Purpose: Develop systems administration procedures to implement sys...

Purpose: Develop systems administration procedures to implement systems security configuration guidance and best practices.
Objectives

1. Develop a Windows system restore point systems administration procedure to implement an industry recognized best practice for maintaining system integrity and availability.
2. Develop a Windows system administration procedure to manage programs and features.
3. Develop a systems administration procedure to implement configuration rules from systems security technical guidance issued by a vendor or government organization.

Overview
In this lab, our focus is upon developing a set of procedures which can be incorporated into an organization’s security implementation guidance and documentation. For each procedure, you will develop, test, and document the steps required to implement the selected best practices and security configuration guidance (as provided in the lab instructions and notes). You will write three separate procedures for this lab:
(a) Creating, Using, Removing System Restore Points for Windows 8.1
(b) Managing Windows 8.1 Programs and Features   
(c) Implementing Security Configuration Rules for Windows 8.1   

Each procedure will have the following major sections (see Figure 1):
• Title:
• Operating Environment:
• Description:
• Notes, Warnings, & Restrictions:
• Resources (Further Reading):
• Procedures:

Some procedures will contain a large number of steps. To make the procedures easier to read, you should divide your procedures into groups of related steps. Place a group heading (e.g. Create System Restore Points) at the beginning of each group. Each group heading should be followed by a brief paragraph that explains the purpose of the group (e.g. This group (or “section”) contains step by step instructions for creating System Restore Points using the “System Restore ” tool….)

Title:

Operating Environment:
1. Hardware
2. Software

Description:

Notes, Warnings, & Restrictions:

Resources (Further Reading):
1.
2.
3.

Procedures:

[Group Heading]
Brief introduction paragraph for this group of steps
1.
2.
3.

[Group Heading]
Brief introduction paragraph for this group of steps
1.
2.
3.


Instructions

Part (a): Implementing System Restore Points
1. Investigate the System Restore tool (used to manage system restore points). To access the tool, open the System tool from Control Panel (Control Panel > System and Security > System). Then, click on System Protection (left menu).
2. Identify appropriate sources of information (e.g. Windows Help, Microsoft Technet, etc.) for instructions for using the Windows 8.1 System Restore Point capability. Using those sources, research the procedures required to perform the following tasks:
a. Create a system restore point for a Windows 8.1 system
b. Use a system restore point to roll-back changes made to a Windows 8.1 system
c. Remove system restore points from a Windows 8.1 system (some and all)

Note: you will not be able to do the full rollback (item 2(b)) in the VDA due to security restrictions. Your procedure should contain these steps, however. Use the Microsoft “System Restore” documentation to obtain the required information about what happens after the system restart for the rollback. You do not need to provide an “after” snapshot for this step.

3. Paste the procedure outline (Figure 1) into your Lab #1 file. Make sure that you insert a page break so that the “Title” heading appears at the top of a new page.
4. Using the required outline, develop a systems administration procedure which can be used to perform tasks related to item #1 (management and use of system restore points).
5. Test your draft procedures using the virtual machine provided in the online lab environment (UMUC’s VDA). Do NOT use your personal computer or a work computer.
6. As you run your tests, collect screen snapshots to illustrate key steps in your procedures. (Use the snipping tool on your local PC to snapshot portions of the VDA browser or client window.) Insert these snapshots at the appropriate points in your procedure. The snapshots must show the procedures as run in the VDA environment.

Part (b): Managing Programs and Features for Windows 8.1
1. Investigate the Programs and Features tool (used to manage installed programs and optional features / capabilities). To access the tool, open Programs and Features from the Windows Control Panel.
2. Identify appropriate sources of information (e.g. Windows Help, Microsoft Technet, etc.) for instructions for using the Programs and Features tool. Using those sources, research the procedures required to perform the following tasks:
a. Turn Windows Features On or Off
b. Modify, Repair, or Uninstall a program from a Windows 8.1 system
c. Select and Install Updates for Windows and Windows Applications, Find an installed Update, Remove an installed update
3. Paste a second blank copy of the procedure outline (from Figure 1) at the end of your Lab #1 file. Make sure that you insert a page break before you paste to ensure the “Title” heading appears at the top of a new page.
4. Using the required outline, develop a systems administration procedure which can be used to perform tasks related to item #2. Provide examples for each of the required tasks. (Select a specific feature, program, or update and use that as an example in your procedure.)
5. As you run your tests, collect screen snapshots to illustrate key steps in your procedures. (Use the snipping tool on your local PC to snapshot portions of the VDA browser or client window.) Insert these snapshots at the appropriate points in your procedure. The snapshots must show the procedures as run in the VDA environment.

Part (c): Implementing Security Configuration Rules Using the Local Group Policy Editor
Note: you are NOT implementing the DISA / DoD STIG in this section. You are implementing a set of security configuration rules that your “company” has selected from industry accepted sources.
1. Investigate the Local Group Policy Editor tool (Windows Key + R then type gpedit.msc). Pay particular attention to the menu tree in the left hand pane (expand and review the categories of settings which can be changed using this tool).
2. Research the security configuration rules listed in Table 1. These rules were developed from the Department of Defense Security Technical Implementation Guidance for Windows 8.1.
3. When you are ready to begin writing your procedure, paste a blank copy of the procedure outline (from Figure 1) at the end of your Lab #1 file. Make sure that you insert a page break before you paste to ensure the “Title” heading appears at the top of a new page.
4. Determine how you will group related security configuration rules. Each group will need a “section heading” (see Figure 1) and introductory paragraph (2 -3 sentences) which explains the purpose of the group.
5. Next, develop a step by step procedure for each group of rules. See the “Suggested Procedure Group” column in Table 1 for suggested categories. Your groupings should allow for inclusion of additional, related rules at a later date. (For example, there are two “energy saving” rules in the table; an organization may wish to add additional rules to this category at some point in the future.)
6. For each group of rules, develop step-by-step written procedures for systems administrators. Your written procedures must implement the “remediation” guidance as listed in Table 1 .
7. Test your procedures by running them in the VDA. As you run your tests, collect screen snapshots to illustrate key steps in your procedures. (Use the snipping tool on your local PC to snapshot portions of the VDA browser or client window.) Insert these snapshots at the appropriate points in your procedure. The snapshots must show the procedures as run in the VDA environment.
8. Incorporate your screen snapshots for key steps into the draft procedures. Each snapshot should be placed UNDER (after) the step to which it applies. Captions are not required.
9. Make any additional changes required to address issues found during testing of the step-by-step procedures.