WSUS 3.0 SP1 RTM has been released. This time it is not just a “fake release” like that of Vista SP1. You can really download it! Another question is if you really need this service pack. I tried to find out what the new features of WSUS 3.0 SP1 are.

Microsoft provided a couple of documents (see below). However, they don’t say much about the new features. The WSUS team blog and ars technica list a couple of features. They are not exactly the same so I copied them together:

  • Support for Windows Server 2008
  • Support of SQL Server 2008
  • New Client Servicing API: support client registration, filter of updates by category and classification, provide applicability rule extension mechanism, obtain package metadata and report update status for each client
  • Improvements for local publishing: supports publishing of drivers within the enterprise by using vendor provided catalogs. API include support for bundles and prerequisites.
  • All hotfixes: WSUS 3.0 SP1 includes all the changes and hotfixes that have been issued since the release of WSUS 3.0.
  • Enhanced bulk approval capability, preserving existing approvals
  • Support for separate proxy servers and ports for SSL and non SSL traffic
  • Better performance
  • Detailed computer reports that can be imported to Excel

I blogged about the WSUS support for Server Manager in Windows Server 2008 before. The API extensions are for those who want to access WSUS data with their own programs and scripts.

All in all, there probably are no must-have features for most of us. That’s why we’ll wait until it is clear that this SP doesn’t cause problems. You can find further information about WSUS SP1 in these Microsoft paper:

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