Windows Server 2025 Gets Hotpatching Support Beginning July 1, 2025

Microsoft announced that hotpatching support for Windows Server 2025 will become generally available as a subscription service starting July 1, 2025.

This move expands a key feature-previously exclusive to Azure-based servers-for broader use in on-premises and multicloud environments via Azure Arc.

What is Hotpatching?

Hotpatching is a revolutionary update mechanism that patches the in-memory code of running processes, eliminating the need for immediate server reboots.

Unlike traditional updates that require scheduled downtime and post-update restarts, hotpatching allows administrators to deploy crucial security and feature patches while maintaining higher server availability.

The benefits are clear:

• Higher uptime: Fewer service disruptions, as most updates don’t require a reboot.
• Faster deployment: Smaller update packages and streamlined orchestration through Azure Update Manager enable quicker rollouts.
• Reduced vulnerability window: Immediate patching means threats are neutralized sooner.

Administrators can currently preview hotpatching free of charge. However, with the official launch, subscription pricing will begin at USD 1.50 per CPU core per month.

Hotpatching has been utilized for years in Windows Server Datacenter: Azure Edition, where even Microsoft’s Xbox team has leveraged it to reduce weeks of work to mere days.

With the upcoming release, organizations running Windows Server 2025 Standard or Datacenter editions can now access hotpatching outside Azure, provided their servers are connected through Azure Arc.

This hybrid and multicloud capability supports Microsoft’s adaptive cloud approach, giving organizations more flexibility and control.

Key Restrictions and Enrollment Details

To take advantage of hotpatching outside Azure, administrators must:

• Run Windows Server 2025 Standard or Datacenter
• Connect servers to Azure Arc
• Subscribe to the hotpatching service beginning in July

If you’re currently using the preview via Azure Arc, Microsoft recommends disenrolling by June 30 if you do not wish to continue with a paid subscription.

For Azure IaaS, Azure Local, or Azure Stack users, hotpatching remains bundled with Windows Server Datacenter: Azure Edition at no extra cost.

Hotpatching will deliver up to eight patches per year, following a three-month cycle-one “baseline” month requiring a reboot, followed by two months of in-memory hotpatches. The baseline months for 2025 are January, April, July, and October.

Microsoft encourages all administrators to trial this feature during its free preview and experience the future of secure, seamless server updates.

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