government customers?
Windows Autopatch isn't currently supported for government cloud (GCC) customers. Although Windows 365 Enterprise is in the Azure Commercial cloud, when Windows 365 Enterprise is used with a GCC customer tenant, Autopatch is not supported.
How do I access Windows Autopatch?
You can access Windows Autopatch through Intune. For more information, see Start using Windows Autopatch and Prerequisites to ensure you meet the licensing requirements.
Requirements
What are the licensing requirements for Windows Autopatch?
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium (for more information on available licenses, see Microsoft 365 licensing)
- Windows 10/11 Education A3 or A5 (included in Microsoft 365 A3 or A5)
- Windows 10/11 Enterprise E3 or E5 (included in Microsoft 365 F3, E3, or E5)
- Windows 10/11 Enterprise E3 or E5 VDA
What are the prerequisites for Windows Autopatch?
- Microsoft Entra ID(for co-management)
- Microsoft Entra hybrid joined devices or Microsoft Entra joined devices
- Microsoft Intune (include Configuration Manager 2010 or greater via co-management)
Additional prerequisites for devices managed by Configuration Manager:
- Configuration Manager Co-management requirements
- A supported version of Configuration Manager
- Switch workloads for device configuration, Windows Update and Microsoft 365 Apps from Configuration Manager to Intune (minimum Pilot Intune. Pilot collection must contain the devices you want to register into Autopatch.)
What are the Intune permissions needed to operate Windows Autopatch?
For registering devices, managing update deployment and reporting tasks, use the Intune Service Administrator role. For more information, see Built-in roles for device registration.
Are there hardware requirements for Windows Autopatch?
No, Windows Autopatch doesn't require any specific hardware. However, general hardware requirements for updates are still applicable. For example, to deliver Windows 11 to your Autopatch devices they must meet specific hardware requirements. Windows devices must be supported by your hardware OEM.
Device registration
Who can register devices into Windows Autopatch?
If you have Business Premium, A3+, E3+ and F3 licenses, you can register devices into Windows Autopatch. For more information, see Features and capabilities.
Does Autopatch on Windows 365 Cloud PCs have any feature difference from a physical device?
No, Windows 365 Enterprise Cloud PC's support all features of Windows Autopatch. For more information, see Virtual devices.
Do my Cloud PCs appear any differently in the Windows Autopatch admin center?
Cloud PC displays the model as the license type you've provisioned. For more information, see Windows Autopatch on Windows 365 Enterprise Workloads.
Can I run Autopatch on my Windows 365 Business Workloads?
No. Autopatch is only available on enterprise workloads. For more information, see Windows Autopatch on Windows 365 Enterprise Workloads.
Can you change the policies and configurations created by Windows Autopatch?
No. Don't change, edit, add to, or remove any of the configurations. Doing so might cause unintended configuration conflicts and impact the Windows Autopatch service.
How can I represent our organizational structure with our own deployment cadence?
Windows Autopatch groups helps you manage updates in a way that makes sense for your businesses. For more information, see Windows Autopatch groups overview and Manage Windows Autopatch groups.
Manage updates
Who can manage updates with Windows Autopatch?
Business Premium, A3+, E3+ and F3 licenses can manage updates with Windows Autopatch. For more information, see Features and capabilities.
What systems does Windows Autopatch update?
- Windows 10/11 quality updates: Windows Autopatch manages all aspects of deployment rings.
- Windows 10/11 feature updates: Windows Autopatch manages all aspects of deployment rings.
- Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise updates: All devices registered for Windows Autopatch will receive updates from the Monthly Enterprise Channel.
- Microsoft Edge: Windows Autopatch configures eligible devices to benefit from Microsoft Edge's progressive rollouts on the Stable channel and will provide support for issues with Microsoft Edge updates.
- Microsoft Teams: Windows Autopatch allows eligible devices to benefit from the standard automatic update channels and will provide support for issues with Teams updates.
What does Windows Autopatch do to ensure updates are done successfully?
For Windows quality and feature updates, updates are applied to devices in a gradual manner. There's an evaluation period at each progression. This process is dependent on customer testing and verification of all updates during these rollout stages. The outcome is to ensure that registered devices are always up to date and disruption to business operations is minimized to free up your IT department from that ongoing task.
What happens if there's an issue with an update?
Autopatch relies on the following capabilities to help resolve update issues:
- Pausing and resuming: For more information about pausing and resuming updates, see pausing and resuming Windows quality updates.
- Rollback: For more information about Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, see Update controls for Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise.
Can I configure when to move to the next ring or is it controlled by Windows Autopatch?
You're in full control over when updates are deployed to their devices. Autopatch groups will recommend a set of intelligent defaults but those are fully customizable so that you can achieve your desired rollout.
Support
Does Windows Autopatch Support Dual Scan for Windows Update?
Dual Scan for Windows has been deprecated and replaced with the scan source policy. Windows Autopatch supports the scan source policy if the Feature updates, and Windows quality updates workloads are configured for Windows update. If Feature and Windows updates are configured for WSUS, it could cause disruptions to the service and your release schedules.
Additional Content
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