The Windows Local Administrator Password Solution ( Windows LAPS) is a built-in Windows feature designed to seamlessly handle and safeguard the password for a local administrator account on devices joined to either Microsoft Enterprise or Windows Server Active Directory domains. Additionally, Windows LAPS can be utilized to automatically manage and secure the Directory Services Restore Mode (DSRM) account password on Windows Server Active Directory domain controllers.

The primary protocol employed within Microsoft’s Active Directory(AD) is Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). While LDAP serves as a fundamental component in AD, its application extends beyond, enabling user authentication in various tools and client environments. This includes Red Hat Directory Servers on UNIX systems and OpenLDAP, an open-source application used on Windows platforms.

Hardening a Linux server is the process of enhancing its security and reducing its attack surface by applying various configurations, policies, and tools. A hardened Linux server is more resilient to cyber threats and less prone to compromise.

Kubernetes, also referred to as k8s or “kubes,” stands as a portable, extensible, open-source container orchestration platform designed for managing containerized workloads and services. Initially developed by Google based on its internal systems Borg and later Omega, Kubernetes was introduced as an open-source project in 2014 and subsequently donated to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF).

The NIST SP 800-123 Guide to General Server Security contains NIST recommendations on how to secure your servers. It offers general advice and guideline on how you should approach this mission. Its aim is to assist organizations in understanding the fundamental activities they nee dto undertake to secure their servers. Regulations such as HIPAA, HITRUST, CMMC, and many others rely on those recommendations, demanding organizations to enforce and comply with the guide.

Print Spooler is a component integrated into the Windows operating system, designed to temporarily hold print jobs in the computer’s memory until the printer is prepared to execute them.

When planning a hardening project for information security, there are two types of impact analysis to consider – policy impact analysis and security impact analysis. Policy impact analysis refers to generating a report that indicates each policy rule’s impact on your production. It is especially important for avoiding system downtime caused by configuration changes. The second type of impact analysis is Security Impact Analysis.

Best practices for mitigating various attack vectors are changing depending on the environment and server functionality. CIS baselines cover most of the relevant scenarios by addressing the first stage of your Windows server hardening project. Microsoft has been doing some work related to default security configuration, but there is still a big gap between security best practices (i.e. common benchmarks) and the default Windows configuration.

Server hardening refers to the actions performed to reduce the server OS and application attack surface. this is done by changing the default configurations of the system’s components (servers, applications, etc.) and removing unnecessary components. Out of the box, Server OS are more function-oriented rather than for security, which means that unnecessary functions are enabled. Default, insecure configurations reflect a potential attack vector.

Windows Remote Desktop Service (RDS) is a component of Microsoft Windows that allows users to take control of a remote computer or a virtual machine that supports the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) via a network connection for RDP access. When enabling remote desktop access (RDP), it is crucial to implement strong passwords to thwart potential brute force attacks to ensure a secure remote desktop.