Active Directory & Windows Server NIST Compliance Tool

NIST 800-53 & CSF Alignment

Automate AD & Windows Server compliance checks. Generate reports aligned with NIST 800-53 & NIST Cybersecurity Framework using InfraSOS.

Secure, Audit, & Harden your AD

Why NIST Matters for Windows Server & Active Directory

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides one of the most respected cybersecurity frameworks in the world. Its publications – including NIST SP 800-53 and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) – define comprehensive security controls used by federal agencies, contractors, and enterprises across all industries.

Windows Server and Active Directory play a central role in authentication, access control, and network security for nearly every organization. Because of this, they’re also prime targets for attackers. Misconfigurations in AD, weak password or lockout settings, and unmonitored event logs are among the most common causes of privilege escalation and lateral movement.

Aligning your Active Directory and Windows Server environments with NIST 800-53 and NIST CSF provides:

A measurable and repeatable approach to strengthening cybersecurity posture.
Assurance that AD and DC configurations meet recognized security and privacy standards.
Foundational compliance alignment with regulatory frameworks such as FISMA, FedRAMP, HIPAA, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS.
A consistent baseline to detect drift, enforce least-privilege, and protect identity infrastructure.

InfraSOS automates NIST control alignment checks for your Active Directory environment, helping you report on how your configuration maps to the NIST control families without manual review.

Key NIST Control Families Supported by InfraSOS

InfraSOS maps its Active Directory and Windows Server checks directly to key NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 control families and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF).

This gives you a clear, structured view of how your configuration aligns with NIST requirements – helping you demonstrate compliance, strengthen defenses, and prepare for audits.

🧩 Access Control (AC)

InfraSOS assesses how permissions and user rights are enforced across your domain:

Reviews who can log on locally, via RDP, or across the network.
Verifies that Guest and unauthorized accounts are denied access to sensitive resources.
Checks account restrictions, delegation, and impersonation rights on domain controllers.
Ensures least-privilege access is applied across administrative accounts.

(Aligned with NIST AC-2, AC-3, AC-6, AC-17, AC-19)

🔐 Identification & Authentication (IA)

Validate the strength and enforcement of authentication mechanisms within AD:

Confirms password complexity, length, history, and expiration policies.
Validates account lockout thresholds and session timeouts.
Ensures Kerberos encryption types are restricted to AES and NTLMv2 is enforced.
Checks that cached credentials and blank-password logons are disabled.

(Aligned with NIST IA-2, IA-5, IA-8)

🧾 Audit & Accountability (AU)

Verify logging and audit configurations critical for incident detection and accountability:

Ensures advanced audit policies are enabled for logon events, privilege use, and directory service access.
Confirms event logs are sized and retained according to best practices.
Detects when Security, System, Application, or PowerShell logs approach capacity.
Provides clear evidence of auditing coverage for compliance documentation.

(Aligned with NIST AU-2, AU-6, AU-8, AU-12)

⚙️ Configuration Management (CM)

Monitor the configuration baseline of domain controllers and member servers:

Detects unauthorized services or features (e.g., Print Spooler, RDS, IIS).
Validates hardened configurations for system components, registry keys, and security options.
Ensures Secure Boot and LSASS protection are active.
Enables baseline comparison to identify configuration drift over time.

(Aligned with NIST CM-2, CM-3, CM-6, CM-7)

🧱 System & Communications Protection (SC)

Ensure your AD and Windows Server communications are secure and isolated:

Verifies firewall profiles are enabled for all zones.
Confirms LDAP signing, SMB signing, and secure channel encryption are enforced.
Checks for disabled legacy protocols (e.g., SMBv1, unsigned Netlogon).
Validates NTLM auditing and secure channel requirements for domain members.

(Aligned with NIST SC-7, SC-8, SC-12, SC-13, SC-23)

⚡ Result: InfraSOS gives you visibility into which NIST control families your environment meets, where gaps exist, and how your configuration aligns with the broader NIST CSF categories – Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover.

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Automated NIST Compliance Reports for Active Directory

Staying aligned with NIST 800-53 or the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) requires ongoing visibility into how your environment is configured. Manual policy reviews, registry inspections, and GPO comparisons are slow, inconsistent, and prone to error.

InfraSOS automates the entire process, continuously assessing your Active Directory configuration against the NIST control families most relevant to identity and system security.

