Updating Hyper-V Server 2012 (free version)

Question

I am setting up a cluster of Hyper-V Server 2012 machines. I've got remote access to the machines via windows 8 and the various remote management consoles.

I can't seem to figure out how to run 'windows updates' on the hyper-v server. There are a couple of hotfixes to hyper-v that I need to get installed. It DOES NOT run on top of windows server 2012 as far as I am aware. (edit: apparently it does run on a slightly modified Windows Server 2012 core)

All the instructions I've been able to find are specificity how to do updates on windows server 2012 core. However I am using the version of Hyper-V that is basically a headless copy that is meant to be run entirely from powershell. Due to the poor naming choices by Microsoft, it is almost impossible to google-search for this particular type of hyper-v server.

I don't want to leave my machine open to vulnerabilities... Please help!

Solution 1

Run SCONFIG. Just type sconfig at the command prompt. Then choose option 6 or 7 (the exact option escapes me at the moment) for Windows Updates. You can change your Windows Update settings to install updates automatically, or you can download and install them manually, just like with the GUI.

sconfig comes with Server Core out of the box. In fact I think it runs at startup the first time you log on to the machine. Not sure how you missed it... maybe it doesn't run at startup on Hyper-V Server 2012.

Solution 2

It is a Server 2012 core install. Just use the command line tools.

http://www.moundalexis.com/tm/2010/01/07/windows-update-wuauclt-command-line-switches/

wuauclt basically allows you to do updates.

Solution 3

You can try using the Windows Update PowerShell Module to manage Windows updates on your server.

But what you really need to do is to set up the servers to pull updates from WSUS.

Comments

[Ryan Ries]

Yes, Windows Hyper-V Server 2012 is Server Core. The internals of the OS are absolutely identical. It just has some licensing limitations and limitations on how much RAM it can have, you can't install other roles on it, etc.

[Ape-inago]

I was under the impression that you needed license to run core. Do you know if there is any difference between this version of core and the one you can make from a server 2012 install? Documentation on core says that it can do DHCP, File, DNS, Media Services, and Active Directory. ( msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/… ) Is this still the case for Hyper-V server 2012 ?

[TomTom]

Yes. but you can install software and drivers - software for example because some drivers need admin kits etc. It is windows core.

[Ape-inago]

Documentation on core says that it can do DHCP, File, DNS, Media Services, and Active Directory. ( msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/… ) Is this still the case for Hyper-V server 2012?

[Ryan Ries]

No you cannot install other roles on Hyper-V Server 2012. The OS is the same technology as Server Core, but it's restricted to being just a Hyper-V host. Read this whitepaper: download.microsoft.com/download/5/7/8/…

[Ape-inago]

For sake of completeness. Would there be any administrative differences AFTER getting a windows server 2012 core to run only hyper-v vs just installing the hyper-v server 2012?

[longneck]

Server Core, as compared to non-Core, reduces the surface area of the OS, which potentially reduces the effectiveness of and susceptibility to security vulnerabilities. Hyper-V Server takes that approach a step further and strips out features not needed to run Hyper-V. If you're looking to harden your Hyper-V hosts, then Hyper-V Server is the way to go.

[TomTom]

Yes, there is. But not in the "core" but in the additional stuff you can install, because a lot of the things are just not included in the hyper-v setup. But that does not change the core being a core.