What is server patching? Server patch management. Have you ever had issues with a server outage due to unpatched vulnerabilities? Server outages can be costly because downtime negatively impacts productivity. Luckily, you can easily prevent this from happening with server patching. Hi, I'm Megan with Ninja one. In this video, I'll explain server patching, why it's so important and the best ways to streamline your server patching process. Before we get started, make sure to subscribe now to our IT video hub and ninja one IT tech tips, so you never miss out on powerful solutions. From Ninja one, what is server patching? Let's start with the basics. What is server patching exactly? A patch is a software update that deals with bugs that impact performance and security vulnerabilities. The term patch is often used interchangeably with update patching is the process of applying patches to fix or secure your server software. Why is server patch management important? Now that you know what server patching is, let's answer another important question. Why is server patch management important? Your servers are responsible for storing, sending and receiving data over the network to your organization's connected devices. If your servers aren't regularly updated with the latest patches, they may experience performance issues and become a vulnerability that hackers can exploit. Unlike patch management for individual devices, server patching affects your entire IT environment. Neglecting server patch management puts your entire network, your data, your productivity, and even your business operations at risk. This is why it's important to implement server patching correctly how server patching works. Server patching isn't just hitting an update button and calling it a day. The general approach to server patching is very different from the approach to patching a single end user device. The goal of patching endpoint devices, it's to protect them quickly and efficiently. In contrast, server patching requires users to be more hands-on for tasks like manual patch testing and implementation. This can make the server patching process more time consuming best practices for server patching. To help you get started with server patch management, I'll give you three actionable best practices for server patching that will help you streamline your processes. The first tip is to combine automatic and manual processes. As I mentioned earlier, server patching is a sensitive process, so while you can use automation tools to keep track of available patches and what devices are still unpatched, you should still use manual methods for other tasks. For example, manually testing and implementing server patches gives you more control and increases the likelihood that your patch improves server performance without creating additional issues. Next, always test server patches in a sandbox. Sandbox testing allows you to test available patches before they're applied to the server and rolled out to devices across your organization. This will help mitigate the risk of creating additional widespread issues. Lastly, you should implement server failovers. A server failover is a backup of your server if the original server goes down or offline due to patch, cyber attack, or any other factors. You can avoid costly downtime by having instant backup ready to go. Remember to follow general patch management best practices, such as documenting all your changes and relying on patch management software to automate and streamline server patching. Patch management software for servers. Patch management software is designed to automate and streamline the process of identifying, managing, and deploying patches to your servers. Automated patch management solutions take care of repetitive tasks and reduce the chance of human error that may cause a server not to receive a patch. With Ninja One's patch management solution, you can easily keep track of server health, detect missing updates, and quickly deploy patches to your servers. Ninja one gives you all the tools you need to secure patch, monitor, and manage your servers from a single user-friendly dashboard. Safeguard servers with effective patch management. Now that you know how to update and protect your organization's servers, you can reduce server software vulnerabilities and ensure optimal server performance. Consider using solutions like Ninja One's, automated Patch Management for servers to help you keep your servers up to date and free from exploitable vulnerabilities experience hassle free server patching for yourself. Click the link below to sign up for free trial of Ninja One Patch Management.