Security requirement
- a.Develop and maintain under configuration control, a current baseline configuration of the system.
- b.Review and update the baseline configuration of the system [Organization-defined: frequency] and when system components are installed or modified.
Discussion
Baseline configurations for the system and system components include aspects of connectivity, operation, and communications. Baseline configurations are documented, formally reviewed, and agreed-upon specifications for the system or configuration items within the system. Baseline configurations serve as a basis for future builds, releases, or changes to the system and include information about system components, operational procedures, network topology, and the placement of components in the system architecture. Maintaining baseline configurations requires creating new baselines as the system changes over time. Baseline configurations of the system reflect the current enterprise architecture.
Tailoring decisions required
Resolve these values through the governing organization’s approved tailoring and risk-management process before declaring the requirement implemented.
Implementation perspective
Treat Baseline Configuration as a CUI protection outcome that must be reflected in the system boundary, documented implementation, operational behavior, and assessment evidence. Pay particular attention to approved baselines, secure configuration, change control, inventories, and drift management within the CUI boundary.
- Confirm the requirement is in scope for the CUI system components, services, users, and external connections being assessed.
- Resolve every organization-defined parameter through an approved governance and tailoring process.
- Map each clause of the requirement to an accountable owner, implementation mechanism, and evidence source.
- Verify that inherited and shared implementations are supported by current provider evidence and responsibility boundaries.
- Collect evidence during normal operation and review changes, exceptions, and deficiencies on a risk-based cadence.
Questions to ask
- Which CUI assets, data flows, users, and services are protected by this requirement?
- Which portions are implemented locally, inherited, shared, or not applicable, and what evidence supports that determination?
- Do the system security plan, deployed configuration, operating process, and assessment evidence tell the same story?
- What change, incident, or threshold should trigger reassessment?
Evidence and validation
- approved baseline configurations
- change tickets and approvals
- configuration scan and drift reports
- software and hardware inventories
Common failure patterns
- baselines documented but not enforced
- emergency changes never reconciled
- cloud or ephemeral assets missing from inventory
- security impact analysis performed after deployment
Assessment objectives and methods
Assessment objectives (6)
- a.
a current baseline configuration of the system is developed.
- a.
a current baseline configuration of the system is maintained under configuration control.
- b.
the baseline configuration of the system is updated [Organization-defined: frequency].
- b.
the baseline configuration of the system is reviewed when system components are installed or modified.
- b.
the baseline configuration of the system is updated when system components are installed or modified.
- b.
the baseline configuration of the system is reviewed [Organization-defined: frequency].
Examine
- configuration management policy and procedures
- procedures for the baseline system configuration
- configuration management plan
- enterprise architecture
- system design documentation
- system architecture
- system configuration settings
- system component inventory
- change control records
- system security plan
- other relevant documents or records
Interview
- personnel with configuration management responsibilities
- personnel with information security responsibilities
- system administrators
Test
- processes for managing baseline configurations
- mechanisms for supporting configuration control of the baseline configuration
Source NIST SP 800-53 controls
These controls are referenced by the official SP 800-171 Rev. 3 OSCAL record. Open the corresponding control pages for complete control text, enhancements, D3FEND mappings, and related learning.
Authoritative sources
- NIST SP 800-171 Revision 3 official publication ↗
- NIST SP 800-171A Revision 3 official publication ↗
- NIST OSCAL Content release used for this import ↗
Bare Metal Cyber is an independent educational publisher and is not affiliated with or endorsed by NIST. The official publications, the responsible federal agency, and the governing contract or agreement determine applicability, tailoring, assessment depth, and required implementation.