Boosting Windows Security & Discovery with Non-Admin and gMSAs

As organizations continue to prioritize cybersecurity, minimizing security risks while maintaining operational efficiency remains a critical challenge. Two approaches that significantly contribute to secure IT infrastructure management are the use of non-administrative accounts for Windows discovery and the adoption of Group Managed Service Accounts (gMSAs) to streamline authentication and access control. By integrating these methods, IT administrators can improve security posture while ensuring seamless network discovery and management. So, how does Boosting Windows Security & Discovery with Non-Admin and gMSAs work?

Using Non-Administrative Accounts for Windows Discovery

Traditionally, IT administrators relied on highly privileged accounts to discover and manage Windows devices in an enterprise environment. However, this approach poses a significant security risk—compromised administrative credentials can lead to unauthorized access, data breaches, and system disruptions.

By leveraging non-administrative accounts for Windows discovery, organizations can reduce the attack surface and limit the potential for privilege escalation. Key benefits include:

• Reduced Security Risks: Since non-administrative accounts have minimal permissions, they pose less risk if compromised.
• Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP) Enforcement: Ensuring that accounts only have the necessary permissions required for discovery prevents excessive access rights.
• Improved Compliance: Using least-privilege accounts aligns with security best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Minimal Impact on System Performance: Unlike administrative scans that may trigger security alerts, non-admin accounts can operate without excessive resource consumption.

Boosting Security with Group Managed Service Accounts (gMSAs)

A key security enhancement is the use of Group Managed Service Accounts (gMSAs) to handle authentication securely across multiple servers and services. gMSAs provide an automated mechanism for managing service account passwords, reducing administrative overhead while strengthening security.

Advantages of gMSAs:

• Automated Password Management: Unlike traditional service accounts, gMSAs automatically update their passwords, eliminating the need for manual intervention.
• Improved Security and Compliance: Since gMSAs eliminate static passwords, they reduce the risk of credential compromise.
• Simplified Administration: IT teams no longer need to rotate passwords manually or worry about service disruptions due to expired credentials.
• Strong Kerberos Authentication Support: gMSAs integrate seamlessly with Active Directory, providing robust authentication mechanisms.

To implement gMSAs effectively follow the guidelines of this blog article Boost Security Using Group Managed Service Accounts. Now that you understand what gMSAs are and how to set them up, we will proceed with using them to configure non-administrative account access for Windows computer discovery.

Implementing Windows Computer Discovery using Non-Administrative Accounts

To allow discovery of Windows computers without administrative privileges, please follow the method outlined in these blog posts: How to discover Windows Computers with non-admin Accounts! and Full Windows Details Without Admin Accounts.

The Windows Computer Point of View

Let’s take a closer look at the computer “WIN-E91R8M04NVC.JDISC-INTERNAL.LOCAL” where the JDisc Discovery Zero-Footprint Agent was deployed. The agent will show up in the Services list with the ‘Log On As’ field set to the gMSA account “JDISC-INTERNAL\MSA-DISCOVER$”.

When you view the Task Manager, the JDisc Discovery Zero-Footprint Agent process appears as running under the same user account: “JDISC-INTERNAL\MSA-DISCOVER$”. Additionally, the Command Line column in Task Manager reveals which users or user groups have been configured for privilege elevation. These correspond to the users and groups specified during the deployment of the JDisc Discovery Zero-Footprint Agent on the machine:

The Discovery Server Point of View

Next, we’ll switch to the discovery server where JDisc Discovery is running. On the discovery server, launch the JDisc Discovery client, open the All Devices report, and locate the computer “WIN-E91R8M04NVC.JDISC-INTERNAL.LOCAL” where the JDisc Discovery Zero-Footprint Agent was deployed. Now, configure the non-administrator account “JDISC-INTERNAL\KANNNIX” as the access credentials for the computer mentioned above.

Right-click on the selected item, navigate to Manage > Change Accounts, and enter the non-administrator account “JDISC-INTERNAL\KANNNIX.”:

You’re now ready to proceed and initiate the discovery scan. Once the scan is complete, open the Device Details and navigate to Analyse > Protocols report. Unlike when using privileged access credentials, the Remote Login protocol status is also marked as Success, indicating privilege elevation.

Integrating Non-Admin Discovery with gMSAs for Enhanced Security

By combining discovery using non-administrative accounts with gMSA-based authentication, organizations can achieve:

• A More Secure IT Environment: Reduced reliance on administrative credentials minimizes exposure to cyber threats.
• Seamless Network Discovery: Non-admin accounts can securely discover computer details.
• Enhanced Authentication and Service Management: gMSAs ensure that automated services function securely and efficiently.

Conclusion

In an era of increasing cyber threats, organizations must adopt proactive security measures. Implementing non-administrative accounts for Windows discovery and gMSAs for secure authentication helps mitigate risks, reduce manual overhead, and maintain compliance. By strategically integrating these practices, IT teams can achieve a balance between security and operational efficiency, ultimately safeguarding their network infrastructure against potential vulnerabilities.