Why Mac security updates take too long and how to fix it

Introduction

Security updates are among the most critical responsibilities for IT teams.

The timeframe between when vulnerabilities are discovered and patches are released leave organizations open to risk. However, that risk doesn’t end when patches are made available – it only underscores the urgency (by way of severity).

From time of release, moving forward, the expectation is a swift deployment of system, app and security updates for each endpoint across your infrastructure to mitigate risk and maintain compliance.

Yet, many mid-market IT teams know the reality looks different.

Updates can – and often do – take longer than expected to deploy consistently. Though some endpoints update quickly, others lag, with a portion of them missing the patch cycle altogether.

When this happens, it creates a gap between how fast updates should happen and how they actually occur as part of ongoing compliance. This gap typically has little to do with effort or discipline on behalf of the IT team but rather highlights the challenge that traditional management models were not built for speed – nor were they designed with the level of flexibility and scale required by modern environments.

Even when IT teams prioritize patching, communication and using legacy tooling to their fullest potential, the limitations of legacy models become more visible and more difficult to work around as organizations grow and evolve.

Why updates are still slow

To understand why Mac security updates and patching remain inconsistent, it helps to examine how legacy MDM workflows operate. They rely on a command-based model where the server (cloud-based or on-premises) drives action which managed devices respond to.

In practice, the entire process depends on several steps, with each potentially introducing delays of their own that impact patching efficacy. Below is a breakdown of how a typical legacy MDM workflow for patch management is performed:

1. Server push: The initial command sent from the MDM. If a command fails, is delayed or does not reach the device, the update process pauses until the next attempt.
2. Device check-in: This occurs at scheduled intervals rather than continuously reporting their state. If a device is offline or misses a check-in window, it does not receive the update on time.
3. Install update prompt: The user is prompted through a notification alert to approve or cancel the update.
   1. Approve: The update is downloaded and installation occurs at that moment. Users experience a temporary disruption to their work while the installation occurs, and the subsequent restart finalizes the process.
   2. Cancel: This not only results in cancelled alerts but also halts the workflows entirely. Often this is done delay to avoid interrupting user productivity, but unfortunately, prevents installation, extending rollout timelines.

A few other important considerations when planning update deployments using legacy MDM workflows are:

• Connectivity requirements: Many company-owned devices must be connected to the corporate network or VPN to receive instructions. In distributed environments, this adds unpredictability.
• Real-time visibility: Without clear insight into endpoint health statuses, IT teams may not know whether updates are pending, downloading or failed, slowing response times.
• Scalability and flexibility: Commands queue within the server and then must be processed on managed devices themselves. Delays in processing commands are not uncommon, often compounding and creating less predictable management processes.

The real cost of slow patching

When updates are delayed, the impact builds over time.

It sets off a chain-reaction, not unlike a domino effect creates a series of impacts that all stem from a single trigger point. For example:

• Patch management commands in queue, await processing.
• Session over session, the queue grows, utilizing more resources.
• Delays in processing compound, further extending delays.
• Devices remain unpatched longer than intended.
• Increased risk of exposure from unpatched devices.
• Potential exploitation of known vulnerabilities grows.
• Baselines begin to drift as devices fall out of compliance.
• Security gaps widen, leaving the organization open to regulatory issues.
• IT spends more time firefighting and following up with users.

This shifts IT operations from a proactive mindset to reactive approach. Instead of focusing on improvements, teams scramble, consumed by a never-ending queue of repetitive tasks because slower patching increases the length of vulnerability windows.

The longer a known vulnerability remains unpatched, the greater the exposure window. With mid-market IT teams responsible maintaining 500+ endpoints – the narrative is not about isolated incidents – but rather it is about ongoing operational risk that accumulates across the organization.

What changes with Declarative Device Management (DDM)

Declarative Device Management introduces a new, modern model for endpoint management. One that was designed to scale patch management, with the flexibility and efficiency required of modern device fleets in mind.

One that forgoes relying on constant server commands, in favor of ensuring devices understand the desired state they must be in. For example, at a high level, this looks like this:

1. Defined conditions: IT sets the desired state for devices within MDM, including configurations and OS versions, among other criteria.
2. Desired state: DDM shares the desired, compliant state devices are expected to maintain with managed endpoints.
3. Status report: Devices report changes in state as they happen, creating continuous visibility into update progress.
4. Policy enforcement: If a device falls out of compliance, it automatically takes action to enforce compliance, independent of the MDM server.

Additional notes about DDM’s security efficacy and operational efficiency:

• Devices guide users with notifications and enforce updates, when necessary.
• Patches are often automatically scheduled for installation outside of business hours, significantly reducing user dependency.
• Many of the traditional workflow delays are removed by shifting responsibility closer to the device.

What this means for IT teams

Alongside the benefits of shifting to a modernized patch management strategy mentioned throughout this blog, DDM ensures updates rollout faster because devices act as soon as conditions are met.

Not only does this boost efficiency by getting update-ready devices patched sooner, but it provides for greater patching consistency across your fleet while simultaneously hardening security by reducing gaps in coverage.

This results in decreasing manual effort, including repetitive tasks to ensure managed devices remain compliant. And because visibility – a cornerstone of DDM – improves, the real-time insight into endpoint health statuses allows IT teams to spend less time chasing devices and troubleshooting missed updates.

Ultimately, DDM empowers your organization to experience smaller vulnerability windows -- and as a result – both a stronger device security posture and enforcement of your organization’s overall security posture. Lastly, IT teams benefit from less firefighting (reactive) and more time focusing their skills on strategic work (proactive), developing better solutions and driving value through greater alignment with business objectives.