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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TN-965 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-965: Windows Security Automation with PowerShell will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Date/Locations:

Date/Time	Event
01/06/2025 - 01/10/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-965 Windows Security Automation with Powershell TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
04/28/2025 - 05/02/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-965 Windows Security Automation with Powershell TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
07/07/2025 - 07/11/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-965 Windows Security Automation with Powershell TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
11/03/2025 - 11/07/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-965 Windows Security Automation with Powershell TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX

Duration: 5 days

Intended Audience
This course is intended for IT Professionals already experienced in general Windows Server and Windows Client administration or already experienced in administering and supporting Application servers and services including applications like Exchange, SharePoint, and SQL. It is broadly intended for students who want to use Windows PowerShell to automate administrative tasks from the command line, using any Microsoft or independent software vendor (ISV) product that supports Windows PowerShell manageability.

Course Objectives:

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

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

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:

Previous Windows Server and Windows Client management knowledge and hands on experience.
Experience installing and configuring Windows Server into existing enterprise environments, or as standalone installations.
Knowledge and experience of network adapter configuration, basic Active Directory user administration, and basic disk configuration.
Knowledge and hands on experience specifically with Windows Server 2012/Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8/Windows 8.1 would be of benefit but is not essential.

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TN-555: Certified Ethical Hacker v13 (CEH)

Course Overview:

This CEH course will immerse you into a “Hacker Mindset” in order to teach you how to think like a hacker and better defend against future attacks. Students are in the driver’s seat with a hands-on training environment employing a systematic ethical hacking process. All while teaching students how to scan, test, hack, and secure target systems. CEH shows how hackers think and act maliciously so you can learn to better position your organization’s security infrastructure and defend against future attacks.

This CEH course covers the Five Phases of Ethical Hacking, diving into Reconnaissance, Gaining Access, Enumeration, Maintaining Access, and covering your tracks.

This CEH course delivers in-demand ethical hacking skills while preparing you for the internationally-recognized Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification exam from EC-Council.

This course supports a certification that is DoD approved 8570 Baseline Certificate and meets DoD 8140/8570 training requirements.

What’s Included:

EC-Council official E-Courseware
EC-Council official iLabs code with access for 6 months
EC-Council official Certificate of Attendance
CEH Exam Voucher

Security Course Flow

Dates/Locations:

Date/Time	Event
02/24/2025 - 02/28/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-555: Certified Ethical Hacker v13 (CEH) TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
05/19/2025 - 05/23/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-555: Certified Ethical Hacker v13 (CEH) TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
08/11/2025 - 08/15/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-555: Certified Ethical Hacker v13 (CEH) TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX
11/17/2025 - 11/21/2025 08:00 -16:00	TN-555: Certified Ethical Hacker v13 (CEH) TechNow, Inc, San Antonio TX

Duration: 5 Days

Course Content:

Module 01. Introduction to Ethical Hacking
Module 02. Foot-printing and Reconnaissance
Module 03. Scanning Networks
Module 04. Enumeration
Module 05. Vulnerable Analysis
Module 06. System Hacking
Module 07. Malware Threats
Module 08. Sniffing
Module 09. Social Engineering
Module 10. Denial-of-Service
Module 11. Session Hijacking
Module 12. Evading IDS,Firewalls, and Honeypots
Module 13. Hacking Web Servers
Module 14. Hacking Web Applications
Module 15. SQL Injection
Module 16. Hacking Wireless Networks
Module 17. Hacking Mobile Platforms
Module 18. IoT and OT Hacking
Module 19. Cloud Computing
Module 20. Cryptography

Prerequisites:

Windows operating system and/or Linux operating system or other Unix-based OS
TCP/IP protocols and implementation
At least 2 years of IT security experience
TN-325:Security+

Target Audience:

Information Security Analyst/Administrator, Information Assurance (IA) Security Officer, Information Security Manager/Specialist, Auditors, Security Professional, Site Admins, Penetration Testers, Red Team,Risk/Threat/Vulnerability Analyst, Individuals concerned about the integrity of network infrastructure

About us:

TechNow has taught security courses for almost 30 years, before most certifications existed and has successfully moved students through certification programs associated with IAPP, SANS, EC-Council and ISC2. Our instructor maintains over a dozen security certifications and has been the director of a company with internationals sales in security training, consulting, and compliance.

Tech Now, Inc. is an accredited Training Center with Ec-Council.

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http://technow.www162-254-253-232.a2hosted.com/palo-alto-firewall-essentials-fasttrack-training-class-course-pa-215/

Course Overview:

PA-215: Palo Alto Networks Firewall Essentials FastTrack Training Class is a five-day course that teaches students to configure and manage the entire line of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls. Through hands-on training, students learn high end skills of how to integrate Palo Alto next-generation firewalls into their network infrastructure.This is not a virtualized theoretical course. This is hands-on, real world instruction, directly relevant to the DoD and Commercial implementations of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls.

Each student is issued a physical Palo Alto firewall and a Cisco layer 3 switch at their desk. Real hardware per student for real experience and real skill development. TechNow provides a very comprehensive client infrastructure that includes Windows, Linux, and multiple packet sniffer agents.

This course sets up the foundation for the two day course PA-222: Palo Alto Networks Panorama Essentials.

