How to Operate OS Hardening and Data Protection as One Program With Shared KPIs

OS hardening is the process of optimizing an endpoint’s operating system for maximum security. Removing unused software and enforcing “least-privilege” access helps harden your OS, but combining these measures with data protection strategies reduces your attack surface even further.

Combine OS protection and data safety workflows. This article provides a structured framework for efficiently applying OS hardening methods and information security practices in tandem.

Strengthen data protection for your entire fleet

OS hardening makes it harder for malware and harmful actors to get hold of sensitive company data. Assess your technical constraints before applying the following methods:

📌 Prerequisites:

• A standard hardening baseline per platform and role
• Backup policies with immutability and defined RPO/RTO per tier
• Owners for baselines, exceptions, restore drills, and monthly reporting
• A workspace for configs, diffs, drill logs, and the monthly packet

Step 1: Map baseline controls to recovery outcomes

On a spreadsheet, lay out preventative system controls that facilitate faster data recovery and auditability. Doing this from the start provides actionable steps and helps your team prioritize data safety during recovery efforts.

Here’s an example:

Step 2: Prioritize what shrinks the blast radius first

Enforce containment measures to limit the extent to which a possible attacker can access your system once defenses are breached.

📌 Use Cases: Remove insecure channels to harden systems in the event of a security breach.

📌 Prerequisites: Windows 11 Education, Enterprise, or Pro, Administrator privileges.

Enforce Least Privilege

1. Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter.
2. Navigate to:

Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Policies > User Rights Assignment

3. Configure the following policies:
   1. Deny access to this computer from the network
      1. Click Add User or Group…
      2. Add Guests (and any other groups/accounts that should never access the device over the network in your environment).

💡Note: This setting supersedes Access this computer from the network for accounts subject to both

1. 2. Deny log on locally
      1. Click Add User or Group…
      2. Add specific users/groups you want to block from console sign-in (commonly Guest/Guests, and other explicitly named non-interactive or restricted groups as required by your policy).

💡Important: This policy supersedes Allow log on locally if an account is in both.

1. 3. Allow log on locally
      1. Ensure only the approved roles/groups are granted interactive local sign-in (e.g., Administrators and a defined Helpdesk/Support group if appropriate for that device class).
      2. Validate that required operational accounts are included (to avoid accidental lockout).

4. Apply and validate the changes on a non-critical account before logging back on.

Secure communication channels

1. Press Win + R, type PowerShell, and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter.
2. Run the following to disable SMBv1:

Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName SMB1Protocol

3. Exit PowerShell.
4. On the device receiving the connection, open Settings and navigate to System > Remote Desktop.
5. Enable Remote Desktop if it is not already enabled.
6. Select Require devices to use Network Level Authentication (NLA).
7. Restart the system to apply changes.

Segment networks

1. Go to Control Panel > System and Security > Windows Defender Firewall.
2. Click Advanced Settings.
3. Create Inbound/Outbound Rules:
   1. Block traffic between segments (e.g., workstations ↔ servers).
   2. Allow only necessary ports (e.g., 443, 3389 with NLA).
4. Use Group Policy (gpedit.msc) to deploy rules across multiple machines.

Enforce role-based access control (RBAC)

1. Define roles within your enterprise (e.g., Admin, Helpdesk, Auditor).
2. Assign permissions based on role via Active Directory (AD).
   1. Audit memberships regularly for maximum security.
3. Remove local admin rights from standard users.
4. Manage admin credentials securely with built-in tools like LAPS (Local Admin Password Solution).

Step 3: Pair each control with a verification step

Validate that your controls function properly for improved auditability. Do this through:

• CIS-style checks: Following cybersecurity consensus helps keep your OS hardening solutions relevant and effective.
• Privilege reviews: Export roles from AD to verify RBAC.
• Service audits: Run PowerShell scripts to confirm your controls are actively running.
  • For example: Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.Status -eq “Running”}
• Log settings: Check specific event logs in Event Viewer.

Afterward, store evidence (e.g., screenshots, timestamps, command outputs) in a shared folder or a SIEM.

Step 4: Align backup policy to the baseline

Backups should follow your infrastructure’s security guidelines. This added level of encryption makes sure that your data copy is as protected as the rest of your enterprise.

Enforce immutability and retention policies, use asset tags to track OS hardening, and ensure that you flag any insecure systems before including them in your backup plan. Disaster recovery tools like NinjaOne use military-grade encryption at rest and in transit for fast and safe backups.

