The more clients that Managed Service Providers (MSPs) add, the more difficult it becomes to maintain patch compliance across all of them. They need to juggle more endpoints, more third-party apps, more maintenance windows, and more client-specific requirements, while also proving that patches were actually deployed successfully.
Patching is more than just an IT hygiene task. Patch management impacts client security, service consistency, technician workloads, and even reporting credibility. As such, MSPs need to be able to scale patching across their client environments.
With that in mind, let’s look at why patch management becomes harder for MSPs as they scale, what a reliable patching process looks like across client environments, and how to reduce manual work without losing visibility or control.
Why Patch Management Is More Complex for MSPs
For individuals, patch management can be as simple as updating their devices and apps when a patch becomes available. For many internal IT teams, it often means managing a single environment with a limited set of policies and maintenance windows.
MSPs, however, must manage multiple client environments, each with different policies, risk profiles, app stacks, and service applications. This makes patch management far more complicated.
There are several elements that make patch management more challenging for MSPs, including:
Clients typically have different maintenance windows and patching expectations.
Patching third-party applications can add complexity and may require additional tools to go beyond operating system updates.
Endpoints are often distributed, remote, or intermittently online, making them difficult to manage.
Technicians need proof of completion, not just patch deployment attempts, to prove to clients and auditors that patches are properly installed across their devices.
Failed patches can create follow-up support work that takes time and resources.
Manual patching does not scale as client portfolios grow, necessitating an automated patch management solution.
What a Scalable MSP Patch Management Process Looks Like
Given those challenges, MSPs need a patch management process that is repeatable across clients, flexible enough for different environments, and efficient enough to scale without creating more technician overhead. In order to maintain a scalable environment and efficient patch management, you’ll want to follow a few key steps:
Maintain complete endpoint and software visibility: MSPs need an up-to-the-minute view of the devices they manage, including operating systems, software inventory, and patch statuses. This helps ensure full coverage and identifies gaps or vulnerabilities.
Prioritize patches based on risk and business impact: Not all patches are equally urgent. MSPs should be able to separate urgent security patches from routine updates to prioritize the most important ones, while keeping business-critical systems and each client’s risk tolerance in mind.
Group devices by client, role, and rollout stage: Devices should be segmented into deployment groups, including a small pilot group, standard user devices, and high-sensitivity systems. This helps MSPs reduce deployment risk, stage updates more safely, and catch problems in smaller rollout groups before they affect a broader set of client devices.
Deploy patches in phased rollouts: When you start rolling out patches, you don’t want to update every device at once. Start with a pilot group, then slowly expand to larger rings in a controlled manner, so any issues can be identified early and addressed before they impact too many endpoints.
Monitor results in real time and catch failures quickly: The job isn’t complete once the update is sent. MSPs still need visibility into each endpoint to ensure patches were successfully installed or address instances where further action is needed or patches failed.
Remediate failed or missed patches without delay: If any patches failed to install, MSPs need to address them quickly. This may require a reinstallation attempt or a reboot, or it may necessitate remote troubleshooting or other remediation.
Document outcomes for internal operations and client reporting: Once a patch is installed, you should be able to prove it. This requires maintaining audit trails, proof of execution, patch status summaries, and reports you can show to clients and auditors to demonstrate IT compliance.
The Core Capabilities MSPs Should Look for in a Patch Management Solution
So, what actually matters when MSPs evaluate patch management software for multi-client environments? There are a few core capabilities that can help ensure effective patch management and maintain cybersecurity across clients’ endpoints.
Must-have patch management capabilities include:
1. Multi-tenant visibility across client environments
MSPs must be able to view patch statuses across their clients’ devices while maintaining account-level separation. Visibility is essential for confirming patch status across client environments, identifying failures quickly, and giving MSPs the documentation they need for client reporting, internal accountability, and audit readiness.
2. Automated patching for operating systems and third-party applications
Patch automation helps maintain security and keep endpoints up to date without requiring technicians to manually update each endpoint. However, the coverage also needs to go beyond operating systems. Third-party applications, such as email, file transfer, or collaboration tools, are common sources of vulnerabilities and exposures, so patch automation must cover apps alongside operating systems.
3. Policy-based deployment controls
Different clients will have distinct patching policies. It’s important to find a patch management solution that can be tailored by client and device group, including scheduling, rollout rules, and patching logic, so MSPs can support different operational requirements without forcing every client into the same patching model.
4. Real-time patch status and failure visibility
If a patch fails to install properly, you need to know immediately, not hours later. This is especially true when addressing critical vulnerabilities, so having real-time visibility into patch status is vital. It’s equally important to know whether a patch failed to install so it can be addressed and reattempted, or else endpoints may remain unpatched and vulnerable for an unsafe period.