✅ Comprehensive Coverage

InfraSOS evaluates controls spanning Access Control, Identification & Authentication, Audit Logging, Configuration Management, and System Protection, the same categories used in NIST’s 800-53 and CSF frameworks.

✅ Pass/Fail Compliance Results

Each check is evaluated and reported with a clear pass/fail outcome, giving security teams immediate visibility into which settings meet NIST standards and which require review.

✅ Evidence for Auditors

All collected data (password policies, firewall states, audit configurations, etc.) is captured and presented in exportable reports that can be shared during security assessments or compliance reviews.

✅ Exportable, Auditor-Ready Reports

Generate reports in PDF, CSV, or Excel formats. Each control is mapped to its NIST family reference (AC, IA, AU, CM, SC) for simple traceability during audits.

✅ Scalable for Enterprises and MSPs

Run NIST compliance assessments across single domains or hundreds of domains & forests InfraSOS supports multi-tenant visibility, making it ideal for MSPs and large enterprises with distributed environments.

⚡ InfraSOS transforms complex NIST control validation into a clear, automated compliance report for your Active Directory and Windows Server infrastructure.

Active Directory NIST Checks in InfraSOS

InfraSOS maps every Active Directory and Windows Server assessment to one or more NIST 800-53 control families, helping you see exactly which technical safeguards are in place and which are missing. The platform delivers clear pass/fail outcomes, allowing teams to track compliance posture without manual auditing.

Access Control (AC)

Checks user rights assignments, including who can log on locally, via Remote Desktop, or across the network.
Confirms Guest and anonymous accounts are disabled or denied access to secure services.
Reviews delegation and impersonation settings to ensure administrative control is limited to authorized users.
Validates enforcement of least-privilege access policies for administrative accounts.

(Mapped to NIST AC-2, AC-3, AC-6, AC-17)

Identification & Authentication (IA)

Verifies password complexity, minimum length, age, and history requirements.
Ensures account lockout policies and session timeouts meet recommended NIST thresholds.
Validates secure authentication protocols, including Kerberos AES encryption and NTLMv2 enforcement.
Confirms that cached credentials and blank-password logons are disabled for all systems.

(Mapped to NIST IA-2, IA-5, IA-8)

Audit & Accountability (AU)

Confirms advanced audit policies are enabled across logon, directory access, privilege use, and policy change events.
Validates event log size, retention, and overwrite settings to ensure long-term traceability.
Checks that Security, System, and Application logs are not full or disabled.
Provides comprehensive visibility into auditing coverage for security investigations and compliance reviews.

(Mapped to NIST AU-2, AU-6, AU-8, AU-12)

Configuration Management (CM)

Reviews system services and roles installed on domain controllers and member servers, detecting non-essential or insecure components.
Validates Secure Boot, LSASS protection, and registry-based security options.
Monitors GPO consistency and detects configuration drift from the defined baseline.
Ensures that all AD/DC configurations adhere to a consistent, secure baseline.

(Mapped to NIST CM-2, CM-3, CM-6, CM-7)

System & Communications Protection (SC)

Confirms Windows Firewall is active across all network profiles.
Validates SMB signing, LDAP signing, and secure channel encryption are enforced for DCs and member servers.
Checks that insecure or deprecated network protocols (e.g., SMBv1, unsigned Netlogon) are disabled.
Monitors NTLM usage and auditing for legacy authentication detection.

(Mapped to NIST SC-7, SC-8, SC-12, SC-13, SC-23)

⚡ InfraSOS doesn’t prescribe remediation – it delivers accurate, verifiable pass/fail results against each mapped NIST control family, enabling your security team to focus remediation efforts where they matter most.

Benefits of Using InfraSOS for NIST Alignment

Achieving alignment with the NIST 800-53 and NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) requires consistent visibility across every configuration that affects authentication, access control, and auditing. InfraSOS makes this process faster and more reliable by providing automated, repeatable assessments of your Active Directory and Windows Server environments.

✅ Faster Compliance Readiness

Generate NIST-aligned compliance reports in minutes instead of spending weeks manually checking GPOs, audit settings, and registry configurations.

✅ Evidence-Based Reporting

Each finding maps to a NIST control family (AC, IA, AU, CM, SC) and provides verifiable pass/fail results – making audit preparation straightforward and defensible.

