Data security and confidentiality are of critical importance today, especially for corporate structures. Exchange Server One of the most critical security components of 2019 is Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol.
Since email servers are the backbone of internal and external communications, these security-related issues are especially important for email servers. Microsoft’s Exchange Server 2019 is quite popular as an on-premises email server solution. In this article, we will take a deep dive into how to effectively use TLS (Transport Layer Security) protocols to enhance the security of Exchange Server 2019.
Table of Contents
Importance of TLS
TLSis a cryptographic protocol that enables the secure transfer of data packets. It plays a critical role not only in encrypting message content but also in ensuring authentication and data integrity.
Current Certificates and Cipher Suites
TLS The level of security it provides depends on the certificates and cipher suites used. Modern encryption techniques such as Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) offer higher security than RSA.
Steps
- Certification Authority Selection: Choose a reliable CA (Certificate Authority) and obtain your certificates from there.
- Advanced Cipher Suites Configuration: Enable AES 256, ECDHE, and stronger cipher suites.
- Protocol Version Selection: Use TLS 1.2; older versions are no longer secure. (TLS 1.3 is not yet supported for Exchange Server.)
- Configuring with EAC: Install your certificates via Exchange Admin Center (EAC) and enable TLS for SMTP.
- PowerShell Settings:
Set-TransportConfigveSet-SendConnectorYou can make more detailed settings using cmdlets such as.
Compliance and Regulations
Proper TLS configuration is required to comply with laws such as GDPR, HIPAA, etc. Verify that your configuration complies with such regulations.
Common Problems and Solutions
- Certificate Chain Issues: All intermediate certificates provided by the CA must be installed.
- High CPU Usage: When choosing a cipher suite, strike a balance between performance and security.
Not: Always take a backup before making changes and try in a test environment.
For Exchange Server TLS Configuration Script;
Exchange Server 2019 TLS Configuration – Cengiz YILMAZ | Sys Blog
