Configure Windows Firewall in Workstation

Question

I need to configure Windows Firewall using Group Policy Managment.

How to configure Inbound and Outbound rules

Answer 1

Hi,

The firewall settings can be found under Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security. To design your firewall rules, you may refer to these Firewall rules recommendations.

• Maintain the default Windows Firewall settings whenever possible. The settings are designed to secure your device for use in most network scenarios. One key example is the default block behavior for inbound connections.
• Create your rules in all three profiles, but only enable the firewall rule group on the profiles that suit your scenarios. For example, if you are installing a sharing application that is only used on a private network, then it would be best to create firewall rules in all three profiles, but only enable the firewall rule group containing your rules on the private profile.
• Configure restrictions on your firewall rules depending on which profile the rules are applied to. For applications and services that are designed to only be accessed by devices within a home or small business network, it's best to modify the remote address restriction to specify Local Subnet only. The same application or service wouldn't have this restriction when used in an enterprise environment. This can be done by adding the remote address restriction to rules that are added to the private and public profiles, while leaving them unrestricted in the domain profile. This remote address restriction shouldn't apply to applications or services that require global Internet connectivity.
• A general security recommended practice when creating inbound rules is to be as specific as possible. However, when new rules must be made that use ports or IP addresses, consider using consecutive ranges or subnets instead of individual addresses or ports where possible. This approach avoids creation of multiple filters under the hood, reduces complexity, and helps to avoid performance degradation.
• When creating an inbound or outbound rule, you should specify details about the app itself, the port range used, and important notes like creation date. Rules must be well-documented for ease of review both by you and other admins.
• To maintain maximum security, admins should only deploy firewall exceptions for apps and services determined to serve legitimate purposes.

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/operating-system-security/network-security/windows-firewall/rules

Best Regards,

Ian Xue

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