Testing the Deployment

Security Controls includes the ability to perform a test deployment to one or more machines. This is especially useful if you intend to schedule a patch deployment for a later time. Testing the deployment allows you to correct any potential problems in a deployment and make it less likely that a deployment will fail.

How to Perform a Test Deployment

You perform a test deployment from Machine View or Scan View. Simply right-click the machine, machine group, or domain you want to test and then select Test patch deployment.

The test is conducted using a non-security patch named TEST-PATCH. The patch does not modify the state of the target machine. The test will exercise all of the actions in the deployment process, including:

• Testing for available deployment seats
• Verifying port requirements and the availability of a secure connection
• Downloading and copying files to the target machine
• Verifying patch signatures
• Scheduling the patch task
• Executing the deployment package
• Delivering status messages

Test deployment results are reported in the Operations Monitor. Status messages are provided for each major step in the process.

A test deploy may fail for a number of different reasons. For example, if the workstation or scheduling services are not started in a particular machine, Security Controls cannot deploy patches to it and a test deploy will return a failing result. If a test does fail you can click the available link for information on why the test failed.