Security Administrator Street Smarts: A Real World Guide to CompTIA Security+™ Skills, Third Edition

Task 5.2: Implementing the Password Policy

One of the most important components of securing your information systems is implementing a strong password policy. This is accomplished by editing the Default Domain GPO in the Windows Server 2003 Active Directory Users and Computers management console. Setting the password policy at any other location in the Windows Server 2003 Active Directory or on the local computer affects the local users’ password requirements, not the requirements for their domain user passwords.

In Windows Server 2000 and 2003 Active Directory, each domain may have only one effective password policy. It must be set in a GPO ...