Patch Management: Fixed (Non-Process) Costs

In working on Project Quant and assigning variables to the patch management process phases, I realized there are certain fixed costs that aren't necessarily tied to a specific phase of the project. For example:

• Any patch management tools costs.
• Configuration or vulnerability management tools costs.
• Software maintenance licenses (since some platforms require a support contract to get patches).
• Patch tracking tool/service costs (for third party tools/services, when not part of the patch management tool).

These are just a few off the top of my head -- any other ideas? Remember, this is for costs not necessarily tied completely to any single phase of the patch management process.

—Rich