SV-253364r1268254: Simultaneous connections to the internet or a Windows domain must be limited. | Microsoft Windows 11 STIG SCAP Benchmark

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Assessment Title

Rule Text

Simultaneous connections to the internet or a Windows domain must be limited.

Description

Discussion Text

Multiple network connections can provide additional attack vectors to a system and must be limited. The "Minimize the number of simultaneous connections to the Internet or a Windows Domain" setting prevents systems from automatically establishing multiple connections. When both wired and wireless connections are available, for example, the less preferred connection (typically wireless) will be disconnected.

How this relates to the STIG checklist: STIG vs SCAP benchmark.

IA Controls

NIST SP 800-53

Not mappedCCI-002418

References

DPMS Target Microsoft Windows 11 DISA DPMS Target Microsoft Windows 11 5471

SCC Automation Reference

The reconstructed evaluation script behind this rule's OVAL check(s) — every module a compound check combines, with this rule's own concrete values and DISA's SCC tool's real per-module mechanism curated from static teardown of SCC releases.

# Windows PowerShell
# Reconstructed from oval:mil.disa.stig.windows11:def:253364
# Simultaneous connections to the internet or a Windows domain must be limited.
# Per-module read mechanism curated from static teardown of DISA's SCC tool
# (SCAP Compliance Checker) -- see the SCC Automation Reference above.

# Simultaneous connections to the internet or a Windows domain are limited
# registry_object (registry_test)
function test_1 {
  return (((@{String='reg_sz';ExpandString='reg_expand_sz';Binary='reg_binary';DWord='reg_dword';MultiString='reg_multi_sz';QWord='reg_qword';None='reg_none'}[(Get-Item -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WcmSvc\GroupPolicy').GetValueKind('fMinimizeConnections').ToString()]) -eq 'reg_dword') -and (((Get-ItemProperty -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WcmSvc\GroupPolicy' -Name 'fMinimizeConnections' -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) | Select-Object -ExpandProperty 'fMinimizeConnections') -eq 3))
}

if (test_1) {
  Write-Output "PASS"
} else {
  Write-Output "FAIL"
}

Assessment Script Powered by AISyntax-verified

A standalone PowerShell script to assess this control automatically. Review before running it in your environment.

Syntax-checked as valid PowerShell. Not executed here — running it for real needs the actual ms_windows_11 target this check assesses.

# OVAL Definition: oval:mil.disa.stig.windows11:def:253364
$registryPath = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WcmSvc\GroupPolicy"
$registryKey = "fMinimizeConnections"
$expectedValue = 3
if (Test-Path $registryPath) {
    $regValue = (Get-ItemProperty -Path $registryPath -Name $registryKey -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue).$registryKey
    if ($regValue -eq $expectedValue) {
        Write-Output "PASS"
        exit 0
    }
}
Write-Output "FAIL"
exit 1

Remediation

The default behavior for "Minimize the number of simultaneous connections to the Internet or a Windows Domain" is "Enabled".

If this needs to be corrected, configure the policy value for Computer Configuration >> Administrative Templates >> Network >> Windows Connection Manager >> "Minimize the number of simultaneous connections to the Internet or a Windows Domain" to "Enabled".  Under "Options", set "Minimize Policy Options" to "3 = Prevent Wi-Fi When on Ethernet".