TN-963: Windows Security Automation with PowerShell

Course Overview:

PowerShell is made for Security Operations (SecOps) automation on Windows. SecOps requires automation in order to scale out security changes and monitoring beyond a handful of hosts. For example, when a vulnerability must be remediated but there is no patch for it yet, automation is needed to quickly and consistently enact the changes necessary. PowerShell “remoting” is encrypted remote command execution of PowerShell scripts in a way that can scale to thousands of endpoints and servers.

Imagine being able to hunt for indicators of compromise across thousands of machines with just a few lines of PowerShell code. Or imagine having the local Administrator account password reset every night on thousands of endpoints in a secure way, and being able to retrieve that password securely too.

We will show you to do these tasks and more. Transcription logging for forensics, strong encryption code signing, application whitelisting of scripts, IPSec port control, and Just Enough Admin (JEA).

As more and more of our systems are moved up to the cloud, PowerShell will become even more important. Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Office 365, Hyper-V and VMware already support PowerShell administration for many tasks.

Attendees to TN-963: Windows Security Automation with PowerShell will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 3 days

Course Objectives:

Day One
PowerShell Overview and Tips

    • Getting started running commands
    • Using and updating the built-in help
    • Execution policies
    • Fun tricks with the ISE graphical editor
    • Piping .NET and COM objects, not text
    • Using properties and methods of objects
    • Helping Linux admins feel more at home
    • Aliases, cmdlets, functions, modules, etc.
    • Customizing your profile script

What Can We Do With PowerShell

    • PowerShell remote command execution
    • Fan-out remoting and security
    • File copy via PowerShell remoting
    • Capturing the output of commands
    • Parsing text files and logs with regex patterns
    • Searching remote event logs faster with XPath
    • Mounting the registry as a drive
    • Exporting data to CSV, HTML and JSON files
    • Parsing and mining nmap port scanner XML output
    • Running scripts as scheduled jobs
    • Pushing out scripts through Group Policy
    • Importing modules and dot-sourcing functions
    • http://www.PowerShellGallery.com

Write your own scripts

    • Writing your own functions
    • Passing arguments into your scripts
    • Function parameters and returning output
    • Flow control: if-then, do-while, foreach, switch
    • The .NET Framework class library: a playground
    • How to pipe data in/out of your scripts

Day Two
Continuous Secure Configuration Enforcement

    • How to use Group Policy and PowerShell together
    • Automate with INF security templates
    • How to customize INF templates
    • Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM)
    • SECEDIT.EXE scripting
    • Building an in-house security repository for SecOps/DevOps
    • NSA’s Secure Host Baseline GPOs

Group Policy Precision Targeting

    • Managing Group Policy Objects (GPOs) with PowerShell
    • LSDOU, Block Inheritance, Enforced GPOs
    • Group Policy permissions for targeting changes
    • ADMX templates for mass registry editing
    • Deploying PowerShell startup and logon scripts
    • WMI item-level targeting of GPO preferences
    • GPO scheduled tasks to run PowerShell scripts
    • Remote command execution via GPO (not remoting)
    • Empowering the Hunt Team to fight back!

Server Hardening for SecOps/DevOps

    • Server Manager scripting with PowerShell
    • Adding and removing roles and feature
    • Remotely inventory roles, features, and apps
    • Why Server Nano or Server Core
    • Running PowerShell automatically after service failure
    • Service account identities, passwords, and risks
    • Tools to reset service account passwords securely

Day Three
PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC)

    • DSC is Configuration Management built in for free
    • Using DSC for continuous reinforcement of settings
    • Writing your own DSC configuration scripts
    • Free DSC resource modules: www.PowerShellGallery.com
    • How to push DSC configurations to many targets
    • DSC background job processing in push mode
    • Examples: sync files, install roles, manage groups
    • Auditing a remote target against a DSC MOF template
    • “ApplyAndAutoCorrect” mode for continuous enforcement

PowerShell Just Enough Admin (JEA)

    • JEA is Windows sudo, like on Linux
    • JEA is Windows setuid root, like on Linux
    • Restricting commands and arguments
    • Verbose transcription logging
    • How to set up and configure JEA
    • Privilege Access Workstations (PAWs)

