[violatile]

I'm going through the annual audit cycle here and I've been tasked with turning off the webserver that is running on my HMCs. First question is this a good idea? None of the admins in my shop actually access the HMC remotely. Secondly, If I did decide to shut the web services down, how would I go about doing it?

Thanks in advance.

[mshulman1980]

Assuming you're using WebSM version 6.1.1 (older versions were similar, but I don't have them in front of me)

On the HMC, go to HMC Management > HMC Configuration > Customize Network Settings > Select the correct NIC for the public network > Click Details >
Go to the firewall tab > on the lower screen, select WebSM and click Remove.
Test it out.

Now as far as the fact that your people don't ever use the HMC remotely, it sounds like you won't lose any functionality. Personally it's a real lifesaver for me to have WebSM availible for remote connection to the HMC. It allows me to open VTERMs and allocate resources while I'm VPNd in from home. But that's more of a preference thing.
Security wise, alternatives would be to limit the IP addresses that can hit WebSM on the firewall. Of course the simplest way is just to disconnect the HMC from your WAN if all you need is access to the HMC locally and you have a seperate private network for it.

[violatile]

Thanks mshulman!

I turned off the non-necessary services within the "Firewall" tab and everything appears to be off. As far as using the HMC remotely, its a luxury I've experienced before but for my current engagement, they prefer the strictest of security over such creature comforts as VPN!

I truly appreciate your quick response.