IT Professionals: Prepare for Internet Explorer 8 availability via Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) in August 2009

For those of you who manage your organization’s desktops using Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) Internet Explorer 8 will be made available via this technology starting August 25, 2009.  Internet Explorer 8 will be made available as an “Update rollup” and will be applicable to all supported languages.

Is my organization affected?

If your organization uses WSUS and has it configured to auto-approve Update rollup packages, upon acceptance of the Internet Explorer 8 End User License Agreement (EULA) by the WSUS administrator, Internet Explorer 8 will install automatically on computers running Internet Explorer 6 or 7 on supported operating systems.

What should I do if I auto-approve Update rollups but want to control when I deploy Internet Explorer 8?

To give you control over how and when Internet Explorer 8 is deployed in your environment, perform the following steps:

Before August 25, 2009:

1. Turn off auto-approve for “Update rollup” packages in WSUS, and approve the updates manually.  Note: Even if Auto-Approve for “Update rollup” is on, you will still be required to approve the Internet Explorer 8 EULA before Internet Explorer 8 is deployed to downstream clients.

After August 25, 2009:

1. Synchronize your WSUS server.
2. Decline the Internet Explorer 8 update packages.
3. If you typically auto-approve update rollup packages, you can re-enable automatic approval for “Update rollups.”

What other Internet Explorer 8 updates will be available via WSUS?

Cumulative security updates for Internet Explorer 8 and Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List updates will also be released via WSUS as they become available.

To deploy Internet Explorer 8 today, visit the Internet Explorer TechNet Center – among other useful resources you’ll find an Internet Explorer Deployment Guide and information about the Internet Explorer Administration Kit which explains how to generate a MSI installer and distribute it using Systems Management Server or Group Policy.

Eric Hebenstreit
Lead Program Manager