How to Set Up Automated Security Patching with dnf-automatic on RHEL-based Linux
In this article, you will learn how to implement automated security patching on RHEL-based distributions such as Rocky Linux and Alma Linux using the dnf-automatic utility.
In this article, you will learn how to implement automated security patching on RHEL-based distributions such as Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux using the dnf-automatic utility, including security-only update strategies, reboot policies, email notifications, package exclusions, and integration with monitoring tools.
The dnf-automatic utility offers fine-grained control over automated patch management that enables administrators to restrict updates to security advisories, align installations with defined maintenance windows, exclude sensitive or version-locked packages, and receive detailed notifications before any system changes.
The dnf-automatic package is available in the default repositories of RHEL-based distributions and supports configurable update policies that range from download-only operations to fully automated installation, with optional reboot handling.