5. Remote remediation tools
If there’s an issue with a patch installation, MSP technicians must be able to address it from anywhere. Remote remediation is essential for troubleshooting failed updates, restarting devices, and resolving other issues without switching between disparate tools. Additionally, the ability to run actions in the background is a powerful feature for maintaining patch compliance and security without interrupting employees at work.
6. Reporting that supports client trust
Clear reporting is essential for ensuring IT compliance and maintaining internal accountability. Clients will also want proof that you’re keeping their devices up to date and fully patched, so having clear reporting is important. Good reporting gives MSPs clear proof of service delivery, supports audit preparation, and makes it easier to show clients what was patched, what failed, and what still needs attention.
Common Patch Management Mistakes MSPs Should Avoid
Even with the right tooling, patch management can break down when the process is inconsistent. MSPs can make several mistakes when implementing patch management, resulting in wasted time, failed patching, security vulnerabilities, and more. It’s important to know what these mistakes are so MSPs can avoid them.
Common mistakes include:
Treating all clients and devices the same, rather than prioritizing based on roles, threats, impacts, and risk tolerance.
Relying on manual patch checks or one-off technician workflows, instead of finding a solution with automated visibility and patch detection.
Focusing only on operating system patches while ignoring third-party apps, which can result in significant vulnerabilities from unpatched apps.
Skipping pilot groups and broadening deployments too quickly, which can result in errors impacting multiple endpoints at once.
Waiting too long to investigate failed patches, which leaves devices vulnerable to cyberattack.
Using separate tools for patching, remote access, and remediation when workflows regularly overlap, which is inefficient and more complicated than it needs to be.
Reporting on patch attempts rather than actual outcomes, as this fails to indicate whether the patch was properly installed.
How Splashtop AEM Helps MSPs Scale Patch Management More Efficiently
Splashtop AEM helps MSPs bring patching, visibility, and remediation into a more efficient workflow across client environments. Splashtop AEM provides automated OS and third-party patching, policy-based automation, patch visibility, and remote remediation tools that help MSPs manage distributed client endpoints with more consistency and less manual effort. With Splashtop AEM, you can:
1. Patch faster across client endpoints with real-time OS and third-party patching
Splashtop AEM automates patch management for operating systems and third-party applications alike. With it, you can automatically detect, test, and deploy patches across all client endpoints, rather than chasing updates and deploying them manually. This saves technicians time and helps ensure prompt, effective patch rollouts.
2. Use policies and rollout groups to reduce deployment risk
With Splashtop AEM, you can create policies and phased rollouts for patch deployments. This helps MSPs test patches in smaller groups before wider deployment, enabling them to identify issues early, and prioritize updates in line with company policy.
3. See patch results and act on failures quickly
Splashtop AEM provides real-time patch visibility, empowering MSPs to quickly identify failures, missed devices, and incomplete installations. This helps them address issues immediately and ensure proper patch coverage across endpoints, so no devices are left vulnerable.
4. Combine patching and remote remediation in the same workflow
Splashtop AEM lets technicians manage patches, investigate issues, and troubleshoot devices from a single location. This makes patching and follow-up remediation more efficient by reducing tool switching and keeping related support work in the same operational workflow.
5. Support more clients without adding the same amount of manual work
Splashtop AEM’s automation and management tools make it easier for MSPs to support clients from anywhere. With automatic threat detection, patch management, monitoring, and more, Splashtop AEM helps streamline support and frees up technicians to focus on the most pressing issues.
What MSPs Should Prioritize When Evaluating Patch Management Software
There are several patch management tools on the market, and it can be hard to figure out which ones have all the features MSPs need. As such, it’s helpful to have some essential criteria to keep in mind when evaluating your options.
When looking at patch management software, make sure you look for the following:
Visibility across all managed endpoints and installed software, regardless of device type or operating system.
Operating system and third-party patch coverage, rather than just OS patching.
The ability to customize deployment policies and phased rollouts.
Real-time patch status and failure reporting to ensure patches are properly installed.
Remote remediation and support workflows to enable troubleshooting and maintenance from anywhere.
Reporting for internal operations, audits, and client communications.
Ease of use and operational efficiency for lean MSP teams, so you can support clients without needing to hire new technicians.
Scale Patch Management Across Clients with More Control
Patch management isn’t just a maintenance task. It’s a core service delivery for MSPs, and a necessity for security and IT compliance.
When MSPs gain new clients, scaling patch management across them without increasing the burden on their technicians can be challenging. However, with automated patch management software like Splashtop AEM, it’s easy to gain visibility across endpoints, detect and test new patches, and deploy updates across ever-growing environments.
Ready to see how easy patch management for MSPs can be? Get started with a free trial of Splashtop AEM today.
