Microsoft Intune is a leading device management platform that many businesses rely on for cloud-based endpoint management across corporate and BYOD devices. While it has earned that acclaim, it does have some weaknesses, including its limited third-party app patching.
Modern environments rely heavily on browsers, collaboration tools, PDF software, and other non-Microsoft apps, which are often the most frequently exploited components in an attack chain.
The challenge is simple: Intune isn’t built to deliver real-time, automated third-party patching, and its multi-hour check-in cycles can leave critical vulnerabilities unaddressed longer than organizations want.
If your goal is to keep Windows and macOS endpoints continuously updated, reduce manual effort, and shrink your exposure window, pairing Intune with Splashtop AEM offers a direct and efficient way to close those gaps.
Understanding Intune's Third-Party Patching Limitations
Intune is primarily focused on OS updates and Microsoft software, which is perfectly fine for companies that rely solely on Microsoft solutions. However, most businesses use a wider variety of apps, and Intune’s third-party patching often requires custom packaging, manual uploads, or external tools rather than offering native real-time coverage.
Additionally, Intune check-ins often take several hours, commonly up to eight, depending on configuration and device state. While a matter of hours may not seem like much in the grand scheme, when a new patch for a zero-day vulnerability is released, those precious hours can make all the difference between cybersecurity and a data breach.
The lack of third-party patching, combined with longer patch cycles, can lead to inconsistent coverage and a larger attack surface. Patching these applications can increase the manual workload for IT agents, who may already be overworked.
Why Third-Party Apps Are the Biggest Risk Area
It can be easy to overlook third-party app patching. After all, as long as the operating system is up to date, how much of a risk could it be for a few apps to skip an update?
The fact of the matter is that the most commonly exploited vulnerabilities are in apps like browsers, collaboration software, and PDF tools. Cyberattacks frequently target these apps, exploiting vulnerabilities in apps like Chrome, Zoom, or Adobe to bypass OS-level security and attack the device directly.
As such, leaving third-party apps unpatched for extended periods can create a significant security vulnerability. Even if the device's OS is up to date, without real-time third-party patching, it remains exposed to attacks.
How Splashtop AEM Complements Intune
Fortunately, it's possible to supplement Microsoft Intune with real-time endpoint management that can keep endpoints fully up to date. Splashtop AEM (Autonomous Endpoint Management) is a robust endpoint management solution that can bring real-time patching and automation to organizations and IT teams, strengthening Microsoft Intune in areas where it struggles.
Splashtop AEM provides:
Real-time patching to install updates instantly, rather than waiting for Intune's sync cycle.
Third-party application patching for a broad catalog of supported applications to keep key software up to date.
Cross-platform support covering Windows and macOS.
Policy-based automation that lets companies automatically deploy updates based on severity, compliance requirements, and CVE intelligence.
Unified visibility showing patch statuses across devices from one console.
CVE insights that help prioritize updates by exploitability.
For organizations that already use Intune, Splashtop AEM doesn't have to replace it. Instead, Splashtop AEM can be used alongside Intune to fill coverage gaps, ensuring that patches are deployed promptly and efficiently across endpoints, apps, and operating systems.
Step-by-Step: How to Leverage Splashtop AEM with Intune
If you want to use Splashtop AEM to add real-time patch management to Microsoft Intune, doing so is easy. Just follow these simple steps, and you'll be able to easily patch your endpoints and applications, keep remote endpoints protected, and gain visibility into patch statuses across your network:
Deploy the Splashtop AEM agent to Intune-managed devices through Intune.
Create patch policies, including rapid installation for urgent updates, compliance regulations, and guidelines for critical and high-risk applications.
Monitor patch compliance via Splashtop AEM's dashboards, which provide visibility into each endpoint.
Use Intune for device configuration and Splashtop AEM for real-time, automated patching.
Generate compliance reports to share with auditors and leadership and demonstrate IT compliance.
