# Windows - Hardening The Windows operating system are hardened during provisioning since 2022 Version. Recommandations from the [Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=55319) and [CIS Benchmark documents](https://www.cisecurity.org/benchmark) are applied in order to enforce, harden and secure the Windows operating systems. Several hundred parameters are checked and configured to ensure Windows Health The following topics are covered : ## Account Policies * Define different account option for user authentication on microsoft network ## User Rights Assignment * Specify what a user or system account is authorized to do on a Windows Server ## Administrative templates Define specifics and secures configurations on the following windows component * Control Panel * Network * Printers * Start Menu and Taskbar * System ## System Services * Configure Windows Services, disabling unnecessary and unsecure services ## Security Options * Define a set of operating system configurations that govern how users can interact with devices and corporate resources ## Windows Firewall ## Advanced Audit Policy Configuration * Allows to specify which security events are audited on Windows and how logs are saved ## PowerShell * PowerShell's execution policy is a safety feature that controls the conditions under which PowerShell loads configuration files and runs scripts --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://academy.cegedim.cloud/compute/virtual-instances/virtual-instances-features/windows-hardening.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.