Customers using BMC Client Management should always do their best to stay current with the latest version of Client Management for a variety of reasons. There are a few simple rules to follow:
- Always apply the latest patch/hotfix when released. Not only do these hot fixes correct identified “defects” they can also provide enhancements. The BMC Community for Client Management will provide alerts to releases and provide a link to the online document’s page that will detail the items changed.
- Do not apply a new version upgrade until the first patch/hotfix has been released. It is considered best practice to wait until the new version has been installed in various production environments to identify as many defects or issues discovered by support and the development team before applying in an existing production environment. Understand, no matter how good the QA process is prior to releasing the newest full version, until it is running in various situations not known to the “BMC Test Lab” there is no way to capture all potential defects until out in production. No two enterprises are the same with all the various security tools in place and GPOs. Waiting for the first patch/hotfix will reduce any issues that may negatively impact your instance.
All versions prior to 12.8.0. patch 3 will no longer be able to download and process Patch Knowledge Base due to changes from the BMC vendor, Ivanti. Due to changes in Microsoft Servicing Stack for Patch awareness, Ivanti is retiring support for SDK 9.2. Only the latest SDK from Ivanti will continue to process the new Patch KB. Customers will have until the end of March 2020 to upgrade to 12.9’s latest hotfix or 12.8’s latest hotfix to avoid any service interruption when patching Windows devices.
Here is the Announcement from Serena Lambiase, the BMC Product Manager addressing this requirement:
| Announcement: Important notice for BMC Client Management customers using patch management
by Serena Lambiase (July 3, 2019)
BMC Client Management currently uses Shavlik Patch SDK 9.2 as its patching system. The 9.2 version of Shavlik Patch SDK is not supported after 31 March 2020. To ensure that the BMC Client Management patch management module continues to receive new patches, you must upgrade to BMC Client Management version 12.8, patch 3 or higher before 31 March 2020.
Versions of BMC Client Management earlier than 12.8, patch 3 will not receive new patches for the patch management module after 31 March 2020.
https://communities.bmc.com/community/bmcdn/client_management/blog/2019/07/03/important-notice-for-customers-using-patch-management |
Note: It is my understanding that a new patch/hotfix will be released in February 2020. If you are behind in your version, below 12.8, I recommend that you wait until February 2020 or early March 2020 to preform the upgrade. This will get you on the latest version with minimal effort.
I have posted other articles that details product enhancements when new versions are released so I will not discuss those here but I do want to stress that upgrading and patching it not difficult and does not require a Dev/Test environment. Should you have concerns or desire to have a Rightstar SME assist with your upgrade, that can be arranged by contacting your Rightstar sales professional or emailing
[email protected].
Steven R. Gibbs
Sr. Systems Consultant
RightStar Systems
