Do you proactively update your IT infrastructure?

Hardware manufacturers and software developers all tend to provide critical software and hardware updates for their equipment and applications. This allows them to fully update, patch and secure the loopholes that may be used by unwanted intruders to cause disruption. It’s fairly important to have your operating system, software as well as hardware equipment fully updated and patched with the latest security definitions and firmware packages. Manufacturers like Microsoft and Apple have their own proprietary software in order to automatically update the operating system and the applications that are available on the computer.

 

Windows Updates

Windows Update is a service provided by Microsoft that provides updates for the Microsoft Windows operating system and its installed components, including Internet Explorer. Updates are normally provided over an Internet connection, although there is provision for updates to be installed on computers without an Internet connection. There are different kinds of updates. Security updates or critical updates protect against vulnerabilities to malware and security exploits. Other updates correct errors that aren’t related to security, or enhance functionality. Security updates are routinely provided on the second Tuesday of each month, but can be provided whenever a new update is urgently required to prevent a newly discovered or prevalent exploit targeting Windows users. Windows Update can be configured to install critical updates automatically so long as the computer is connected to the Internet, without the user needing to install them manually, or even be aware that an update is required .

 

Apple Software Update

Software Update is a software tool by Apple Inc. that installs the latest version of Apple software on computers running Mac OS X. It was originally introduced to Mac users in Mac OS 9. A Windows version has been available since the introduction of iTunes 7, under the name Apple Software Update. Software Update automatically informs users of new updates. Software Update can be set to check for updates daily, weekly, monthly, or not at all; in addition, it can download and store the associated .pkg file (the same type used by Installer) to be installed at a later date and maintains a history of installed updates. Software Updates consist of incremental updates of the Mac OS and its applications, Security Updates, device drivers and firmware updates. All software updates require a password, as with all consequential system changes. Some updates require a system restart. Starting with Mac OS X 10.5, updates that require a reboot log out the user prior to installation and automatically restart the computer when complete; in earlier versions, the updates are installed, but critical files are not replaced until the next system startup.