Google Cloud VM Manager
7.1#9 in patch management softwareFree planFree planWebAPILinuxWindows
VisitGoogle Cloud VM Manager vs PatchMon
What both publish
| Fact | Google Cloud VM Manager | PatchMon |
|---|---|---|
| Access control | Creating patch jobs or OS policy assignments requires IAM permissions that Google says can grant the ability to run code on VMs; Google recommends least privilege. | The platform includes built-in and custom RBAC, OIDC/SSO, TOTP 2FA, session management and audit logging. |
| Company founding | Gartner Peer Insights lists Google as founded in 1998 and headquartered in Mountain View, California. | LinkedIn lists PatchMon as founded in 2025. |
| Compliance | Google Cloud lists auditor-validated offerings including ISO 27001, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, SOC 1, SOC 2, SOC 3, PCI DSS, FedRAMP, and HIPAA-related resources. | PatchMon supports OpenSCAP CIS benchmark scans with per-rule results, severity, remediation guidance, and score tracking. |
| Documentation depth | The documentation includes overview, setup, operating-system details, patch guides, policy guides, troubleshooting, API reference links, Terraform guides, quotas, and release-note links. | The documentation set includes a 168-page Admin Guide, 207-page Operator Guide and 128-page API and Integrations Guide. |
| Integrations | VM Manager works with the Google Cloud console, Google Cloud CLI, direct OS Config API calls, and Terraform resources. | Documented integrations include Discord, getHomepage, Ansible and Proxmox LXC auto-enrollment. |
| Patch controls | Patch jobs can use one-time or recurring schedules, selected patch approvals, and pre- and post-patching scripts. | Patch policies support immediate, delayed, or fixed-time schedules, dry-run validation, approval workflows, and per-host or host-group assignment. |
| Public API | Patch deployments are initiated through the VM Manager API, also called the OS Config API. | PatchMon publishes versioned REST APIs with an embedded OpenAPI browser and scoped credentials using Basic Authentication. |
| Purpose | VM Manager manages operating systems for large Windows and Linux VM fleets running on Compute Engine. | PatchMon provides a central dashboard for patch monitoring across Linux, FreeBSD, and Windows fleets. |
Google Cloud VM Manager plans
- Free tierFree
- Usage-based VM ManagerFree
- VM ManagerFree
PatchMon plans
- Community EditionFree
- Starter$1 a month
- Plus$2 a month
- Max$3 a month
- PROPriced on request
Pick Google Cloud VM Manager if…
It suits teams maintaining Windows or Linux VM fleets on Compute Engine that need patching, inventory, and software configuration policies. Teams should account for its English-locale requirement and single-project patch-job scope.
Pick PatchMon if…
PatchMon suits infrastructure teams responsible for mixed server fleets, from small startups to organizations with a thousand hosts. The self-hosted edition fits teams prepared to manage their own server operations.