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Chapter 1. Windows Networking and Securi... > Building a Network with Security in ...
Building a Network with Security in Mind
Even for Windows experts, network security is a challenging and demanding area of technology. Oh, sure, it’s easy to get started. Thanks to cheap and ubiquitous hardware and fill-in-the-blanks wizards, just about anyone can combine two or three computers running Windows into a reasonably secure local area network in a matter of minutes. Ensuring that your network stays secure, however, requires constant attention. Although you don’t necessarily need to earn your credentials as a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer to manage a network, your chances of success improve greatly if you have a solid understanding of network hardware, communications protocols, TCP/IP addressing, and access controls.
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In this chapter, we assume that you’ve correctly installed and configured a baseline configuration for all of the Windows computers on your network, including the most recent service pack and all current critical updates and security updates. We also assume that all users on your network have received basic training on security, and that every computer on the network has antivirus software that is configured for regular automatic updates. We cover each of these tasks in more detail later in this book, beginning in Chapter 8, “Setting Up a Secure Home or Small Business Network.”
