The additions to Windows Server 2003 introduced by Windows Server 2003 SP1 are designed to improve security, reliability, and productivity. Below is a brief introduction to the new features and enhancements brought to Windows Server 2003 by Service Pack 1. A more detailed description of these additions can be found in the Windows Server 2003 SP1 Product Overview.
Enhancements
Windows Server 2003 SP1 includes improvements to functionality that originally shipped with Windows Server 2003. Such enhancements make a great product better and raise the security, reliability, and productivity of Windows Server 2003. Some of the key enhancements include:
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Support for "no execute" hardware. Windows Server 2003 SP1 allows Windows Server 2003 to utilize functionality built in to computing hardware by companies such as Intel and Advanced Micro Devices to prevent malicious code from launching attacks from areas of computer memory that should not run code. This enhancement reduces the likelihood of the broadest and most exploited avenues of information attack.
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Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 metabase auditing. The metabase is the XML-based, hierarchical store of configuration information for IIS 6.0. The ability to audit this store allows network administrators to see which user accessed the metabase if it becomes corrupted.
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Stronger defaults and privilege reduction on services. Services such as RPC and DCOM are integral to Windows Server 2003 and thus make an alluring target for hackers. By requiring greater authentication for calls of these services, Windows Server 2003 SP1 establishes a minimum threshold of security for all applications that use these services, even if they possess little or no security inherently.
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Addition of Network Access Quarantine Control components. Windows Server 2003 SP1 now includes the RQS.exe and RQC.exe components to make deployment of Network Access Quarantine Control easier. For more information, see Network Access Quarantine Control in Windows Server 2003.
New features
In contrast with other service pack releases, Microsoft is taking the opportunity afforded by the release of SP1 to introduce powerful new functionality to Windows Server 2003.
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Windows Firewall. Also released with Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Firewall is the successor to the Internet Connection Firewall. Windows Firewall is a host (software) firewall, a firewall around each client and server computer on a customer's network. Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 installs Windows Firewall on the server and allows network-wide control through Group Policy.
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Post-Setup Security Updates (PSSU). Servers are vulnerable in the time between being installation and when the latest security updates are applied. To counter this, Windows Server 2003 with Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 blocks all inbound connections to the server after installation until Windows Update has run to deliver the latest security updates to the new computer. This feature also guides administrators through Automatic Update at the time of first log on.
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Security Configuration Wizard (SCW). SCW asks users questions about the role their servers fill and then stops all services and blocks ports not necessary to perform those roles. This new feature of Windows Server 2003 closes unnecessary avenues of attack.
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