Java – RSS feed/email list to be notified about java updates

To disable the auto-update notification you should be able to set the dword value at HKLM\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy\EnableJavaUpdate to 0 and HKLM\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy\NotifyInstall to 0.

Here is a fragment from on of my startup scripts.

Option Explicit

Dim oShell
Set oShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")

DisableJavaUpdateNotification()

Function DisableJavaUpdateNotification
    Dim Key,Value
    Key="HKLM\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy\EnableJavaUpdate"
    Value="0"
    oShell.RegWrite Key,Value,"REG_DWORD"
    Key="HKLM\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy\NotifyInstall"
    Value="0"
    oShell.RegWrite Key,Value,"REG_DWORD"
End Function

In most of my environments, it's usually a kickstart and post-install script to get the main system up and current with updates at that moment. I'll usually have a local repo that syncs with a CentOS mirror daily or weekly. I tend to freeze the kernel package at whatever's current as of the installation time and update packages individually or as necessary. Often times, my servers have peripherals that have drivers closely linked to kernel versions, so that's a consideration.

CentOS 5 has matured to the point where constant updates aren't necessary. But also keep in mind that CentOS 5 is winding down. The rate of updates has slowed somewhat, and the nature of the updates is more inline with bugfixes and less about major functionality changes.

So in this specific case, the first thing you could do is build a local mirror/repo. Use your existing configuration management to control access to third-party repos. Maybe schedule policy to yum update critical or public-facing services (ssh, http, ftp, dovecot, etc.) Everything else will require testing, but I get the feeling that most environments don't run with fully-updated/patched systems.