Step 5: Drill restores on hardened hosts

After OS hardening, run drills to test data restore workflows. This helps ensure that security controls remain consistent throughout the restore process and introduces important metrics for Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs).

1. Select a hardened host.
2. Restore from backup using your data recovery tool (e.g., NinjaOne, Veeam).
3. Track request metrics such as:
   1. Time to restore start: How long it takes from initiating the restore request until data recovery begins.
   2. Total restore duration: The full time required to complete data restoration and return the system to an operational state.
   3. Restore throughput: Data restored per unit of time (optional, environment-dependent).
   4. Post-restore controls: Are your security configurations still running efficiently?

Step 6: Operate exceptions with expiry

In cases where hardening measures or immutability aren’t feasible, temporary exceptions need to be made on a host. When this happens, it’s imperative to leave an entry that contains the following:

• Owner
• Justification
• Compensating controls
• Expiry date

Review these weekly and close expired exceptions to reduce your attack surface.

Step 7: Detect and fix baseline drift

OS hardening demands consistency, but systems can slowly deviate from a preconfigured state over time, threatening data protection. This type of “drift” occurs after a system goes through numerous adjustments and troubleshooting efforts, so you need to have a regular cadence for baseline checks.

Schedule drift scans and compare each result with the approved baseline. Then open tickets for deviations, attach evidence (e.g., screenshots, event logs), and include the most notable drift cases in your monthly review.

Step 8: Keep a small set of shared KPIs

Key Performance Indicators (or KPIs) help measure success and communicate value to your stakeholders. That said, you’ll want to keep your list of trackers short and sweet to keep your monitoring program efficient.

To effectively monitor OS hardening, include the following KPIs:

• Baseline coverage: The percentage of systems that remained compliant
• Patch compliance: Ratio of fully-updated systems across your clients’ infrastructure
• Immutable backup coverage: How many of your endpoints have unchangeable, offline copies of their data (AKA immutable backups)
• Last successful restore time: How recent the previous full restore occurred
• Exception aging: Tracker for systems with exploitable security exceptions, and how soon they’ll expire.

Step 9: Package monthly evidence for QBRs

QBRs provide a snapshot of your overall cybersecurity, but clients can lose track of important progress in the months between. To solve this, send out easily-digestible packets every month with the most important metrics to keep stakeholders on the same page—literally.

While this is key for tracking operational resilience and maintaining client confidence, fitting important insights in a single page every month can take a lot of time, highlighting the need for centralized dashboards. NinjaOne fills the gap with automated visualizations and real-time alerts.

Include these in your next monthly report:

• Baseline coverage chart
• Top drift items closed
• Immutability status
• Latest drill timings
• Open exceptions with expiry

Step 10: Improve with a quarterly retro

For good measure, review KPIs, closed tickets, major problems encountered during data restores, and other drill outcomes at the end of the quarter. Look for the controls that underperformed, fine-tune your workflows internally to show clear ROI, and share your findings to bolster your IT team’s disaster preparedness.

OS hardening: Best practices for MSPs and IT teams

Here’s a summarized table of the best practices for OS hardening.

Automation touchpoint example

Creating a unified management program for OS hardening and recovery can involve significant tracking and manpower. Automating repetitive tasks helps align teams with data protection goals while lowering time costs and minimizing human error.

Schedule scripts using Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) tools like NinjaOne to monitor baseline compliance indicators using configured alerts and scripts, and gain real-time insights and data charts to keep security metrics visible during every review cycle.

NinjaOne enhances monitoring and reporting for important security metrics

Operationalizing both OS hardening and data protection fuses cybersecurity checklists, streamlining security. As such, automation is key for fast remediation. And NinjaOne delivers enhanced monitoring and a platform that can adapt to specific security programs and goals.

NinjaOne provides:

• Real-time visibility
• Customizable alerts
• Automated remediation
• Customizable templates
• Automated report scheduling
• Historical trend analysis

Streamline OS hardening across your clients

While these are vital processes, OS hardening and data protection guidelines can be consolidated for efficiency. Through baseline mapping, mitigation, verification steps, and drills, IT teams can knock two birds with one stone, improving quarterly review cycles while building trust in high-profile industries.

Related topics:

• Endpoint Security Explained
• Data Protection Methods for IT & MSP Teams
• What Is Immutable Backup?
• How MSPs Can Build and Enforce OS-Specific Endpoint Hardening Checklists
• Complete Guide to Systems Hardening [Checklist]