✅ Continuous Security Oversight

Re-run NIST assessments at any time to detect configuration drift, monitor ongoing compliance, and identify new risks before audits.

✅ Multi-Domain and Multi-Tenant Support

For Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and large enterprises, InfraSOS offers unified visibility across all customers or business units, simplifying enterprise-wide compliance management.

✅ Cross-Framework Alignment

InfraSOS checks overlap with multiple frameworks, allowing you to strengthen overall security posture beyond NIST. Many checks also map to CIS Benchmarks, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, HIPAA, and CMMC, giving your organization broader compliance value.

⚡ InfraSOS gives you the confidence that your Active Directory environments are configured in accordance with NIST standards – accurately, consistently, and at scale.

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Who Needs NIST Compliance for Active Directory?

The NIST 800-53 and NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) are used by government agencies, federal contractors, and enterprises worldwide to manage cybersecurity risk. Active Directory and Windows Server are central to identity and access management – which means ensuring they meet NIST standards is critical for any organization handling sensitive data or operating under compliance obligations.

🏛️ Federal Agencies & Contractors

Organizations subject to FISMA, FedRAMP, or CMMC requirements rely on NIST controls to secure infrastructure. InfraSOS provides a fast, automated way to generate reports that demonstrate compliance readiness for audits and assessments.

💼 Enterprises in Regulated Industries

Companies in finance, healthcare, energy, and government sectors must align with NIST-based security frameworks to protect data and meet regulatory mandates. InfraSOS reports help verify that your AD and Windows environments meet NIST baseline expectations.

🧑‍💻 IT Managers & Security Teams

Gain ongoing visibility into how Active Directory configurations align with access control, authentication, and auditing requirements defined in NIST 800-53 and the CSF.

🤝 Managed Service Providers (MSPs)

Deliver NIST-aligned compliance assessments to clients across multiple tenants – helping customers strengthen their cybersecurity posture while reducing manual reporting overhead.

Whether you’re a federal contractor, regulated enterprise, or MSP, maintaining NIST-aligned Active Directory configurations helps prove compliance, reduce audit findings, and build trust with stakeholders.

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FAQ

What is NIST 800-53 compliance?

NIST SP 800-53 is a U.S. government publication that provides a catalog of security and privacy controls for federal information systems. It’s widely adopted across industries as a best-practice framework for managing cybersecurity risk.

InfraSOS helps organizations measure how their Active Directory and Windows Server configurations align with these controls by generating automated pass/fail reports mapped to NIST families such as Access Control (AC), Identification & Authentication (IA), and Audit & Accountability (AU).

What is the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF)?

The NIST Cybersecurity Framework provides a high-level structure for improving cybersecurity outcomes. It’s organized into five key functions – Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover.

InfraSOS assessments directly support these CSF categories by helping identify misconfigurations, protect critical authentication infrastructure, and detect drift or non-compliance within Active Directory.

Does InfraSOS certify NIST compliance?

No. InfraSOS does not certify or officially validate NIST compliance.

It provides automated assessments that help organizations determine whether their configurations align with NIST 800-53 and CSF controls. Official NIST certification or attestation must be performed by accredited auditors or assessors.

Which NIST control families does InfraSOS cover?

InfraSOS reports align with several NIST control families most relevant to Windows Server and Active Directory environments, including:

Access Control (AC)
Identification & Authentication (IA)
Audit & Accountability (AU)
Configuration Management (CM)
System & Communications Protection (SC)

Each check in the report is mapped to one or more of these control families for easy audit traceability.

How does InfraSOS help prepare for audits?

InfraSOS provides auditor-ready reports showing which controls pass or fail against NIST 800-53 and CSF requirements.

Each check includes configuration details that can serve as evidence for internal reviews or external audits – saving significant preparation time and manual effort.

Who should use InfraSOS for NIST compliance?

InfraSOS is ideal for:

Federal agencies and contractors operating under FISMA or FedRAMP.
Enterprises in regulated sectors such as finance, healthcare, and energy.
MSPs and IT service providers who manage security compliance across multiple customers or tenants.

Can InfraSOS help with other frameworks like CIS or ISO 27001?

Yes. InfraSOS checks overlap with controls from CIS Benchmarks, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, HIPAA, and CMMC, providing unified visibility into your compliance posture across multiple frameworks – not just NIST.