Two-Phase Update Deployment Plan

My daily tasks in a previous role were managing updates with SCCM. Below is an outline of the updated deployment plan that I developed.

Two-Phase Update Deployment Plan

Phase 1: Baseline Update Deployment Ensure all PCs are running the same updates.

Phase 2: Detailed Update Deployment Plan

1. Create an update group on Wednesday (second person reviews update group and checks the need for a restart).

2. Deploy to the first test group mid-week on Wednesday.

3. Create weekend deployment at the same time for the following weekend (second person reviews deployment settings).

4. Deploy to the second, larger test group on Friday night (review the need for a restart).

5. Review test groups and any failures or failed PCs.

6. Monitor deployments created in steps 3 and 4 (each deployment has a 10-day lifespan and can be revoked anytime up to the Friday deployment date).

7. Review the final deployment on Sunday and create a plan to resolve any failures.

SCCM Peer Review Process

Before applying any service pack, hotfix, or security patch, all relevant documentation should be read and peer-reviewed. The peer review process mitigates the risk of a single person missing critical points when evaluating the update. Here’s what to consider:

1. Relevance: Ensure the update will resolve an existing issue.

2. Impact: Confirm that its adoption won't cause other issues that compromise the production system.

3. Dependencies: Identify if certain features need to be enabled or disabled for the update to be effective.

4. Sequencing: Be aware of any specific instructions recommending the sequence of events or updates to occur before applying the service pack, hotfix, or security patch.