Microsoft® Windows® Group Policy Guide

Client Hardening

Not only should servers be hardened to protect against outside intruders, but clients need the same attention. Clients also need to have services, ports, applications, groups, and so on locked down to reduce security risks as much as possible. This reduction in security risk should not compromise functionality in most cases. If the security on a client is too tight, users might not be able to use applications and network communications as needed.

To show a wide range of client configuration best practices, we will look at four common environments. The best practices focus on creating and maintaining a secure environment for desktops and laptops running Windows XP Professional. We will break down clients into two more categories: ...