As with any production system, it is critical to apply operating system and hardware updates routinely to protect businesses from security vulnerabilities and to take advantage of innovative new features and performance and reliability enhancements. Microsoft releases quality and security updates for the Azure Stack HCI operating system, and Dell releases updates for BIOS, firmware, and drivers regularly. To keep the system up to date, Dell OpenManage Extension installs a snap-in to Microsoft’s Cluster-Aware Updating extension. This produces a simple consolidated workflow that orchestrates the updates of the OS and the hardware. All these updates only require a single reboot per node in the cluster, with no impact to running workloads. Below is a summary of benefits and reduced risks:
- Single workflow orchestrates operating system, BIOS, firmware, and driver updates.
- One reboot per cluster node at a time with no interruption to workloads.
- Node validation checks ensure cluster update readiness.
- Dell Repository Manager created solution catalog for edge/disconnected scenarios.
- Fully automated experience with the online solution catalog.
- Compliance report and remediation.