Microsoft encourages IT admins to use Intune and "shape how Windows Update behaves"

Microsoft highlights a shift in update strategy, urging organizations to rethink how devices stay compliant using modern endpoint management tools.

A graphic showing compliance process at a high level enforced by Microsoft Intune — *Image generated via Google Gemini*

In an effort to "fix" Windows 11 in 2026, we already know that Microsoft is giving consumers more control over Windows Update. However, IT admins have already enjoyed considerable leverage over the Windows patching process through tools like Intune. Now, Microsoft is encouraging organizations to "shape how Windows Update behaves" through Intune.

Microsoft has emphasized that things have changed a lot over the past few years in terms of Windows Update management. IT admins no longer need to rely on the "push" model offered by System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM), and should instead leverage more granular control through Intune.

With SCCM, IT admins have to build update packages, select their target devices, and configure a rollout time. However, this push model meant that you had to chase down devices which hadn't applied the update and figure out the root cause.

However, things have improved significantly now with Intune as you essentially strategize how Windows updates should be rolled out based on your compliance policies. This means that, as an IT admin, you can shoose when quality updates will be installed, how long users can be allowed to defer them, set deadlines, define the restart experience, and more.

Microsoft explains that while this seems like you have less control than manually configuring specific update packages and then deploying them through SCCM, Intune actually has the opposite effect as it allows you to define measurable minimum outcomes so that your fleet of devices always stays compliant.

The Redmond tech giant has encouraged non-Intune customers to give the endpoint management tool a try by specifying their security posture, configuring update behavior, setting deployment minimums based on compliance policies, use Conditional Access (CA) as required, only focus on catching exceptions, and remediate issues in a more "deliberate" manner. You can find out more details in Microsoft's blog post here.