Pass the Paloalto Networks Network Security Administrator PCSFE Questions and answers with CertsForce

A Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW) must be configured to use a Layer 3 underlay network in order to secure traffic in a Cisco ACI environment. A Layer 3 underlay network is a physical network that provides IP connectivity between devices, such as routers, switches, and firewalls. A Palo Alto Networks NGFW must use a Layer 3 underlay network to communicate with the Cisco ACI fabric and receive traffic redirection from the Cisco ACI policy-based redirect mechanism. A Palo Alto Networks NGFW does not need to be deployed as a member of a device cluster, receive all forwarding lookups from the network controller, or be identified as a default gateway in order to secure traffic in a Cisco ACI environment, as those are not valid requirements or options for firewall integration with Cisco ACI. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall on Cisco ACI], [Cisco ACI Underlay Network]

Cloud next-generation firewall is the Palo Alto Networks software firewall that protects Amazon Web Services (AWS) deployments with network security delivered as a managed cloud service. Cloud next-generation firewall is a cloud-native solution that provides comprehensive security and visibility across AWS environments, including VPCs, regions, accounts, and workloads. Cloud next-generation firewall is deployed and managed by Palo Alto Networks as a service, eliminating the need for customers to provision, configure, or maintain any infrastructure or software. VM-Series, CN-Series, and Ion-Series are not Palo Alto Networks software firewalls that protect AWS deployments with network security delivered as a managed cloud service, but they are related solutions that can be deployed on AWS or other platforms. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Cloud Next-Generation Firewall Datasheet], [VM-Series Datasheet], [CN-Series Datasheet], [Ion-Series Datasheet]

The two environments supported by the CN-Series firewall are:

OpenShift

Native K8

The CN-Series firewall is a containerized firewall that integrates with Kubernetes and provides visibility and control over container traffic. The CN-Series firewall can be deployed in various environments that support Kubernetes, such as public clouds, private clouds, or on-premises data centers. OpenShift is an environment supported by the CN-Series firewall. OpenShift is a platform that provides enterprise-grade Kubernetes and container orchestration, as well as developer tools and services. Native K8 is an environment supported by the CN-Series firewall. Native K8 is a term that refers to the standard Kubernetes distribution that is available from the Kubernetes project website, without any vendor-specific modifications or additions. Positive K and OpenStack are not environments supported by the CN-Series firewall, but they are related concepts that can be used for other purposes. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [CN-Series Datasheet], [CN-Series Deployment Guide for OpenShift], [CN-Series Deployment Guide for Native K8], [What is OpenShift?], [What is Kubernetes?]

Dynamic Address Group is the PAN-OS feature that allows for automated updates to address objects when VM-Series firewalls are setup as part of an NSX deployment. NSX is a software-defined network (SDN) solution that provides network virtualization, automation, and security for cloud-native applications. Dynamic Address Group is an object that represents a group of IP addresses based on criteria such as tags, regions, interfaces, or user-defined attributes. Dynamic Address Group allows Security policies to adapt dynamically to changes in the network topology or workload characteristics without requiring manual updates. When VM-Series firewalls are setup as part of an NSX deployment, they can leverage the NSX tags assigned to virtual machines (VMs) or containers by the NSX manager or controller to populate Dynamic Address Groups and update Security policies accordingly. Boundary automation, Hypervisor integration, and Bootstrapping are not PAN-OS features that allow for automated updates to address objects when VM-Series firewalls are setup as part of an NSX deployment, but they are related concepts that can be used for other purposes. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Dynamic Address Groups Overview], [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall on VMware NSX]

NAT is the element that protects and hides an internal network in an outbound flow. NAT is a feature that translates the source or destination IP address or port of a packet as it passes through the firewall. NAT can protect and hide an internal network in an outbound flow by replacing the private IP addresses of the internal hosts with a public IP address of the firewall or another device, making them appear as a single entity to the external network. This prevents external hosts from directly accessing or identifying the internal hosts, and also conserves the public IP address space. DNS sinkholing, User-ID, and App-ID are not elements that protect and hide an internal network in an outbound flow, but they are related features that can enhance security and visibility. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [NAT Overview], [DNS Sinkholing Overview], [User-ID Overview], [App-ID Overview]

Microsegmentation is a technology that allows for granular control of east-west traffic in a software-defined network. Microsegmentation divides the network into smaller segments or zones based on application or workload characteristics, and applies security policies to each segment. This reduces the attack surface and prevents unauthorized access or lateral movement within the network. Routing, MAC Access Control List, and Virtualization are not technologies that provide microsegmentation, but they are related concepts that can be used in conjunction with microsegmentation. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Microsegmentation with Palo Alto Networks], [Microsegmentation for Dummies]

Security profiles are the components that scan for threats in allowed traffic. Security profiles are sets of rules or settings that define how the firewall will inspect and handle traffic based on various threat prevention technologies, such as antivirus, anti-spyware, vulnerability protection, URL filtering, file blocking, data filtering, and WildFire analysis. Security profiles can be applied to Security policy rules to enforce granular protection against known and unknown threats in allowed traffic. Intelligent Traffic Offload, TLS decryption, and NAT are not components that scan for threats in allowed traffic, but they are related features that can enhance security and performance. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Security Profiles Overview], [Threat Prevention Datasheet]

Traffic is directed to a Palo Alto Networks firewall integrated with Cisco ACI through a policy-based redirect. Cisco ACI is a software-defined network (SDN) solution that provides network automation, orchestration, and visibility. A policy-based redirect is a mechanism that allows Cisco ACI to redirect traffic from one endpoint group (EPG) to another EPG through a service device, such as a Palo Alto Networks firewall. The firewall can then inspect and enforce security policies on the redirected traffic before sending it back to Cisco ACI. Traffic is not directed to a Palo Alto Networks firewall integrated with Cisco ACI by using contracts between endpoint groups that send traffic to the firewall using a shared policy, through a virtual machine (VM) monitor domain, or by creating an access policy, as those are not valid methods for traffic redirection in Cisco ACI. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall on Cisco ACI], [Cisco ACI Policy-Based Redirect]

To deploy a VM-Series firewall on NSX, you need to enable communication between Panorama and the NSX Manager. This allows Panorama to receive information about the virtual machines and services in the NSX environment. You also need to register the VM-Series firewall as a service on the NSX Manager. This allows NSX to redirect traffic to the VM-Series firewall for inspection3. References: VM-Series Deployment Guide for VMware NSX