Software is never done. Developers—from the biggest to the smallest—release regular updates to increase security, add new features, improve stability, and satisfy compliance mandates. These updates are typically referred to as “patches.”

Many managed service providers (MSPs) recognize patch management as one of the cornerstone capabilities of their service offerings. Maintaining patch management best practices ensures that software bugs or weaknesses are addressed to ensure a secure and optimally efficient computing environment.

As MSPs grow their business, the number of networks they must track grows in step, and the number of client software solutions requiring patch management can expand exponentially. Tracking which platforms each individual client runs, and then manually pushing updates to each one, creates time-intensive levels of extra complexity.

Datto RMM brings order to this critical process with automated patch management. Datto RMM is a fully-featured, secure, cloud-based remote monitoring and management platform which enables MSPs to remotely monitor, manage, and support every endpoint under contract, reducing cost and increasing service delivery efficiency.

With the automated patch management features of Datto RMM, MSPs can schedule updates to unfold at an optimum pace. Setting a timeline is important for security, because patch management isn’t simply a case of installing them the moment that they’re available from a vendor. Updating patches too often is not only time consuming but can lead to system instability. Even worse, the patches themselves can reveal themselves to have flaws—patch management best practices typically call for a grace period before installation in case a new bug is discovered.

Building Cyber Resilience

Cyber resilience, a concept that converges information security, business continuity, and organizational resilience, represents a business’s ability to continuously deliver on its intended outcome, despite adverse cyber events.

“Cyber resilience is the ultimate objective of building an information security program for any business of any size,” says Ryan Weeks, Chief Information Security Officer for Datto. “It’s intended to ensure the availability, integrity, and confidentiality of systems and data through an adverse event.”

According to Weeks, Cyber resilience is built on triple pillars: People, Processes, and Technology. One of the keys to reinforcing the process component of a security program is using technology to automate processes across systems at scale, where it makes sense to do so.

“Technology supports your people and processes to scale once they’re ready,” he explains. “Technology should also support those people and those processes in terms of automation. For a lot of your security processes—especially if you don’t want to hire a huge security team—you’re going to need to rely a lot on automation. Before you go out and start purchasing more technology, you need to look at your existing technology and how you can leverage that to increase your overall effectiveness.”

Activate Automation with Datto RMM

Datto RMM enables MSPs to increase their clients’ Cyber resilience. Using Datto RMM, patch updates can be tightly scheduled, which allows MSPs to track exactly when a patch has been installed. With that heightened level of control, MSPs can ensure that patches are only installed after any of its accompanying bugs have been worked out.

Datto RMM can also be integrated with Datto SIRIS, a reliable, all-in-one business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) solution built for MSPs to prevent data loss and minimize downtime for clients. With SIRIS in the mix, system instability that may have accompanied a new patch installation can be fixed quickly by restoring to a previous system version.

MSPs that have automated patch management in their toolkit can win back precious time, a valuable ally in the race to keep pace with a fast-changing landscape. “It doesn’t matter where you are in the Cyber Resilience spectrum—it’s a continuous improvement process,” Weeks concludes. “There will always be more work to do, because things are constantly changing and you need to adapt with that change.”

To learn more about automated patch management and increasing cyber resilience with Datto RMM, schedule a demo.