Do you need network services if you are not connected to a network ever with your computer that is running windows xp or windows nt ? No you don´t. Still network services are running as default services when you run windows and this leads to security risks which can be avoided by turning them off. The configure nt services securely website has unfortunately only a small section of their tips in English but the rest should be understandable while using a translation service.
They offer a script which does the following automatically:
- changes start type (auto, demand,disabled) according to kssysteme.de
- stops and deactivates critical services (i.e. Distributed Transaction Coordinator, Messenger)
- deactivates DCOM and removes standard protocol bindings
- closes SMB /server message block) and consequently port 445 (only if you use switch “/std” or “/all”)
- deactivates DHCP if it is not used
- disable NetBios on all network interfaces (exception: switch “/lan” prevent it)
You have several options and may leave some enabled, just take a look at the website for the different options. I suggest you backup your settings before you start the script. The script itself has a restore mode as well which restores the last changes made.
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Harden XP by disabling services
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