Update Software

Regular software and firmware updates are a primary mechanism for reducing exploitation risk by remediating known vulnerabilities before adversaries can leverage them against mission systems. Updates must undergo suitable regression testing to verify that security patches do not introduce functional defects or degrade safety-critical behaviors before deployment to operational systems. Release cadence should be governed by a mission-defined update frequency that balances vulnerability severity, exploitability, mission risk tolerance, testing requirements, and operational constraints. The program should define maximum allowable remediation or deployment timeframes (e.g., 30 days) for applicable vulnerability severities rather than applying a single update interval to all software and firmware. Update scheduling must account for operational constraints, coordinating patch deployment with mission downtime windows to avoid disrupting critical operations. Following a successful update, superseded software versions should be removed from active operational use unless retained as an authorized recovery image. Verified restoration images, commonly referred to as gold images, should be retained under access and integrity controls to support recovery when an update introduces unacceptable system behavior or an authorized rollback is operationally required.

Sources

ID: CM0010
Tier: I
Ground CM 
Created: 2022/10/19
Last Modified: 2026/08/06

Pre-Operations Government

Acquisition requirements should establish patch management as a contractual obligation rather than a discretionary maintenance practice, specifying maximum allowable update intervals, regression testing requirements, and the conditions under which updates must be expedited in response to critical vulnerability disclosures. Contract language should require spacecraft and ground-system software and firmware to support secure updates where updates are technically and operationally feasible. Components intentionally designed as immutable or non-updateable should be explicitly identified, justified through risk analysis, and protected through appropriate compensating measures. Requirements should mandate secure update processes that verify the authenticity, integrity, compatibility, and authorization of update packages before installation. The design should also prevent unauthorized rollback to superseded or vulnerable versions and should incorporate protected restoration-image capabilities where required by the mission. Evaluation criteria should assess offerors' patch management processes, their track record for timely vulnerability remediation in analogous programs, and their proposed regression testing approach for flight and ground software. Verification should confirm that update mechanisms function as specified and that gold image retention and restoration procedures are tested prior to operational deployment.

Pre-Operations Developer/Supplier

Software and firmware architectures for spacecraft and ground systems should be designed to support secure, authorized updates from the outset where technically and operationally feasible. Any component that cannot be updated after deployment should be explicitly identified and assessed because vulnerabilities discovered after launch may remain for the operational life of the component. Update mechanisms should cryptographically verify the authenticity and integrity of update packages before installation, confirm that the package is authorized and compatible with the target system, and prevent unauthorized rollback to superseded or vulnerable versions. Regression testing pipelines should be established during development and maintained throughout the operational lifecycle, with automated test suites covering both functional and security behaviors so that patch validation can be completed efficiently within the operational update window. Gold image management should be treated as a formal system function, with verified baseline images stored securely, version-controlled, and tested for restorability at defined intervals. Update scheduling logic should be integrated with mission operations planning tools so that patch deployment can be coordinated with operational downtime windows without requiring ad hoc coordination each cycle.