I would never recommend having your server automatically updating itself. I'd keep a different PC running the SAME OS on the network or at least just have the automatic updates set to NOTIFY when updates are available... to update a server, I would recommend downloading the administrative versions of all criticals and deploying them via command line remotely... 95% of the time you can suppress the reboot response via command line.
To obtain the administrative versions of critical or other MS "official" updates for OS's, do this (from a PC that is prefereably not the server...
1. Open Windows Update
2. Click the Personalize Windows Update link (on the left-side of the browswer window where it says Other Options)
3. Click the checkbox that says Display the link to the Windows Update Catalog under See Also (right beneath Set options for Windows Update... where all 1 of the available options are visible!)
4. Click the Save Settings button at the top of the Window.
A new link at the left-hand side of the browser window will now appear on that PC when Windows Update is run. You can click on that Windows Update Catalog link at any time, and search for updates via posting date, OS version, etc. This will let you download virutally any critical update a given PC or server wants or needs and control when and how the deployment takes place. Though a remote scripting tool such as SMS or Altiris Express (or a logon script) will be necessary to run the update on a remote machine, it is a much better alternative to running around to each PC on a network and pulling the updates down the "old-fashioned" way.
Most updates have whitepapers associated with them that describe switches you can employ that determine whether or not a PC reboots, whether or not user interaction is needed, etc. Keep in mind, however, that if inconsistency was an olympic event, I'd want Microsoft on my team... i.e., they seem to have a habit of posting updates that do not follow or conform to these conventions, so be prepared for the occasional update that is aberrant and requires interaction. For those updates that do not come with clear instructions on how to deploy them, open a command window in the directory holding the update file, and try to prompt the file for a list of available administrative switches by typing <update name>.exe /?. A list of switches should show up on the screen... most of the time, <update name>.exe /q /z will deploy an updates silently, with no screen prompts or activity, and no reboot--however, many times the update will not become effective until a reboot has happened.
Good luck!
Dallas S. Kelsey, III
DKelsey-at-CHGLaw-dot-com
Cox, Hodgman, & Giarmarco, P.C.
Troy MI 48084
