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Hyper-V Security
Hyper-V Security

Hyper-V Security: Secure your Hyper-V hosts, their guests, and critical services from intruders and malware

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Profile Icon Eric Siron Profile Icon Andy Syrewicze
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Hyper-V Security

Chapter 2. Securing the Host

The Hyper-V host is easily the most critical component of your virtual environment. If it is compromised, all the systems in its scope of responsibility are placed at immediate risk. However, the Hyper-V host is, first and foremost, a computer system. Before diving into it as a computer that is running a hypervisor, it must be dealt with just like any other computer system. Of course, as it will run a hypervisor, particular considerations must be taken.

In this chapter, we'll cover the following topics:

  • Understanding Hyper-V's architecture
  • Choosing a management operating system
  • Disabling unnecessary components
  • Using the Windows Firewall
  • Relying on domain security
  • Leveraging Group Policy
  • Using security software
  • Configuring Windows Update
  • Employing remote management tools
  • Following general best practices

Understanding Hyper-V's architecture

Before you can address the security of your Hyper-V host, it's important to have a basic comprehension of Hyper-V architecture. Without this, it's difficult to understand how various security measures will affect the components of your deployment.

The most important thing to understand is that, for the most part, the hypervisor is independent of the management operating system. Hyper-V is a type 1 hypervisor, which means that it is not an application or an operating system component. The hypervisor has direct control over the hardware it is installed on. It manages a number of partitions, which contain the virtual machines. One of these partitions, known as parent partition, is where the management operating system runs. The parent partition is the only partition that is allowed to communicate directly with the hypervisor. In Hyper-V, the parent partition provides the hardware drivers used by the hypervisor. To some extent, the parent...

Choosing a management operating system

In Chapter 1, Introducing Hyper-V Security, you were briefly introduced to the various delivery methods for Hyper-V in the Acquiring Hyper-V section. The first decision you must make before going into production is which of these methods you'll choose. This is not a clear choice, as each approach has its own strengths and weaknesses.

Hyper-V Server

In terms of security, the primary strength of Hyper-V Server is that it has a much smaller attack surface than even the smallest Windows Server deployment. This also has a side effect of having the fewest operating system components that could potentially compete with virtual machines for resources. Even though it's highly stripped-down compared to its full-featured counterpart, it does contain all the necessary options for running a Hyper-V environment, such as RemoteFX, the Remote Desktop Virtualization Host, and the ability to participate in a failover cluster.

The limitations that make Hyper-V...

Disabling unnecessary components

A general rule in hardening any system is to turn off any system components that lack an identified, definite need. A good place to start narrowing this list to Hyper-V is with the list of roles that Microsoft doesn't support when Hyper-V is enabled. At this time, Microsoft has not published any official statement, but Hyper-V MVP Alessandro Cardoso has written an article on his blog that lists what roles are supported, viewable at http://cloudtidings.com/2013/04/20/sharing-roles-with-hyper-v-on-the-same-physical-host/. These items are:

  • File and Storage Services
  • Failover Clustering components
  • Multipath I/O
  • Remote Desktop Services

Although not specifically mentioned, management tools for all the preceding components as well as for Hyper-V are also allowed.

Tip

If other roles or features are desired, install them in a virtual machine.

The simplest approach is to not enable any features or roles after installing the management operating system, except Hyper-V...

Using the Windows Firewall

The Windows Firewall is a built-in component of both Hyper-V Server and Windows Firewall. While this tool is not as robust, secure, or powerful as high-end hardware firewalls, it is one of the better software firewalls available and is quite lightweight. It is possible to disable the functionality of the Windows Firewall, but completely disabling its service causes a number of problems. Since you're required to leave the service running, it's helpful to continue using it even when hardware firewalls are available as a low-cost part of a comprehensive defense-in-depth strategy.

Out of the box, the firewall automatically allows most remote management tools. For normal operations, it should require almost no maintenance. However, some steps can be taken to increase the protection it provides. For one thing, the default rules that enable inbound traffic are open to any source. This subject will be revisited in Chapter 5, Securing the Network, which is dedicated...

Relying on domain security

Unfortunately, an all too common myth around Hyper-V security is that it is better to keep the Hyper-V host in workgroup mode. In reality, if an Active Directory domain is available, it is almost universally better to place all computer systems that are part of the local network into the domain, including the Hyper-V host. The lone exception is for systems that are so high-risk that it's almost expected that they'll be compromised. For these systems, the use of a perimeter network (also known as a DMZ) is a suitable solution. However, it is possible to use Hyper-V inside the local network while allowing all or some virtual machines to access only the perimeter. These options will be seen in Chapter 5, Securing the Network.

For systems that are within the local network, there are quite a few problems with using workgroup security when Active Directory services are available:

  • Username and password combinations must be transmitted for remote connections;...

Understanding Hyper-V's architecture


Before you can address the security of your Hyper-V host, it's important to have a basic comprehension of Hyper-V architecture. Without this, it's difficult to understand how various security measures will affect the components of your deployment.

The most important thing to understand is that, for the most part, the hypervisor is independent of the management operating system. Hyper-V is a type 1 hypervisor, which means that it is not an application or an operating system component. The hypervisor has direct control over the hardware it is installed on. It manages a number of partitions, which contain the virtual machines. One of these partitions, known as parent partition, is where the management operating system runs. The parent partition is the only partition that is allowed to communicate directly with the hypervisor. In Hyper-V, the parent partition provides the hardware drivers used by the hypervisor. To some extent, the parent partition does...

