You can automate software patching within your patch management and IT automation profiles, using the WinGet patch manager for Windows and the Homebrew patch manager for Mac.

Automate software patching

• Maintaining installed software: If software is already installed on a device and exists in WinGet or Homebrew, adding it to a software bundle in an automation profile ensures it's maintained via Atera's WinGet or Homebrew integrations.
• Latest version installation: The latest version of each software in the bundle will be installed.
• Visual C++ requirement for WinGet: Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable must be installed on devices before you can install software via WinGet.
• WinGet machine-wide installation behavior: WinGet installations executed through the Atera Agent run under the SYSTEM account. To prevent applications from being installed only to the SYSTEM profile, Atera enforces machine-wide installs by adding --scope machine to WinGet commands.
• Windows Server 2019 and Windows Server 2022 don't include WinGet by default. To use WinGet on these servers, see Install WinGet on Windows Server 2019 and 2022.
• Homebrew authentication requirements: Some Homebrew software patches require password authentication or additional permissions and therefore cannot be installed via Atera. If this is the case, a message will appear to inform you.
• Excluding software: You can exclude specific software updates via WinGet and Homebrew under Excluded Software updates.

Software version discrepancies

Software versions might be behind during installation or updates for several reasons:

• The agent may be offline.
• Prerequisites, like Visual C++ Redistributable or internet access, may be missing.
• Silent installation may not be possible. For example, some apps require user input or have running processes that block updates.
• The package manager may not be able to match the installed software to a package in its repository. For example, WinGet requires the installed application to map to a known WinGet package with a detectable version.

Software status and available updates sometimes rely on third-party repositories. If the latest version isn't reflected there, or if the software was deployed from a private repository instead, it may not be recognized as requiring an update.

To automate patch management via an automation profile:

1. Go to Admin > Monitoring and automation > Patch management and IT automation.

The Patch Management and IT Automation page appears.

2. Select an existing profile or click Create profile to create a new automation profile.

The profile page appears.

3. On the Configuration tab, click Software.

The Software section appears.

4. Select the checkbox next to the package manager you want to use for managing your software updates:

• WinGet (Windows): Updates applications regardless of their original installation source, as long as a matching package exists in the WinGet repository and the installed version can be detected. This generally works for the Windows applications listed below, as well as for most commonly-distributed Windows software.
• Homebrew (Mac): Updates only software that was installed via Homebrew, except for the Mac applications listed below, which Atera can update regardless of their original installation source.

Windows:

• 7-Zip
• Adobe Acrobat Reader DC (multi-language version only)
• Adobe AIR
• Adobe Flash Player 32
• CCleaner
• Cisco Webex Meetings
• CutePDF Writer
• Dashlane
• Dropbox
• Evernote
• Foxit Reader
• Google Chrome
• GoToMeeting
• Java 8 Runtime
• LogMeIn
• Microsoft Edge
• Microsoft Edge WebView
• Microsoft Teams
• Mozilla Firefox
• Notepad++
• PuTTY
• Skype
• SQL Server Management Studio
• SQL Server Express (version 2014, 2016, 2019, 2022)
• TeamViewer
• Thunderbird
• Veeam Agent
• VLC media player
• VMware Tools
• WinRAR
• WinSCP

Mac:

• CCleaner
• Dashlane
• Dropbox
• Evernote
• Firefox
• Foxit Reader
• Google Chrome
• LogMeIn
• Microsoft Edge
• Skype
• TeamViewer
• Thunderbird
• VLC

5. Click Save to update your profile.

Software bundle update

You can add a software bundle to the automation profile to update applications that aren't listed in the software list. For more information, see Software bundles.

Note: Some software applications may not fully support updating through this method. As a result, the software may appear twice on your devices: once with the old version and again with the latest version. This happens when the older version isn't uninstalled automatically and the new version is installed separately. We recommend verifying a software's update compatibility and considering manual intervention to avoid duplication.