Guide to Securing Microsoft Windows XP Systems for IT Professionals: A NIST Security Configuration Checklist

This paper seeks to assist IT professionals in securing Windows XP workstations, XP mobile computers, and XP computers used by telecommuters within various environments. This guidance should only be applied throughout an enterprise by trained and competent system administrators. Although some of the guidance presented in this paper may be applicable to multiple versions of Windows XP, the guidance is specifically intended for Windows XP Professional systems running Service Pack 2 (SP2) or Service Pack 3 (SP3). The paper provides detailed information about the security features of Windows XP, security configuration guidelines for popular applications, and security configuration guidelines for the Windows XP operating system.