Hey Guys,<o:p></o:p>
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I recently started looking after my company's SQL Server and its been really learning by trial and error. I noticed that the server has been online for more than a year and no patch management has ever been done.<o:p></o:p>
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My task is to patch manage the server and ensure that it is up to date when it comes to all windows updates. I know that I should expect to have to reboot a few times and this is where I'm concerned. I'm not sure what best practices I should follow before I restart to ensure that I don't lose data or corrupt any databases.<o:p></o:p>
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In my firm we have 2 SQL Servers configured as ALWAYS-ON. I would like to patch manage the secondary server first. I have read many articles online stating that I shouldn't need to worry about it too much just restart and the services should come up automatically but I've also read others that say to stop the Instance first before restarting and then start it back from SQL Management Studios.<o:p></o:p>
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Any advice would be most appreciated since Restarting the SQL server with limited knowledge seems like the most daunting task to me<o:p></o:p>
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Thanks,<o:p></o:p>
Michael<o:p></o:p>