Maintenance assessment management

1. A computer-implemented method for assessing environment specific maintenance actions, comprising:

identifying a maintenance update for a specific environment including one or more computer systems, wherein the maintenance update addresses a known problem;

applying factors to determine an assessment index for the known problem as a function of the specific environment, wherein the assessment index indicates a level of installation criticality relative to the specific environment;

outputting an installation recommendation for the identified maintenance update in response to determining the assessment index;

establishing a weighting value for each of the factors;

applying the weighting value to each of the factors to determine the assessment index;

storing user decisions regarding installation of the maintenance update; and

wherein the factors include a level of importance as a function of one or more defect attributes associated with the known problem, a level of exposure to the known problem in the specific environment, and policies of the specific environment;

wherein the polices include an acceptable age of the maintenance update and specific components.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more defect attributes include a classification and a symptom of the known problem.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the level of exposure is determined by comparing problem triggers to the specific environment and further determined by pervasiveness of the known problem.

4. A computer system including center processing unit for maintenance assessment management, comprising:

a service inventory identifying a specific environment of the system; and

a maintenance assessment tool (MAT) executing on a user system that includes a storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for implementing a method performed by the MAT, the method comprising:

identifying a maintenance update for the specific environment, wherein the maintenance update addresses a known problem;

applying factors to determine an assessment index for the known problem as a function of the specific environment, wherein the assessment index indicates a level of installation criticality relative to the specific environment;

outputting an installation recommendation for the identified maintenance update in response to determining the assessment index;

establishing a weighting value for each of the factors;

applying the weighting value to each of the factors to determine the assessment index;

storing user decisions regarding installation of the maintenance update; and

wherein the factors include a level of importance as a function of one or more defect attributes associated with the known problem, a level of exposure to the known problem in the specific environment, and policies of the specific environment;

wherein the polices include an acceptable age of the maintenance update and specific components.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the one or more defect attributes include a classification and a symptom of the known problem.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein the level of exposure is determined by comparing problem triggers to the specific environment and further determined by pervasiveness of the known problem.

7. A computer program product for assessing environment specific maintenance actions, the computer program product comprising:

a storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for implementing a method, the method comprising:

identifying a maintenance update for a specific environment including one or more computer systems, wherein the maintenance update addresses a known problem;

applying factors to determine an assessment index for the known problem as a function of the specific environment, wherein the assessment index indicates a level of installation criticality relative to the specific environment;

outputting an installation recommendation for the identified maintenance update in response to determining the assessment index;

establishing a weighting value for each of the factors;

applying the weighting value to each of the factors to determine the assessment index; and

storing user decisions regarding installation of the maintenance update; and

wherein the factors include a level of importance as a function of one or more defect attributes associated with the known problem, a level of exposure to the known problem in the specific environment, and policies of the specific environment;

wherein the polices include an acceptable age of the maintenance update and specific components.

8. The computer program product of claim 7 wherein the one or more defect attributes include a classification and a symptom of the known problem.

9. The computer program product of claim 7 wherein the level of exposure is determined by comparing problem triggers to the specific environment and further determined by pervasiveness of the known problem.