Hardening

In computer terminology, hardening consists of various strategies used to protect a system. It typically includes removing unnecessary login details or disabling unnecessary services. Hardening on a Unix or Linux operating system may consist applying a patch such as PaX or Exec Shield to a kernel, closing open network ports, establishing intrusion-detection and prevention systems and implementing firewall software or hardware. There are also tools available to harden an operating system. Utilities such as Apache/PHP Hardener and Bastille Linux have the ability to disable unneeded functions in a system’s configuration files among several other tasks. Another example of hardening would be a computer equipped with an all-in-one internet security suite. Programs provided by industry leading companies such as Symantec, McAfee and F-Secure enhance the protection of a system by providing a variety of tools including a firewall and virus scanner. These programs have the ability to ward off attacks as well as detect and delete any system threats.