Patch Management Solutions

Shavlik HFNetChkPro Plus 5.8
Shavlik HFNetChkPro Plus 5.8 incorporates a unique combination of push and pull topology choices. The push component uses the Windows Remote Registry service and Microsoft Server Message Block/Common Internet File System (SMB/CIFS) communication from the Console (Shavlik's term for the patch management server) to initiate vulnerability scans on clients. The pull component uses a client agent to initiate communication with the Console. HFNetChkPro Plus supports Microsoft OSs only, but it can provide patches for major Microsoft applications and some nonMicrosoft apps, including Adobe Acrobat and Flash and Mozilla Firefox. A separate product, Shavlik HFNetChkPro for Solaris, supports the Sun UNIX OS.

The HFNetChkPro Plus installer makes setup easy by downloading and installing the prerequisite Windows components, which might not be present on a clean server install. Like the other products in this review, HFNetChkPro Plus supports multiple distribution servers and lets you customize which patches are deployed in response to scan results. For example, you can create a Patch Scan Template to define which patches to look for and a Deployment Template to define how and when missing patches are deployed, how much bandwidth to use, and when client reboots can be tolerated. Like PatchLink Update, HFNetChkPro Plus can combine scheduled patch scans with on-demand scans for a flexible posture in responding to patching needs. HFNetChkPro Plus lets you uninstall patches in any order.

HFNetChkPro Plus works without an agent on most clients, which should make installation easier but might mean extra configuration on some clients. You might need to configure an XP client's Windows Firewall and Remote Registry service to accept connections from the Console.

With HFNetChkPro Plus, all clients that report to the same Console must use the same configuration settings. (Shavlik plans to resolve this in an upcoming minor version release.) Both WSUS and PatchLink Update have greater flexibility in this area and can accommodate multiple client configurations per server to better match network topology and client needs.

Because of its push topology, HFNetChkPro Plus can manage computers that might otherwise be outside your control. HFNetChkPro Plus's built-in IP Range Scan facilitates a comprehensive network scan that finds any client computers to which you have administrator access. On mobile computers, firewalled computers, and other difficult cases, you can install the HFNetChkPro Plus agent. The agent supports push installation as well as local installation from CD-ROM or USB flash drive, so no independent software distribution infrastructure is needed.

The HFNetChkPro Plus admin interface is a standalone .exe file rather than a Web interface. Also, some scheduled tasks on the Console server execute inside a command prompt window. Together, these minor points cause HFNetChkPro Plus to feel like a desktop application rather than a service.

HFNetChkPro Plus's prepackaged reports are well done and include a few helpful analysis reports, including the Top 10 Vulnerable Machines and Top 10 Missing Patches, which Figure 3 shows. Reports such as this help you quickly get a handle on the most serious threats to network health.

HFNetChkPro Plus also has an optional, extra-cost antispyware add-on that was in development at the time of this review.

Overall, I found Shavlik HFNetChkPro Plus a well-rounded patch management product that addresses many of the software patching challenges facing modern enterprises.

Conclusion
All three of the reviewed products provide significant benefits for the overworked system administrator. They all deliver the core functionality of modern patch management solutions: patch approval, patch delivery, and reporting. And most importantly, all three products were successful in delivering and applying patches in my test lab environment. Beyond this core functionality, the three products have significant differences.

WSUS provides the base level of functionality that administrators need to control the Windows Automatic Update client and save bandwidth. Its spartan reporting provides usable information about the status of patch deployment and it can accommodate a variety of network topologies.

HFNetChkPro Plus adds several useful features to the expected core patching functionality. I was impressed with the smart combination of push and pull models for patch management, and the management interface was easy to use, although I would have preferred a Web-based interface.

PatchLink Update also adds several useful features to the core patching functionality. It offers agents for multiple platforms, hardware and software inventory collection, and useful summary and analysis reports that can be easily exported. PatchLink Update also has the most flexible access control model for administrators. Because of its solid functionality in the multiplatform enterprise and its useful features, PatchLink Update is my pick for Editor's Choice.

See Associated Table

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