This can be done manually. If you have installed a lot of Windows operating systems you know the process in and out. If you are a new inexperienced user you might want to use a software for that task. A good and reliable program for that task that is compatible with both Windows 2000 and Windows XP is Configure NT.

Configure NT is a a batch script that can be used to secure Windows services easily. It comes with several switches depending on the configuration of the current operating system. The program will prompt for user input after installation, the available choices are:

• (1) LAN This switch tries closing all open Ports. Some services (”automatic updates”, “scheduler”) and SMB will remain unchanged. Use this option if you still need network drives or -printer.
• (2) Standard Other than (1), SMB will be deactivated. On W2K-systems all ports are being closed. On WinXP you must disable the scheduler to close all ports. Some services (”automatic updates”, “scheduler”) will remain unchanged.
• (3) ALL Does make all changes as recommended on www.ntsvcfg.de. So all services + SMB are being disabled. (this option is recommended to “harden” your workstation)
• (4) Restore Restore the last changes made. A warning message might appear during writing to the registry. Please ignore this message by clicking OK.

Option 1 is probably the option that most users should start with to secure their Windows Services. The website contains additional information and a checklist to verify that the system has been secured. Advanced users will probably still use the manual approach as they have more control over the Windows Services configuration.

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An owner of a computer surely wants to install software on it even if he is running as a limited user. This is where the problem starts. The Run As command can be used to run applications as a different user. The major problem is that you have to provide the username and password for that user to be able to run the selected application. This data can be easily logged by a keylogger.

Surun uses its own Windows service that adds the user to the group of administrators during program start and removes him automatically from that group again. The user, not the administrator, will be asked on a secure desktop that only services may access if he wants to run the program and if he confirms that the application will be started. Programs are started with a right-click and the selection of Run as Administrator.

Surun comes with lots of settings and a huge configuration. Each application that was once started with Surun can be added to a list of applications that are started without the prompt from then on.

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Fortunately for him there is indeed an easy method to upgrade Windows XP without contacting a Microsoft server at all. This of course is only half the truth, some software products like IE7 and Windows Media Player 11 contact Microsoft during installation. You can either use one of the techniques described in my posts to avoid this or choose to not install those programs.

The current Autopatcher file size is about 350 megabytes in size for Windows XP and can be downloaded from the Autopatcher homepage. I suggest you use a torrent or a mirror to ease the load on the main servers. You also find versions for Windows 2000 and 2003.

Download the full Autopatcher release for your language and after that the smaller update for January. Install both on your computer and run the application afterwards. The difference between full and lite versions is that some third party products (e.g. Java from Sun) have been removed from the package, all Microsoft patches are still inside.

Autopatcher scans your system and displays a list of patches that could be installed. The following categories exist:

1. Microsoft Windows – Critital Updates
2. Microsoft Windows – Recommended Updates
3. Microsoft Windows – Updated Components
4. Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage
5. Windows Addons
6. Registry Tweaks

The first three are automatically (partially) selected. I would advise to check the patches manually and remove everything that seems unnecessary. Click on Update after you have made your selections and Autopatcher will update your system.

Autopatcher is great if you have to update more than one operating system. Instead of downloading all the patches several times you do it once. Great time saver.

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