Windows Vista Security & Stability Features
- What is User Account Control and how does it work?
- What's new with the Windows Firewall?
- Microsoft always says that their next Windows is going to be more stable and Vista is no different. What improvements have they made in Vista to increase stability and reliability?
- Is there any new protection against spyware/malware?
Q. What is User Account Control and how does it work?
A. Windows Vista features major enhancements to its security feature set; the primary change being User Account Control, or UAC. UAC makes Windows Vista run at the lowest level of privileges needed to perform its current task. Whenever elevated privileges are required to perform a new task, such as install new software, the user is prompted to enter them in to a dialogue warning box (if the user account is a "limited user") or to simply confirm that they wish to proceed with this action (if the user account is an "administrator").
What this means is that even if the user account is an administrator on the computer, for most of the time the user is operating on the machine, they are actually operating as a limited user. This increases security on the computer so that no unwanted Malware programs or viruses may be installed without the user knowing.
Q. What's new with the Windows Firewall?
A. The new Windows Firewall will feature a robust filtering system for both incoming and outgoing traffic from a computer. This will provide protection not only for your personal computer from malicious traffic coming in from the outside, but also protection for the outside world from your computer should it become infected with a virus. This feature along with a more robust set of customization options will make this version of the Windows Firewall much more effective.
Q. Microsoft always says that their next Windows is going to be more stable and Vista is no different. What improvements have they made in Vista to increase stability and reliability?
A. One of the main annoyances with Windows XP and previous versions of Windows are the unexpected hangs and crashes. Many of these crashes are caused by a Windows Service (a small program that runs in the background of Windows) or other program becoming unresponsive. In Windows XP and other prior versions of the operating system, these services and programs ran in the same space as the core of the operating system. In Windows Vista, these services and programs now run separately from the core operating system and thus when they crash or otherwise become unresponsive, Windows Vista should be better at recovering from the calamity.Along with this "Service Hardening" in Windows Vista, Microsoft has also introduced new technology that will reduce the number of restarts needed by allowing programs to restart their services without needing to restart the entire computer.
Q. Is there any new protection against spyware/malware?
A. Windows Vista will include the final release version of Windows Defender, Microsoft's new anti-spyware and anti-malware program. Windows Defender integrates with Windows Updates to monitor the date of the spyware definition file and automatically download updates. This means that you will continually have the most up-to-date coverage. Windows Defender monitors your system in real time alerting you the moment it detects a spyware or malware threat, similar to how an antivirus program works.
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Last Updated: 12/10/2008