Protect Windows virtual server

In our environment Virtual servers are connected to the Internet using public IP addresses.
This makes them susceptible to various types of hijacking attacks. And may result in the servers:

• leaking important information
• being encrypted by ransomware
• infected by viruses and/or trojans
• becoming a node of illegal computer network spreading ransomware and viruses

Therefore it is very important to take steps to protect your server and reduce the attack surface to a minimum.

Enable Windows firewall.

All Windows VPS are provided with an enabled firewall by default. It should never be disabled.
Use it to open only necessary ports and try keeping the opened port amount to an absolute minimum.

Change TCP ports

In most cases attackers use known vulnerabilities and standard TCP/IP ports to infect the servers.
And it is a good practice to change the default ports which are not used for public access.
It may not be possible for some services (Web, FTP...) but you should do it for all services which are used internally by you or your team (Remote desktop, SQL...)

Update your server regularly

We recommend using automatic updates in Windows. If in manual mode the servers should be checked and updated at least once per month.
As with other Operating systems the Windows distributions reach the end of life.
Due to multiple complications and bugs we do not perform Windows version upgrades.
Therefore we recommend re-imaging your server with the latest OS before your Windows distribution reaches EOL.
You may also request a free server for 1 week to gradually set it up while keeping the old server running.

Use Windows defender.

All modern Windows distributions include an antivirus - Windows defender.
Make sure it is running all the time