What is network level authentication? It is a security feature of Remote Desktop or Remote Access that requires that the connecting client first authenticates themselves before they are allowed to establish a session with the remote server. If an attacker already has authenticated themselves to the remote desktop server, then no changes can be made. What we are trying to do is prevent unauthorized access to the data on the server-side.
With the advent of NLA and other protocols, authentication was made possible between computers by means of encryption. Authentication is achieved by encrypting a secret key with the transmitted message. This message is then sent in the form of a challenge to the remote computer. The client software then checks the secret key and if it matches the one given by the attacker, then the received message is accepted. However, not all computers can support the NLA or other protocols for network-level authentication.
There are many reasons why NLA and other protocols like EDB and Keratin are not yet widely implemented in most remote desktop connections. One reason is cost. For a small network, NLA and other protocols may be all that is required. In larger networks, NLA and other protocols are often used. And, finally, for larger networks, Keratin and other advanced security methods may be more appropriate.
To connect to a remote computer over the network, you send a request message to the destination computer through the network. The destination computer will then reply with an accept or deny message. Keratin is one of the advanced protocols that allows you to make changes to the message that you are sending. It has a database that stores the various password attempts and allows you to login into the account of the user with a Keratin token.
Another method that you can use to authenticate is a Keratin token. A token is made up of a random number that is generated by the network administrator. With this token, you will be able to access the account of the user without having to use authentication options. This way, both you and the network administrator can determine who is authorized to be using the computer name.
There are a lot of reasons why remote computers fail to verify the request of the user. Most often, when authentication fails, it is because the user did not provide the correct Keratin token. Sometimes, remote computers fail to authenticate because they are using outdated versions of Keratin or they do not support all the authentication options of NLA. A network administrator can change the version number of Keratin or the protocol that is used for Keratin. This will help ensure that your network always connects to the most secure servers.
Apart from changing the versions of Keratin and the protocols, administrators can also configure the settings on NLA clients and servers so that they will always connect to a secure server. They can change the connection of the local work computer to the NLA server so that the work computer is always in a different secure setting compared to other computers in the office or elsewhere. In other words, if your work computer is not always connected to a secure network, you might be connected to a non-secure network even though your home computer is always connected to the work computer in your home.
In a nutshell, you can say that NLA is the best way to make sure that you never get into trouble when trying to connect to a remote computer. Every network administrator should install and configure NLA features to make sure that all users are always connected to a secure network. By default, every NLA feature is set to protect against Keratin token and IP spoofing. However, you can customize many features in NLA so that you can protect each and every user in your company from being easily spyware or virus-infected even if they connect to your network from a public network.