PowerShell and WMI

    • Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) service
    • What is WMI and why do hackers abuse it so much?
    • Using PowerShell to query WMI CIM classes
    • WMI authentication and traffic encryption
    • Inventory operating system versions and installed software
    • WMI remote command execution versus PowerShell remoting
    • PowerShell security best practices
    • PowerShell transcription logging to catch hackers

Prerequisites:

  • GSEC or equivalent experience
  • UNIX, Windows, Networking, and Security Experience
  • This is a hands-on skill course requiring comfort with command line interaction and network communications

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VM-335: VMware Cloud Essentials and vCloud – Architecting the VMware Cloud FastTrack

 

Course Overview:

This FastTrack course combines combines two VMware courses (VMware Cloud Essentials and vCloud Architecting the VMware Cloud) into a single week course that adds extra exercises and labs to exemplify the techniques presented.  The course begins with how to adopt, operate, and govern the cloud. The course enables participants to successfully complete the associated CompTIA Cloud Essentials™ Exam to become a Cloud Essentials™ Professional(CEP). This course also covers the subject matter specified by the VCP-Cloud certification.

This course is designed to guide students through the decision points and policy choices available for designing and implementing a VMware vCloud environment. Detailed labs and exercises for VMware vSphere™, VMware vCloud Director, VMware vCenter™ Chargeback, and the VMware® vShield Edge capability that is included with vCloud Director. A comprehensive VMware cloud design is demonstrated and discussed.

Attendees to VM-335:  VMware Cloud Essentials and vCloud – Architecting the VMware Cloud FastTrack will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

No Events

Course Duration: 5 days

Course Objectives:

  • Understand the common terms and definitions of cloud computing.
  • Understand the business benefits and business considerations of cloud computing.
  • Understand cloud computing from a technical perspective and recognize the various techniques, methods, challenges, and types of clouds.
  • Understand the impact and changes of cloud computing on IT service management.
  • Explain typical steps that lead to the successful adoption of cloud computing and understand the implications for organizations.
  • Recognize the compliance, risk, and regulatory consequences of cloud computing and its financial and strategic impact on an organization.
  • Evaluate and design a multitenant environment to address both private cloud and public cloud customer needs.
  • Configure vCloud providers that can accommodate heterogeneous server, storage, and network resources
  • Design a network infrastructure optimized for vCloud.
  • Integrate vCloud Director security with existing LDAP systems and design appropriate security hierarchies with security rolesnderstand the common terms and definitions of cloud computing.
  • Understand the business benefits and business considerations of cloud computing.
  • Understand cloud computing from a technical perspective and recognize the various techniques, methods, challenges, and types of clouds.
  • Understand the impact and changes of cloud computing on IT service management.
  • Explain typical steps that lead to the successful adoption of cloud computing and understand the implications for organizations.
  • Recognize the compliance, risk, and regulatory consequences of cloud computing and its financial and strategic impact on an organization.
  • Evaluate and design a multitenant environment to address both private cloud and public cloud customer needs.
  • Configure vCloud providers that can accommodate heterogeneous server, storage, and network resources.
  • Design a network infrastructure optimized for vCloud.
  • Integrate vCloud Director security with existing LDAP systems and design appropriate security hierarchies with security roles.
  • Design a vCenter Chargeback implementation.

Course Prerequisites:

  • VM-315  or equivalent experience.
  • Managing or administering at least one of UNIX, Windows, databases, networking, or security.

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TN-223: Advanced Shell Programming

 

Course Overview:

The course teaches students to use the sort, grep, sed, & awk utilities within Unix. Systems administrators, Unix users, & programmers benefit from the course showing them how to use the command line applications of sort, grep, sed, & awk commands as well as using sed & awk scripts that develop the users skills with the full power of these utilities.

