In our previous series, we built the city and learned how to run it. But in a world of digital sieges, a “Mindful Architect” must realize a hard truth: If your “Global Admin” logs into a regular employee’s laptop, your entire city is at risk.

Hackers love “Privilege Escalation.” If they compromise a regular laptop where an Admin has recently logged in, they can steal the Admin’s “keys” from the computer’s memory. To stop this, we must build a Tiered Fortress.

The Concept: The Three-Story Castle

In a medieval castle, the King doesn’t sleep in the courtyard with the travelers. He stays in the inner sanctum, protected by multiple walls. We apply this same logic to Active Directory by dividing our city into Tiers:

Tier 0: The Inner Sanctum (The Crown Jewels)

This is the highest level. It includes your Domain Controllers, the Schema, and the Enterprise Admins.

• The Law: Tier 0 Admins only log into Tier 0 servers. They never check email or browse the web from these accounts.

Tier 1: The Administrative Offices

This tier manages your business applications, databases, and servers.

• The Law: Tier 1 Admins can manage servers, but they have zero rights to touch the Domain Controllers (Tier 0).

Tier 2: The City Streets

This tier manages end-user devices, like laptops, printers, and workstations.

• The Law: Help Desk staff use Tier 2 accounts to fix a laptop. They never use their Tier 2 account to log into a Tier 1 server.

Why Is This Necessary?

Most “hacks” happen like this:

1. A user in Marketing clicks a bad link.
2. The hacker gets into that laptop.
3. An Admin logs into that same laptop to “fix” it using their Domain Admin credentials.
4. Game Over. The hacker now has the keys to the entire Forest.

By using the Tiered Model, even if the hacker gets into a Tier 2 laptop, they can never “see” a Tier 0 or Tier 1 credential. The walls stay intact.

The Architect’s Reflection

In life, we often fail to set “Healthy Boundaries.” We let the stress of our work enter our homes, and we let our distractions ruin our focus. We “log in” to too many emotional places at once, leaving our peace of mind vulnerable.

A Mindful Architect practices Compartmentalization.

Building a Tiered Fortress in your network is an act of Environmental Discipline. It’s about accepting that some things are so precious they require special protection. When you separate your duties and your identities, you aren’t being difficult—you are being a steward of the city’s future.

Safety doesn’t come from a better firewall; it comes from better boundaries.

Next in the Series: JIT & JEA Access — Power that expires.

Check your habits! Do you use your Domain Admin account to check your email? If so, you’re leaving the vault open. Let’s commit to “Tiered Living” in the comments!

#TieredAdministration #ADSecurity #CyberSecurity #IdentityProtection #ActiveDirectory.