The instructor for this course has been a lead in Unix kernel development to implement firewall and intrusion detection technologies. Additionally, the instructor has taught several security appliance products and carries several SANS, Cisco, Unix, and Windows certifications.

Attendees to the PA-215: Palo Alto Firewall Essentials FastTrack Training Course will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Dates/Locations:

No Events

Duration 5 days

Course Objectives:

Students attending this foundational-level training course will gain an in-depth knowledge of how to configure and manage their Palo Alto Networks firewall, including hands-on experience in configuring the security, networking, threat prevention, logging, and reporting features of the Palo Alto Networks Operating System (PAN-OS).

Day 1 Module 0 – Introduction & Overview Module 1 – Administration & Management Configuration Management PAN-OS & Software Updates Service Route Configuration Log Forwarding GUI, CLI, and API Module 2 – Interface Configuration L2 & L3 Vwire Tap Interface Management in Security Zones VLANs QoS	Day 2 Module 3 – Layer 3 Configuration L3 Configuration and DHCP NAT DNS Proxy Policy Based Forwarding in Introduction to IPv6 Module 4 – App-ID App-ID Process Policy Administration Module 5 – Content-ID Antivirus Anti-spyware Vulnerability URL Filtering File Blocking and Wildfire Data Filtering DoS Protection Botnet
Day 3 Module 6 – VM Firewall Downlaod VM Template Configure ESXi Configure VM Module 7 – Decryption SSL Inbound and Outbound Module 8 – Custom Signatures Defining New Application Signatures Application Override Custom Threat ID	Day 4 Module 9 – User-ID User-ID Agent Terminal Server Agent XML API Captive Portal Module 10 – VPN and GlobalProtect Psec Tunnels GlobalProtect Agent Portal Gateway HIP
Day 5 Module 11 – High Availability Active/Passive Active/Active Module 12 – Panorama Device Groups & Objects Shared Policy Configuration Management Reporting

Prerequisites:

Security+, Network+, CCNA and networking experience is recommended.

This course is in no way associated with Palo Alto Networks, Inc.

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PA-215: Palo Alto Networks Firewall Essentials FastTrack

Course Overview: PA-215: Palo Alto Networks Firewall Essentials FastTrack Training Class is a five-day course that teaches students to configure and manage the entire line of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls. This course combines PA-213 and PA-212 and adds a half day introduction to Panorama and Troubleshooting. Through hands-on training, students learn high end skills of how to integrate Palo Alto next-generation firewalls into their network infrastructure. This is not a virtualized theoretical course. This is hands-on, real world instruction, directly relevant to the DoD and Commercial implementations of Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls.

Each student is issued a physical Palo Alto firewall and a Cisco layer 3 switch at their desk. Real hardware per student for real experience and real skill development. TechNow provides a very comprehensive client infrastructure that includes Windows, Linux, and multiple packet sniffer agents.

This course sets up the foundation for the two day course PA-232: Palo Alto Networks Panorama Manage Multiple Firewalls. The instructor for this course has been a lead in Unix kernel development to implement firewall and intrusion detection technologies. Additionally, the instructor has taught several security appliance products and carries several SANS, Cisco, Unix, and Windows certifications. Attendees to the PA-215: Palo Alto Firewall Essentials FastTrack Training Course will receive TechNow approved course materials and expert instruction.

Dates/Locations: No Events

Duration 5 days

Course Objectives: Students attending this foundational-level training course will gain an in-depth knowledge of how to configure and manage their Palo Alto Networks firewall, including hands-on experience in configuring the security, networking, threat prevention, logging, and reporting features of the Palo Alto Networks Operating System (PAN-OS). Additionally Panorama and Troubleshooting are addressed.

Day 1 Module 0 – Introduction & Overview Module 1 – Administration & Management Configuration Management PAN-OS & Software Updates Service Route Configuration Log Forwarding GUI, CLI, and API Module 2 – Interface Configuration L2 & L3 Vwire Tap Interface Management in Security Zones VLANs QoS	Day 2 Module 3 – Layer 3 Configuration L3 Configuration and DHCP NAT DNS Proxy Policy Based Forwarding in Introduction to IPv6 Module 4 – App-ID App-ID Process Policy Administration Module 5 – Content-ID Antivirus Anti-spyware Vulnerability URL Filtering File Blocking and Wildfire Data Filtering DoS Protection Botnet
Day 3 Module 6 – VM Firewall Downlaod VM Template Configure ESXi Configure VM Module 7 – Decryption SSL Inbound and Outbound Module 8 – Custom Signatures Defining New Application Signatures Application Override Custom Threat ID	Day 4 Module 9 – User-ID User-ID Agent Terminal Server Agent XML API Captive Portal Module 10 – VPN and GlobalProtect Psec Tunnels GlobalProtect Agent Portal Gateway HIP
Day 5 Module 11 – High Availability Active/Passive Active/Active Module 12 – Panorama Device Groups & Objects Shared Policy Configuration Management Reporting

Prerequisites:

Security+, Network+, CCNA and networking experience is recommended.

This course is in no way associated with Palo Alto Networks, Inc.

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Latest comments from students

User: rod3535@gmail.com

Instructor comments: Instructor was great, he explained everything and made sure we understood the process's/product. He also took time out of his own schedule to help set up a VM environment on our personal pc's.

Facilities comments: Facility was great, enjoyed feeding the deers!