Patch Management User Guide for HP-UX 11.x Systems

Table 4-1 Operational factor and patch management strategy matrix
Self-MaintenanceImpact on Core
Business
Unplanned Down TimeNew FeaturesPatch Management
Strategy
NoHighUnacceptableNoRestrictive
NoMediumUnacceptableNoConservative
YesLowAcceptableYesInnovative
The process of selecting an appropriate software change management strategy seeks to align
behavior with the key business objectives of the systems involved. The goals of evaluating an
operation and choosing an appropriate strategy include:
• Reduced risk
• Increased system and application availability
• Reduced maintenance time
There are four operational factors that should determine your appropriate strategy:
• New features
Do you need to introduce new operating system or application features into the operating
environment?
• Unplanned down time
What is your tolerance for the operation being unavailable outside the scheduled maintenance
windows?
• Impact on core business
How are business functions affected by down time?
• Self-maintenance
This is an indication of whether or not all system planning and maintenance activities are
performed inhouse without vendor or third-party involvement.
Recommendations for software change management
The following are recommendations for software change management that correspond to each
software change strategy. They cover the following five areas:
• Operating System and Applications
Includes versions of the operating system as well as the applications running in the
environment.
• Proactive Patching
Includes all patching activities for which no symptoms or problems are currently evident.
• Reactive Patching
Performed in response to a visible system problem.
• Change Management
Covers all processes and standards used to manage data center operations.
• Test Environment
Includes systems, software, and equipment used to support the production operations. The
test environment is used to evaluate changes before they are put into production.
Table 4-2: “Recommendations based on strategy” (page 47) offers recommendations to help you
implement your chosen software change management strategy. Consider using DRD for all three
strategies listed in Table 4-2to reduce downtime, perform maintenance during regular business
46 Patch management overview