Patent ID: 8407687

Claim:
A method comprising: (a) storing at least one patch fingerprint at a package computer; wherein each patch fingerprint comprises at least one extensible markup language (XML) metadata query; wherein at least one of the patch fingerprints is associated with a specific software update; (b) downloading the at least one patch fingerprint from the package computer to a repository component of an update server; wherein the package computer is apart from the update server; (c) sending the at least one XML metadata query from the update server to a first target computer; (d) scanning the first target computer via a discovery agent located on the first target computer, wherein the scanning comprises utilizing the at least one XML metadata query in combination with the discovery agent to produce target computer information; wherein the target computer information is related to at least hardware configuration information, registry information, software presence information, and software version information relative to the first target computer; wherein the first target computer is separated from the package computer via a firewall; (e) sending the target computer information to the repository component located on the update server; (f) storing the target computer information in the repository component located on the update server; (g) comparing, at the update server, at least a portion of the target computer information with at least one of the patch fingerprints; (h) determining, at the update server, in response to the comparing step (g), whether the specific software update is absent from the first target computer; (i) downloading, in response to the determining step (h), the specific software update to the update server; and (j) downloading, in response to the determining step (h) or the downloading step (i), the specific software update from the update server to the first target computer.