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Operation Locked In edited this page Sep 27, 2026 · 23 revisions

Bastion Hardening Framework wiki

Selective, state-aware, safety-first Windows hardening for a personal PC you administer.

This wiki is a short user handbook for Bastion v16.0 (modular plain-text src\ builds; source never encrypted; DPAPI only for Apply undo data; forced black console theme; Help docs color-coded for dark UI). Deeper technical detail ships in the release zip under docs/ and in in-app Help (main menu 11). Always start with Bastion-Hardening.bat (Unblock the zip first; never double-click the .ps1 alone).

Source structure: Current releases are modular (thin bootstrap + src\Bastion.*.ps1 modules) so the product is easier to read and review than the older single large script. See Modular source layout. Implementation remains plain text under GPLv3; MANIFEST.sha256 is integrity only.

Start here

  1. Quick start - install, restore point, Dry Run, Apply
  2. Hardening workflow - full ordered checklist, section defaults, verify, when things break
  3. Recovery cookbook - printing, network, games, Defender if you want a feature back
    3b. Known CVE checks - v16.0 catalog (main menu C, Recovery 7)
    3c. September 2026 Windows update - KB5124008, KB5129195, DNS Client 7023 field note
  4. Games and StrictHandle - what breaks, how to reverse, how to report
  5. FAQ - common questions, honest limits
  6. Modular source layout - why Bastion is no longer one giant script, and how to review it
  7. LAN hygiene and home gateways - opt-in workstation leaks; no assumed ISP modem

Official links

Link Purpose
Official site Product home (Operation Locked In) - Bastion pages, support, donate
Download Bastion Recommended download - resolves the same GitHub Latest zip
September 2026 Windows update Full handbook: KB5124008, KB5129195, DNS Client 7023, staged recovery
Latest release GitHub release assets (bastion-hardening-v*.zip)
Repository README Install detail, screenshots, critical warnings
Discussions Testing feedback, download guide, game reports
Issue #18 StrictHandle / game exception tracking
Discussions #23 Game compatibility reports
SECURITY.md Vulnerability reporting
LICENSE / NOTICE GPLv3 free software terms + project disclaimer

What Bastion is (and is not)

Is Is not
A guided toolkit for a single personal Windows 10/11 PC Antivirus or a malware guarantee
Dry Run, selective Apply, Recovery hubs, catalog winget installs Enterprise MDM / domain / Intune tooling
Dry Run, Recovery, and Help when you want a feature back Automatic GPU driver or BIOS flasher

Documentation map

Need Where
September 2026 Windows update September 2026 Windows update
Running Bastion right now In-app Help (menu 11)
Ordered first Apply checklist Hardening workflow
Handbook / FAQ / Recovery recipes This wiki
Data directory, ECH, known-issue detail Release zip docs/ (DATA-DIRECTORY, BROWSER-POLICIES-AND-ECH, KNOWN-ISSUES)
Product site / download operationlockedin.com and Bastion download
What changed in a version Releases
Modular vs monolith (handbook) Modular source layout
Modular source map / integrity (technical) docs/ARCHITECTURE.md
Community talk Discussions

Safety first

  • Run only as Administrator from an official source you trust (site download or GitHub release).
  • Create a System Restore Point (main menu 13 / R) before Apply or Quick Harden.
  • When you know what broke, use Recovery hubs (menu 9) before a full Undo.
  • System Restore remains the strongest full rollback.

This handbook aims to match product behavior for v16.0 modular builds. Always use the official download or Latest release.

License: GNU GPLv3. Free to use and modify; distributed modified versions must stay GPLv3 with source (see FAQ).

Source of truth: this handbook lives in the release zip under docs/wiki/ and is mirrored to the GitHub Wiki when published.

Clone this wiki locally