Microsoft Azure Update Management
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For Agents
Creates and manages Azure Automation software update configurations to schedule patching campaigns across Windows and Linux VMs.
Use for: Create a recurring monthly Windows patch deployment for production VMs, List all software update configurations on the prod-automation account, Delete the legacy 'weekly-critical' update configuration, Schedule a Linux security patch run for tomorrow at 02:00 UTC
Not supported: Does not install agents on machines, run ad hoc commands, or report on update compliance — use the Log Analytics and Microsoft.OperationsManagement APIs for those; this API only manages softwareUpdateConfiguration objects.
Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for Update Management, keeping it validated and agent-ready. The Azure Update Management API is part of Azure Automation and lets agents define, schedule, and remove softwareUpdateConfigurations — the objects that drive patching campaigns across Windows and Linux VMs (Azure, Arc-enabled, or hybrid). A configuration captures the OS, classification filters, included or excluded KB or package lists, target machines or saved searches, scheduling, and reboot behaviour. Authentication uses Azure Active Directory OAuth 2.0 against management.azure.com.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Update Management to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Update Management, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
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Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jentic/jentic-one/main/tools/install.sh | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Update Management API.
Create a softwareUpdateConfiguration that targets Windows or Linux machines and applies a chosen patch classification (Critical, Security, Definition)
Schedule patching with a one-time or recurring frequency including time zone, start time, expiry, and advanced schedule options
Limit a deployment by including specific KB IDs or Linux package names and excluding others to keep changes auditable
Target machines by explicit ID list or by an Azure Automation saved search to keep deployments scoped to dynamic groups
Delete a softwareUpdateConfiguration by name to retire a patching campaign without affecting prior run history
List every softwareUpdateConfiguration on an Automation account to inventory active patching schedules
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Update Management API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Monthly Patch Tuesday rollout
Operations teams need a repeatable monthly patching campaign that targets production Windows VMs with Critical and Security classifications, runs at the maintenance window, and reboots if required. The agent creates a softwareUpdateConfiguration with windows.includedUpdateClassifications=Critical,Security, frequency=Month, and an explicit machine list or saved search. Once created, Azure Automation runs the deployment on the configured schedule and emits run history that can be fetched separately.
Create a softwareUpdateConfiguration named 'prod-windows-monthly' on automation account 'ops-aa' in resource group 'ops-rg' with operatingSystem=Windows, includedUpdateClassifications='Critical,Security', frequency=Month, scheduleStart=2026-07-15T02:00:00Z, and target=savedSearch 'prod-windows'.
Emergency one-time Linux patch
When a CVE drops, an agent needs to push a one-time Linux patch across a defined VM list within hours. The configuration is created with operatingSystem=Linux, frequency=OneTime, an explicit azureVirtualMachines list, and linux.includedPackageNameMasks for the affected package. Azure Automation runs the patch run once and the agent tears the configuration down with DELETE after the run completes.
Create softwareUpdateConfiguration 'cve-2026-7777' on automation account 'ops-aa' (resource group 'ops-rg') with operatingSystem=Linux, frequency=OneTime, scheduleStart=2026-06-11T22:00:00Z, includedPackageNameMasks=['openssl*'], and azureVirtualMachines containing the 5 affected VM resource IDs.
Inventory and decommission of stale patch jobs
Long-running Automation accounts accumulate dozens of update configurations that no longer match current VM groups. The agent calls the GET-list endpoint to enumerate every softwareUpdateConfiguration on the account, filters those whose creationTime predates a cutoff, and issues DELETE on each. Run history is preserved on the account because deletion only removes the configuration, not its execution records.
List every softwareUpdateConfiguration on automation account 'ops-aa' (resource group 'ops-rg'), filter to those with creationTime before 2025-01-01, and DELETE each by name.
Agent-managed patch orchestration through Jentic
An AIOps agent receiving a CVE alert can orchestrate the full patching response: search Jentic for the create-configuration operation, fill the schema with the affected packages and VM list, and execute against the automation account. Because Jentic returns the input schema directly, the agent does not need to read the Azure Automation REST docs to know what fields softwareUpdateConfigurationProperties expects.
Search Jentic for 'create azure software update configuration', execute with the JSON above, then poll the configuration GET until provisioningState=Succeeded.
Key Endpoints
4 endpoints — jentic publishes the only available openapi specification for update management, keeping it validated and agent-ready.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations
List all software update configurations on an Automation account
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Get a single software update configuration by name
PUT
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Create or replace a software update configuration
DELETE
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Delete a software update configuration
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations
List all software update configurations on an Automation account
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Get a single software update configuration by name
PUT
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Create or replace a software update configuration
DELETE
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{softwareUpdateConfigurationName}
Delete a software update configuration
Why Jentic?
Three things that make agents converge on Jentic-routed access.
Credential isolation
Azure AD client secrets stay encrypted in the Jentic vault. Agents see only a scoped OAuth bearer token at execution time, so service principal credentials never appear in agent prompts or logs.
Intent-based discovery
Agents query Jentic with intents like 'schedule azure patching' and Jentic returns the softwareUpdateConfigurations PUT operation with its JSON schema, including the updateConfiguration and scheduleInfo blocks ready to populate.
Time to first call
Direct ARM integration: 2-3 days for MSAL, the nested schema for updateConfiguration and tasks, and polling provisioningState. Through Jentic: under 1 hour.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using Update Management API through Jentic.
Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for Update Management?
Microsoft Azure does not publish an OpenAPI specification. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call Update Management via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started at https://app.jentic.com/sign-up .
What authentication does the Update Management API use?
Azure Active Directory OAuth 2.0 with the user_impersonation scope against https://login.microsoftonline.com/common/oauth2/authorize. Through Jentic the Azure AD client secret is stored encrypted in the vault and a scoped bearer token is issued to the agent at call time.
Can I schedule a recurring monthly patch run with the Update Management API?
Yes. PUT /subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/{automationAccountName}/softwareUpdateConfigurations/{name} with scheduleInfo.frequency=Month and scheduleInfo.startTime set creates a recurring deployment. Time zones are honoured via scheduleInfo.timeZone.
What are the rate limits for the Update Management API?
Calls go through Azure Resource Manager and Azure Automation, subject to the standard ARM throttling envelope (roughly 12,000 reads per hour per subscription) plus per-Automation-account write quotas. The spec does not declare exact limits; back off on Retry-After when a 429 is returned.
How do I create a software update configuration through Jentic?
Run pip install jentic, then client.search('create azure software update configuration'), client.load on the returned PUT operation, and client.execute with the configuration payload (operatingSystem, scheduleInfo, updateConfiguration). Jentic injects the Azure AD bearer token from the vault and returns the created resource.
Does deleting a software update configuration delete its run history?
No. DELETE on .../softwareUpdateConfigurations/{name} removes the configuration object only. Past softwareUpdateConfigurationRuns and softwareUpdateConfigurationMachineRuns remain on the Automation account and can still be queried for audit purposes.
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