# Keep scheduled VM maintenance readiness active while requesting postponement

> DSE recommends treating a postponement request as an open dependency until the current maintenance information supports a changed plan.

- Canonical URL: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-20260917-031-keep-scheduled-vm-maintenance-readiness-active-while-requesting-postponement/
- Publisher: Detection Systems & Engineering (DSE Security)
- Author: DSE Security Editorial Team
- Published: 2026-09-17T16:34:29+00:00
- Modified: 2026-09-17T16:35:03+00:00
- Last reviewed by DSE: 2026-09-17
- Resource type: Guide
- DSE priority: Information
- Topics: IT
- Reading time: 2 minutes

## What you need to know

DSE recommends treating a postponement request as an open dependency until the current maintenance information supports a changed plan.

## Potentially affected

This guide applies when the owner of an Azure VM affected by planned maintenance cannot accommodate the published schedule and is considering a support request. It addresses the uncertainty of postponement rather than eligibility for starting self-service maintenance.

## DSE recommendation

DSE recommends treating a postponement request as an open dependency until the current maintenance information supports a changed plan.

## Article

## Source facts

Microsoft says scheduled maintenance usually cannot be delayed; support can make a best-effort attempt to postpone it. After the self-service window is missed, the portal still shows the window in which Azure will maintain the VM. [Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/maintenance-notifications-portal)

## Applicability

This guide applies when the owner of an Azure VM affected by planned maintenance cannot accommodate the published schedule and is considering a support request. It addresses the uncertainty of postponement rather than eligibility for starting self-service maintenance.

## DSE recommendation

DSE recommends treating a postponement request as an open dependency until the current maintenance information supports a changed plan. Assign one owner to track the request and another to preserve application readiness for the published window. Record the affected VM identifiers, current scheduled window, support response and business constraint together. Continue the agreed readiness work while the request is unresolved, and avoid announcing an unconfirmed replacement schedule to dependent teams.

## Verification

Before the published window, reconcile the latest portal information with the support response and the workload readiness plan. Record any confirmed schedule change explicitly and retain its source. If no change is confirmed, have the application owner state how the existing window will be handled. Close the request only after the actual maintenance outcome and application condition have been reviewed; a submitted support case alone does not establish a deferred event.

## Official references

- [Microsoft: Use the portal for maintenance notifications – Azure Virtual Machines | Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/maintenance-notifications-portal)

## Primary reference

- Name: Use the portal for maintenance notifications - Azure Virtual Machines | Microsoft Learn
- Authority: Microsoft Learn
- URL: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/maintenance-notifications-portal
- Source publication date: Not stated by the source

## Citation and use

Preferred citation: “Keep scheduled VM maintenance readiness active while requesting postponement,” DSE Security, https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-20260917-031-keep-scheduled-vm-maintenance-readiness-active-while-requesting-postponement/
Publishing principles: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-updates-editorial-methodology/
Usage and citation policy: https://update.dsesecurity.com/usage/
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