Choosing a management operating system


In Chapter 1, Introducing Hyper-V Security, you were briefly introduced to the various delivery methods for Hyper-V in the Acquiring Hyper-V section. The first decision you must make before going into production is which of these methods you'll choose. This is not a clear choice, as each approach has its own strengths and weaknesses.

Hyper-V Server

In terms of security, the primary strength of Hyper-V Server is that it has a much smaller attack surface than even the smallest Windows Server deployment. This also has a side effect of having the fewest operating system components that could potentially compete with virtual machines for resources. Even though it's highly stripped-down compared to its full-featured counterpart, it does contain all the necessary options for running a Hyper-V environment, such as RemoteFX, the Remote Desktop Virtualization Host, and the ability to participate in a failover cluster.

The limitations that make Hyper-V Server more...

Disabling unnecessary components


A general rule in hardening any system is to turn off any system components that lack an identified, definite need. A good place to start narrowing this list to Hyper-V is with the list of roles that Microsoft doesn't support when Hyper-V is enabled. At this time, Microsoft has not published any official statement, but Hyper-V MVP Alessandro Cardoso has written an article on his blog that lists what roles are supported, viewable at http://cloudtidings.com/2013/04/20/sharing-roles-with-hyper-v-on-the-same-physical-host/. These items are:

  • File and Storage Services

  • Failover Clustering components

  • Multipath I/O

  • Remote Desktop Services

Although not specifically mentioned, management tools for all the preceding components as well as for Hyper-V are also allowed.

Tip

If other roles or features are desired, install them in a virtual machine.

The simplest approach is to not enable any features or roles after installing the management operating system, except Hyper-V and entries...

Using the Windows Firewall


The Windows Firewall is a built-in component of both Hyper-V Server and Windows Firewall. While this tool is not as robust, secure, or powerful as high-end hardware firewalls, it is one of the better software firewalls available and is quite lightweight. It is possible to disable the functionality of the Windows Firewall, but completely disabling its service causes a number of problems. Since you're required to leave the service running, it's helpful to continue using it even when hardware firewalls are available as a low-cost part of a comprehensive defense-in-depth strategy.

Out of the box, the firewall automatically allows most remote management tools. For normal operations, it should require almost no maintenance. However, some steps can be taken to increase the protection it provides. For one thing, the default rules that enable inbound traffic are open to any source. This subject will be revisited in Chapter 5, Securing the Network, which is dedicated to the...

Relying on domain security


Unfortunately, an all too common myth around Hyper-V security is that it is better to keep the Hyper-V host in workgroup mode. In reality, if an Active Directory domain is available, it is almost universally better to place all computer systems that are part of the local network into the domain, including the Hyper-V host. The lone exception is for systems that are so high-risk that it's almost expected that they'll be compromised. For these systems, the use of a perimeter network (also known as a DMZ) is a suitable solution. However, it is possible to use Hyper-V inside the local network while allowing all or some virtual machines to access only the perimeter. These options will be seen in Chapter 5, Securing the Network.

For systems that are within the local network, there are quite a few problems with using workgroup security when Active Directory services are available:

  • Username and password combinations must be transmitted for remote connections; while usually...

Leveraging Group Policy


Group Policy is a powerful tool that all Active Directory administrators should be familiar with. While it can be difficult to know which policies to set out of the thousands of available options, Microsoft has done a great deal of work for you with the Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM). You can acquire this tool from http://www.microsoft.com/scm. The requirements and instructions for installation, as well as the download file, are given in the links provided on that page. Among the requirements is an installation of SQL Server. An Express installation is included in the package if you haven't got one available.

At the time of this writing, the current version of SCM is 3.0. Its package includes policies for Server and Hyper-V versions only through 2012. However, these policies will work just as well for the 2012 R2 versions. You can click on the File menu and then on Check for Updates to scan the Microsoft repository for any new baselines that may be available...

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Description

Hyper-V Security is intended for administrators with a solid working knowledge of Hyper-V Server, Windows Server, and Active Directory. An administrator with a functional environment will be able to use the knowledge and examples present in this book to enhance security.
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Length: 184 pages
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Table of Contents

9 Chapters
1. Introducing Hyper-V Security Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
2. Securing the Host Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
3. Securing Virtual Machines from the Hypervisor Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
4. Securing Virtual Machines Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
5. Securing the Network Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
6. Securing Hyper-V Storage Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
7. Hyper-V Security and System Center VMM Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
8. Secure Hybrid Cloud Management through App Controller Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.5
(2 Ratings)
5 star 50%
4 star 50%
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1 star 0%
Matteo Feb 20, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This books provides you a list of security practices to set up a basic security profile for your hyper-v servers and a few hints to get SCVMM and its addons to cooperate and enhance your infrastructure security. All of it written in a simple and easy to read language with plenty of powershell examples. SCVMM should be explained a bit more in depth but its sort of tangential to bare hyper-v procedures(even if most mid size deployment would not be able to exist without it). If you plan to deploy hyper-v to provide any public or DMZ based sec profile you should give it a shot.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Jack Mar 08, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon 4
This book provides you with steps to secure your Hyper-V installation. From securing the Hyper-V host, Virtual Machines running on the Hyper-V host to securing the network and storage. All facets of the Hyper-V environment are explained and touched. This book also touches securing your SCVMM environment.If your looking for troubleshooting tips while configuring the security this book will leave you with unanswered questions.It is a good read and explains all the basics you need to do to secure your Hyper-V environment.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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