- Hotpatch updates for Windows Server 2025 Standard and Datacenter will be chargeable
- Companies will pay $1.50 per CPU core each month
- 12 annual reboots become four with the service
Microsoft is exploring an option for customers to pay a monthly fee in order to avoid regular machine reboots after it revealed details of an upcoming hotpatching option last year.
Redmond had previously made hotpatching for Windows Server 2025 available in preview in 2024, but ahead of its general availability on July 1, 2025, the company has confirmed it will come at a cost.
In the summer, users wishing to continue with their hotpatching upgrades will need to pay $1.50 a month per CPU core.
Microsoft will charge for Windows Server hotpatching
To be compatible, servers must be Windows Server 2025 Standard or Datacenter edition, and connected to Azure Arc. Azure Editions (Azure IaaS, Azure Local and Azure Stack) of Windows Server will continue to get hotpatching for free.
Microsoft also added that users enrolled in the preview program will need to disenroll before June 30 if they wish not to continue under the paid plan.
As part of the schedule, machines will have four baseline updates a year in January, April, July and October, each requiring a reboot. Two of the three months per quarter will consists of hotpatches – updates that don’t require a system reboot. That equates to eight hotpatches per year versus four reboot updates – a considerable saving for those paying the $1.50 monthly fee per CPU core.
Windows Server Product Marketing Manager Janine Patrick and Senior Program Manager Artem Pronichkin explained that sometimes a non-hotpatch update will need to be pushed during a hotpatch period for security reasons, but for the most part, the schedule should remain on track.
“Hotpatching can save significant time and ease the inconvenience of a traditional ‘patch Tuesday,” they added.
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