In SharePoint 2007, the patching scenario was confusing at best when starting to deal with MOSS with all of the different types of updates out there.  Now because SharePoint 2010 will be x64 only, that will help a little with patching and upgrades, so administrators won’t be downloading the incorrect install, but along with that Microsoft has made strides to help with some of the other pain points during the patching sequence.

SharePoint 2010 has a new function for it’s databases called compatibility mode, which allows administrators the flexibility to upgrade the bits on the SharePoint servers without requiring to update all the content databases in the farm.  Upgrading all content databases in a farm, at times, took the majority of time during patching and required long maintenance windows for the entire operation to complete successfully.  Now with compatibility mode, administrators have the flexibility to choose when to upgrade individual databases up to the new schema, but allowing the patched bits on the servers.

The main issue that this will bring into play with the majority of SharePoint administrators is to verify the patch level of each individual database and server level.  In Central Administration there is a new upgrade and migration screen which has different pages to show each server and database along with information on the individual update status of each (require upgrade, no action, etc).  These pages also provide direct links to the upgrade downloads to help administrators get the correct install.

Even though Microsoft says that the new upgrade mechanism is safe to deploy through Microsoft update and WSUS, it is still recommended to patch and update your SharePoint Servers and databases by hand to make sure the process is completed successfully.  The new Best Practices Analyzer also has built in rules to check for servers, services and databases that are not up to the recent patch level, and will assist administrators by warning them that an action is required.

SharePoint 2010 will require you to still run the Technology and Configuration Wizard, but now in SharePoint 2010, you will not have to do the patching dance if you have multiple servers like you needed to in SharePoint 2007.  In 2007, you needed to get all servers up to a specific point and then only let each server, one by one, run the upgrade process.  Now in SharePoint 2010, the Technology and Configuration Wizard handles the dance for you, so you can start the wizard on all of the boxes at the same time, and they will handle the locks on the farm by itself, allowing a quicker upgrade.

[“Brian”]