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What Linux can learn from Windows

Unknown
edited March 2004 in Science & Tech
In three months, Microsoft users will finally reap benefits from the company's new focus on security. The release of the second major update to Windows XP answers many long-standing design criticisms of its operating system.

[blockquote]In the aftermath of MSBlast, Microsoft has refocused on security for its next update to the Windows XP operating system, Windows XP Service Pack 2. The changes feature an improved firewall, the ability to turn off pop-up ads and ActiveX controls in Internet Explorer and a control panel that will display the current state of a PC's security. [/blockquote]
[link=http://news.com.com/2010-7355-5172209.html]The full report[/link]

Comments

  • LIQuidLIQuid Raleigh, NC
    edited March 2004
    what does this have to do with linux
  • SpinnerSpinner Birmingham, UK
    edited March 2004
    LIQuid wrote:
    what does this have to do with linux
    Linux does have a wide variety of tools to secure a computer running the open-source operating system, but administering a system using the tools is relatively difficult. One tool, Nmap, checks for open data channels, known as ports, that could be vulnerable to an attacker; the tool, however, does not analyze which ports might be threats.
    ...
    As Linux slogs toward becoming a viable desktop alternative to Windows, proponents know that the battle may hinge on the ability of developers to integrate such security into major distributions. What's more, they must find ways to represent the results in an accessible way for average users. Speaking about the Linux user interface in general, Linux luminary Eric Raymond said as much in a blog that posted recently.
  • res0r9lmres0r9lm Florida
    edited March 2004
    I would have to say that article is quite lacking. Why is it necessary to have a an icon on your desktop for backing up hdd and now what I don't understand could someone that whated one on their desktop make one quite easily. I don't know where this guy got his information about linux but there are several gui's for linux some distros use their own like fedora or suse but their is also shorewall, firestarter, kmyfirewall, and knetfilter. I don't have shorewall on my system but have used it before and both shorewall and firestart are very easy to use.
  • JengoJengo Pasco, WA | USA
    edited March 2004
    i have to agree with resor, even tho i am a linux n00b i have heard of these tools.

    and if linux "isnt secure" then why are there more linux servers on the net then windows?

    :-/
  • res0r9lmres0r9lm Florida
    edited March 2004
    I just put my firewall together a few days ago and I am running some diskless nodes from server and use apache just on lan. Ran "NMAP" as suggested and it look like I did a good job with the FW.
    ....   
..Starting nmap 3.25 ( [url]www.insecure.org/nmap/[/url] ) at 2004-03-12 03:55 PST..   
..Warning:  OS detection will be MUCH less reliable because we did not find at least 1 open and 1 closed TCP port..   
..Interesting ports on  63.135.238.114: ..   
..(The 1167 ports scanned but not shown below are in state: filtered)..   
..Port       State       Service ..   
..67/tcp     closed      dhcpserver..   
..68/tcp     closed      dhcpclient..   
..80/tcp     closed      http..  Is this your external web server ?? .. if not...turn it off  
..Too many fingerprints match this host for me to give an accurate OS guess..   
....   
..Nmap run completed -- 1 IP address (1 host up) scanned in 64.536 seconds..   

 #
 # end of test data
    http://www.linux-sec.net/Audit/nmap.test.gwif.html
  • leishi85leishi85 Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    edited March 2004
    Jengo wrote:
    i have to agree with resor, even tho i am a linux n00b i have heard of these tools.

    and if linux "isnt secure" then why are there more linux servers on the net then windows?

    :-/

    what spinner was trying to say is that linux is secure, but it just wasn't so easy for a normal desktop user to administer(remember an average desktop user have trouble using MS words). He wasn't saying linux isn't secure.

    reread his post couple times if u didn't get what he was tyring to get across.
  • JengoJengo Pasco, WA | USA
    edited March 2004
    ok i got it now.

    sorry i jumped to conclusions
  • LIQuidLIQuid Raleigh, NC
    edited March 2004
    A normal desktop user will never be able to stop people from getting into their boxes. Placing a few "pick and choose" security options in a gui will not prevent anything. I dont see how a "normal" desktop user could administer anything themselves. So this discussion seems to be find of pointless
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