Attendees to TN-223: Advanced Shell Programming will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Dates/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 3 Days

Course Objectives:

  • Sorting files by line or field
  • Regular Expressions (meta character) with grep commands to locate specific lines in files
  • Performing non-interactive editing tasks with the sed command
  • Writing simple sed scripts to perform complex editing tasks
  • Using awk variables & arrays to sort data
  • Employing awk programs to manipulate numeric & textual data
  • Performing formatted printing in awk
  • Writing simple awk programs to write reports from data files
  • Using built-in awk functions & defining new functions
  • Write awk programs that make decisions based on numeric or string comparisons (branches & loops)
  • Grep, egrep extended metacharacters, combinations-lab advanced combinations- lab Sed
  • Basic commands- Lab, Advanced commands- Lab, Advanced scripting -Lab
  • Miscellaneous commands Tr, sort, cut, paste, pr -Lab

Prerequisites:

  • TN-125: Introduction to UNIX & Linux
  • TN 215: Shell Programming.
  • Students should have a basic knowledge of UNIX commands including rm, cp, man, cat, & mkdir. Navigating directory structure using commands such as ls, cp, & pwd. Creating and editing files with the vi editor or text editor. Use of basic programming constructs, & commands such as variables & loops & how to write a simple program in a programming language.

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CT-215: Cloud+

 

Course Overview:

This course covers the knowledge and skills required to understand standard Cloud terminologies/methodologies, to implement, maintain, and deliver cloud technologies and infrastructures (e.g. server, network, storage, and virtualization technologies), and to understand aspects of IT security and use of industry best practices related to cloud implementations and the application of virtualization.

TechNow has worked worldwide enterprise infrastructures for over 20 years and has developed demos and labs to exemplify the techniques required to demonstrate cloud technologies and to effectively manage security in the cloud environment.

TechNow is a CompTIA partner and uses official CompTIA Cloud+ curriculum.

Attendees to CT-215: Cloud+ will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

Date/Time Event
01/06/2025 - 01/10/2025
08:00 -16:00 		CT-215: Cloud+
TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
04/21/2025 - 04/25/2025
08:00 -16:00 		CT-215: Cloud+
TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
07/28/2025 - 08/01/2025
08:00 -16:00 		CT-215: Cloud+
TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
11/03/2025 - 11/07/2025
08:00 -16:00 		CT-215: Cloud+
TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX

Course Duration: 5 days

Course Objectives:

  • Prepare to deploy cloud solutions
  • Deploy a pilot project
  • Test a pilot project deployment
  • Design a secure network for cloud deployment
  • Determine CPU and memory sizing for cloud deployments
  • Plan Identity and Access Management for cloud deployments
  • Analyze workload characteristics to ensure successful migration to the cloud
  • Secure systems to meet access requirements
  • Maintain cloud systems
  • Implement backup, restore, and business continuity measures
  • Analyze cloud systems for required performance
  • Analyze cloud systems for anomalies and growth forecasting
  • Troubleshoot deployment, capacity, automation, and orchestration issues
  • Troubleshoot connectivity issues
  • Troubleshoot security issues

Course Prerequisites:

  • Security+, Network+, CASP or equivalent experience
  • Managing or administering at least one of UNIX, Windows, Databases, networking, or security

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TN-812: Information Systems Security Engineering Professional (ISSEP)

Course Overview:

This concentration was developed in conjunction with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) providing an invaluable tool for any systems security engineering professional. CISSP®-ISSEP is the guide for incorporating security into projects, applications, business processes, and all information systems. Security professionals are hungry for workable methodologies and best practices that can be used to integrate security into all facets of business operations. The SSE model taught in the IATF portion of the course is a guiding light in the field of information security and the incorporation of security into all information systems.

Attendees to TN-812: Information Systems Secuirty Engineering Professional (ISSEP) will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Dates/Locations:

No Events

Duration: 5 Days

Course Objectives:

  • Systems Security Engineering
  • Certification and Accreditation
  • Technical Management
  • U.S. Government Information Assurance Governance

Prerequisites:

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User: fsarisen

Instructor comments: Thank you Tim for all the great information! I am confident that I'll do well on the ICND exam.

User: storoy30

Instructor comments: The instructor, Tim Burkard, was very knowledgeable on the course material and skilled at explain more complex ideas.

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