What Splashtop AEM Covers That Intune Does Not
With that said, what are the benefits of using Splashtop AEM with Intune? While Intune is a powerful device management platform, there are some areas it doesn't cover. In those cases, Splashtop AEM can pick up the slack.
These areas include:
Third-party apps across operating systems.
Real-time patch management, rather than set schedules with multi-hour delays.
Event-based patching policies that use severity levels, compliance requirements, and CVE intelligence to prioritize updates.
Automated remediation for missing or failed updates.
Unified patch and CVE reporting across platforms and endpoints.
Together, these tools and features can augment Intune, filling gaps and creating a more powerful, holistic endpoint management solution.
Use Cases Where Splashtop AEM Provides Immediate Value
Now let's consider some use cases for Splashtop AEM. What are some situations where using Splashtop AEM with Microsoft Intune would be valuable?
First, Splashtop AEM helps expand Intune's support capabilities across remote, hybrid, and BYOD work environments. Intune doesn't fully support patching for macOS devices, for instance, but Splashtop AEM can. This is also a valuable capability for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) who manage a diverse array of clients, especially those with different risk profiles.
Splashtop AEM is also a valuable tool for security teams and IT teams. The ability to roll out critical updates in real time is essential for cybersecurity, especially when security teams need to respond to zero-day vulnerabilities. Splashtop AEM's automation helps IT teams reduce manual work and eliminate human error.
Security and Compliance Advantages
Next, we can examine the security and IT compliance benefits of Splashtop AEM and how they can enhance security in environments using Intune.
First, Splashtop AEM's real-time patch management ensures patches are deployed promptly, reducing the exposure windows that Intune's slow check-in schedules can create. This helps ensure that browsers, apps, and operating systems remain up to date and protected against zero-day vulnerabilities.
Splashtop AEM also provides consistent documentation and visibility into each endpoint. This helps companies demonstrate their security compliance during an audit, showing that each endpoint is properly patched.
Additionally, Splashtop AEM can help organizations meet their security compliance requirements. Splashtop AEM can be customized to comply with various regulations, enabling you to meet third-party app coverage requirements for standards such as SOC 2, PCI, and HIPAA compliance.
Real-World Example: Closing a Third-Party Patch Gap
Let's consider a potential scenario. Imagine a new zero-day vulnerability in Google Chrome appears, like the recent CVE-2025-13223. Chrome is a widely used application, so this vulnerability could affect a large number of employees across a company. Fortunately, a patch for that vulnerability is released shortly after it's discovered.
If a company uses Intune alone, it won't be able to deploy the patch immediately. Since Intune doesn’t natively provide seamless third-party patching, IT teams may need to rely on manual installs, custom packages, or external tools to deploy the patch. Even if Intune did support the patch, it runs on a set schedule, so there could be hours between the patch's release and deployment, during which countless devices remain vulnerable.
However, if the company were to use Splashtop AEM with Intune, that wouldn't be a problem. Splashtop AEM can detect available patches and deploy them across supported operating systems like Windows and macOS. Then, IT agents can check the Splashtop AEM dashboard and confirm all devices are patched, ensuring compliance in minutes, rather than hours.
Strengthen Intune with Real-Time Patch Coverage
Intune is a powerful solution, but it's not built for rapid patch deployment or comprehensive third-party patching. However, by using Splashtop AEM alongside Intune, IT teams can achieve the speed, automation, and visibility they need to properly patch every endpoint.
Splashtop AEM gives IT teams the tools and technology they need to monitor endpoints, proactively address issues, and reduce their workloads. This includes:
Automated patching for OS, third-party, and custom apps.
CVE-based vulnerability insights to help prioritize updates.
Customizable policy frameworks that can be enforced throughout your network.
Hardware and software inventory tracking and management across all endpoints.
Alerts and remediation to automatically resolve issues before they become problems.
Background actions to access tools like task managers and device managers without interrupting users.
Ready to enhance your patch management with automation and real-time visibility? Try Splashtop AEM free and fill Intune's patching gaps.
