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Disable NetBIOS on a local computer (Server)

NetBIOS is an application programming interface (API) created by IBM for its early PC LAN

network. Since its creation, NetBIOS has become the industry standard and is used in Ethernet,

token ring, and other networks. While it's still widely used, to maintain a highly secure

environment, you'll want to disable it and use TCP/IP instead.



Execute this process on each machine to disable the NetBIOS interface and naming convention

over TCP/IP:



Open the Network And Dial-up Connections folder from Control Panel.

Right-click the network connection for which you want to disable NetBIOS and click Properties.

Click Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties.

Click Advanced and go to the WINS tab.

Click Disable NetBIOS Over TCP/IP.

Click OK and close all dialog boxes.



Once you've done this, your computer(s) will stop listening on the UDP port 138, the NetBIOS

name service at UDP port 137, and the NetBIOS session service on TCP port 139.



Note: Be careful when disabling NetBIOS over TCP/IP since programs and services that depend on

NetBIOS won't function any longer.

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