ISA Server 2004 Security Hardening Guide

  • Article

This guide is designed to provide you with essential information about how to harden computers running Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2004 Enterprise Edition or ISA Server 2004 Standard Edition. In addition to practical, specific configuration recommendations, this guide includes ISA Server deployment strategies.

For computers running Microsoft Windows Server 2003, this guide is a companion to the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide, located at the Microsoft TechNet Web site. Specifically, many of the procedures in this guide are related directly to security recommendations introduced in the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide. Therefore, before you perform the procedures presented in this guide, we recommend that you first read the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide.

If ISA Server is installed on a computer running Windows 2000 Server, see the Windows 2000 Server Hardening Guide at the Microsoft Download Center.

Scope of This Guide

This guide focuses explicitly on the operations required to help create and maintain a secure ISA Server 2004 environment. You should use this guide as part of your overall security strategy for ISA Server 2004, and not as a complete reference for creating and maintaining a secure environment.

Specifically, this guide provides detailed answers to the following questions:

  • What are the recommended steps for securing the ISA Server computer?
  • What security considerations should be applied to the ISA Server configuration?
  • What guidance is available to help prepare for a secure ISA Server 2004 deployment?