Help keeping the VM sprawl patched… Free Microsoft Offline Virtual Machine Servicing Tool released

virtualization.info - Microsoft releases Offline Virtual Machine Servicing Tool

“After a couple of months in beta testing, a new virtualization tool from Microsoft is ready for RTM: the Offline Virtual Machine Servicing Tool.

This product allows the update of large-scale deployments of virtual machines, leveraging PowerShell, System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) 2007 and WSUS 3.0 (or Configuration Manager 2007).

The user can configure virtual machine groups and multiple jobs for each one to schedule different updates at pre-defined times.

Exactly like the VMware Update Manager (VUM) included in VI 3.5 does, this tool isn’t able yet to inject a new patch into an offline virtual machine passing through its virtual disk.

It just automates the VM power-on, updates deploying through virtual network access, and VM shutdown.

…”

As I’m trying to get back into the VM space a little (seeing 12+ PC’s, which do nothing 95%+ of the day, stacked in the corner of my Lab is starting to really bug me) I can see where this could come in real handy.

The issue for me may be SC VMM and WSUS as my first Hyper-V system will be a Dev system and I don’t think we have SC VMM in-house yet (WAIT, hold the presses!… Looks like I have SC VMM as part of my MSDN Subscription. That rocks! What did we do before we had MSDN Subscriptions?  :)

(via A Continuous Learner's Weblog - Links (7/15/2008))