Rather than having to build a whole new NS2 release, how about UW build an optional but official server-side mod that can be easily updated to fix annoying problems. This would have a much faster turnaround than regular releases. The fixes could be based on engine version - so as soon as the game gets a full update, those mod-fixes would be automatically disabled (making the assumption they were fixed in the full release).
Example: A hole is found in a map that lets players exploit/cheat. The mod could be updated to check for that map and version X of the game, and place a blocking prop over the hole.
Obviously you couldn't do Spark fixes with this mod, but you would probably want a full release for those changes anyways.
P.S. I am not advocating removal of NS2 releases. Instead, only use the mod as a stop-gap to work around bad problems. This allows greater time between full releases, which of course makes development easier.
Example: A hole is found in a map that lets players exploit/cheat. The mod could be updated to check for that map and version X of the game, and place a blocking prop over the hole.
Obviously you couldn't do Spark fixes with this mod, but you would probably want a full release for those changes anyways.
P.S. I am not advocating removal of NS2 releases. Instead, only use the mod as a stop-gap to work around bad problems. This allows greater time between full releases, which of course makes development easier.