A leading steel manufacturer in Asia faced a critical challenge: replacing WSUS before it left their systems exposed. The company needed a smarter, scalable solution that could automate patching, cut manual work, and prioritize risks effectively. Vicarius vRx. Offered seamless deployment, intuitive automation, and broad coverage beyond Microsoft, vRx transformed their vulnerability management strategy. The results speak for themselves, 70% fewer unpatched vulnerabilities in just one month, faster remediation cycles, and stronger compliance. Discover how this shift empowered the IT team to focus on strategy over firefighting. Read the full case study to see the transformation in action.
Background Information
Company Overview
Our company is one of the leading steel manufacturers in Asia, producing high-quality construction and specialty industrial materials while driving sustainable industrial practices. Our IT Division plays a critical role in maintaining business continuity, protecting sensitive data, and ensuring both IT and OT systems operate securely and efficiently.
Within the IT Division, our team focuses on IT operations, cybersecurity strategy, and vulnerability management. Responsibilities include overseeing patch deployment, ensuring compliance, reducing cyber risks, and implementing modern security solutions across the infrastructure.
“Vicarius allowed us to step away from reactive patching and finally manage vulnerabilities with strategy instead of urgency.” – IT Division Manager
Challenges
For many years, we relied on Microsoft WSUS for patching. However, with WSUS reaching end-of-support, it became urgent to replace it. We also needed a solution that could:
- Cover both Microsoft and third-party applications.
- Provide risk-based prioritization instead of patching blindly on release cycles.
- Reduce the manual workload and maintenance overhead WSUS required.
Without a replacement, we risked slower patch cycles, compliance gaps, and higher vulnerability exposure.
Decision-Making Process
Solutions Evaluated
We considered Vicarius vRx as part of our WSUS replacement project:
- Pros: Unified vulnerability management, automated patching, simple and modern UI, strong automation capabilities, and excellent vendor support.
- Coverage extended well beyond Microsoft, addressing exactly what WSUS lacked.
Why We Chose Vicarius vRx
We found Vicarius struck the right balance:
- Extended coverage well beyond WSUS, with broader reach than alternatives and far simpler to manage.
- Automation-first design that reduced manual patch approvals and server maintenance.
- Risk-based prioritization, helping us address the most critical vulnerabilities first.
- Faster ROI: Deployment was simpler and required fewer resources, while offering more automation and intelligence.
Concerns During Evaluation
Our concern was whether Vicarius could scale as effectively. The proof-of-concept demonstrated strong results, reassuring us about performance and flexibility.
Implementation and Experience
Implementation Process
The migration from WSUS was smooth. With guidance from Vicarius’s team, we rolled out vRx gradually across endpoints, ensuring no disruption to our patch cycles.
Support from Vicarius
The Vicarius support team provided excellent onboarding, helped us optimize configurations, and shared best practices for risk-based remediation.
Initial Feedback from the Team
Vicarius’s simplicity was immediately noticeable. Our IT team appreciated the intuitive interface and automation features, which saved us hours of manual work each month.
“We immediately saw the difference: the automation freed us from hours of manual work every month.” – Senior IT Operations Lead
Results and Impact
Measurable Improvements
- 70% reduction in unpatched vulnerabilities within the first month.
- 50% faster remediation cycles compared to WSUS.
- Broader coverage than WSUS.
Key Metrics
- Mean Time to Remediate (MTTR) dropped significantly.
- Internal compliance scores improved during security audits.
- Reduced time and cost compared to alternatives.
Impact on Workflow & Security Strategy
Vicarius vRx allowed us to move away from WSUS’s end-of-support without adding complexity. Instead of managing patches reactively, we now approach vulnerability management proactively. This aligns with our long-term strategy of strengthening cybersecurity while improving operational efficiency.
Future Outlook
Plans Moving Forward
We plan to expand Vicarius vRx to cover more endpoints and integrate with our broader IT security stack. We are especially interested in extending automation to OT environments in our manufacturing plants.
Features We’re Excited About
- AI-driven vulnerability prioritization.
- Deeper reporting and analytics for executive visibility.
- Continued expansion of zero-touch patching.
Final Thoughts
Transitioning away from WSUS EOS forced us to rethink patch and vulnerability management. After evaluating multiple solutions, we found that Vicarius vRx was the most effective and future-proof replacement. It improved efficiency, reduced vulnerabilities, and allowed us to focus more on strategic initiatives instead of patching servers.
