SSL/TLS in Windows Security
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS) provide cryptographic protocols for secure communication over a network. Windows implements these protocols through the SChannel security package, enabling applications to authenticate, encrypt, and ensure data integrity.
Key Topics
- Protocol Versions – Support for TLS 1.0 through TLS 1.3.
- Certificate Management – Using the Windows Certificate Store and PowerShell cmdlets.
- Cipher Suites – Recommended and deprecated suites.
- Configuration – Registry settings, Group Policy, and PowerShell.
- Diagnostics – Event logs and
Test‑TlsConnectioncmdlet.
Sample PowerShell: Enable TLS 1.3
# Check current TLS settings Get-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SecurityProviders\SCHANNEL\Protocols\TLS 1.3\Server' # Enable TLS 1.3 for server New-Item -Path 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SecurityProviders\SCHANNEL\Protocols\TLS 1.3\Server' -Force Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SecurityProviders\SCHANNEL\Protocols\TLS 1.3\Server' -Name 'Enabled' -Value 1 # Verify Get-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SecurityProviders\SCHANNEL\Protocols\TLS 1.3\Server'
Supported Cipher Suites (TLS 1.3)
| Cipher Suite | Key Exchange | Encryption | Hash |
|---|---|---|---|
| TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | ECDHE | AES‑256‑GCM | SHA‑384 |
| TLS_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256 | ECDHE | ChaCha20‑Poly1305 | SHA‑256 |
| TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 | ECDHE | AES‑128‑GCM | SHA‑256 |