PCNSE Palo Alto Networks Certified Security Engineer (PCNSE) PAN-OS 11.0 Questions and Answers

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/high-availability/ha-concepts/ha-timers

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-1/pan-os-networking-admin/nat/nat-configuration-examples/destination-nat-exampleone-to-one-mapping

https://live.paloaltonetworks.com/t5/general-topics/what-is-a-master-device-in-device-groups/td-p/15032

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000PMtpCAG

For active/passive HA upgrades, best practices minimize downtime by upgrading the passive peer first (Option D), rebooting it to confirm stability, restoring HA sync, and then upgrading the active peer. This keeps services running on the active firewall during the passive upgrade, ensuring a smooth transition with failover capability intact.

Option A (both at once) causes downtime. Option B (suspend active) disrupts service unnecessarily. Option C (active first) risks failover to an unupgraded peer. Documentation mandates this sequence.

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClhzCAC

D is the correct answer because the threat log type would provide information about traffic blocked by a Zone Protection profile. This is because Zone Protection profiles are used to protect the network from attacks, including common flood, reconnaissance attacks, and other packet-based attacks1. These attacks are classified as threats by the firewall and are logged in the threat log2. The threat log displays information such as the source and destination IP addresses, ports, zones, applications, threat types, actions, and severity of the threats2.

Verified References:

1: Zone protection profiles - Palo Alto Networks Knowledge Base

2: Threat Log Fields - Palo Alto Networks

Packet Buffer Protection mitigates single-session DoS attacks by monitoring resource usage on ingress zones. It applies to new sessions only (to prevent resource exhaustion before escalation) and is not global—it’s zone-specific, configured under Zone Protection profiles.

Options A and D (global) are incorrect; it’s per-zone. Options C and D (existing sessions) don’t align with its proactive design. Documentation specifies this behavior.

The "Received fatal alert UnknownCA from client" log indicates the client rejects the firewall’s decryption certificate because it doesn’t trust the CA. For a valid use case, adding the certificate’s Common Name (CN) to the SSL Decryption Exclusion List (Option B) bypasses decryption for that site, allowing traffic to proceed without interruption. This is an immediate fix within the firewall’s control.

Option A (revocation checking) addresses different issues. Option C (check expired certificates) is diagnostic, not immediate. Option D (contact site admin) is external and slow. Documentation recommends exclusions for such errors.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-1/pan-os-admin/user-id/user-id-concepts/user-mapping/globalprotect.html

GlobalProtect is a VPN solution that provides secure remote access to corporate networks. When a user connects to GlobalProtect, their identity is verified against an LDAP server. This ensures that all IP address-to-user mappings are explicitly known.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/panorama/9-1/panorama-admin/manage-firewalls/manage-device-groups/manage-the-rule-hierarchy#idfb9e2593-a7f1-4e0d-aab5-a2903d654c99 https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/panorama/9-1/panorama-admin/panorama-overview/centralized-firewall-configuration-and-update-management/device-groups/device-group-policies#id671977ca-1041-4605-8a80-fbc10f3f5d7b

The two key exchange algorithms that consume the most resources when decrypting SSL traffic are ECDHE and DHE. These are both Diffie-Hellman based algorithms that enable perfect forward secrecy (PFS), which means that they generate a new and unique session key for each SSL/TLS session, and do not reuse any previous keys. This enhances the security of the encrypted communication, but also increases the computational cost and complexity of the key exchange process. ECDHE stands for Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman Ephemeral, which uses elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) to generate the session key. DHE stands for Diffie-Hellman Ephemeral, which uses modular arithmetic to generate the session key. Both ECDHE and DHE require more CPU and memory resources than RSA, which is a non-PFS algorithm that uses public and private keys to encrypt and decrypt the session key123. References: Key Exchange Algorithms, Best Practices for Enabling SSL Decryption, PCNSE Study Guide (page 60)

If the DNS response matches the Original Destination Address in the rule, translate the DNS response using the same translation the rule uses. For example, if the rule translates IP address 1.1.1.10 to 192.168.1.10, the firewall rewrites a DNS response of 1.1.1.10 to 192.168.1.10. https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/9-1/pan-os-admin/networking/nat/source-nat-and-destination-nat/destination-nat-dns-rewrite-use-cases#id0d85db1b-05b9-4956-a467-f71d558263bb

'Implicitly Uses' has web-browsing listed. This means that if you allow facebook-posting, that it will also be allowing the web-browsing application implicitly.. In our case, we dont know which APP the question referes too but 'Implicitly means already uses HTTP.

Quantum-related attack protection requires cryptography resistant to quantum computing, such as post-quantum algorithms. In PAN-OS 11.2, IKEv2 with Hybrid Key Exchange (Option B) combines classical and quantum-resistant algorithms for key exchange, enhancing VPN security. IKEv2 with Post-Quantum Pre-shared Keys (PPK) (Option C) uses pre-shared keys designed to resist quantum attacks, supported in IKEv2 configurations.

Option A (IKEv1 only) weakens security by avoiding PFS and modern cryptography. Option D (IPsec with Hybrid ID exchange) is not a valid PAN-OS feature. Documentation confirms IKEv2 enhancements for quantum resistance.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/9-1/pan-os-new-features/user-id-features/dynamic-user-groups

Use the dynamic user group in a policy to regulate traffic for the members of the group. You will need to configure at least two rules: one to allow initial traffic to populate the dynamic user group and one to deny traffic for the activity you want to prevent (in this case, questionable-activity). To tag users, the rule to allow traffic must have a higher rule number in your rulebase than the rule that denies traffic.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/policy/use-dynamic-user-groups-in-policy

Advanced WildFire analyzes both the webpage linked by the URL and any files (like PE files) that are downloaded as a result of clicking that link. This includes checking the linked webpage for malicious content and sending any downloaded files for further analysis to determine their behavior and potential malicious intent.

The PCNSA Study Guide outlines that WildFire inspects and analyzes both content downloaded and webpages involved when integrated into the organization's security profile​. This dual-layered approach ensures comprehensive protection against threats from both the webpage and its payloads.

Step-by-Step Explanation

Link Clicked and File Download Triggered:

When the user clicks the link, their action initiates the download of a file, in this case, a Portable Executable (PE) file.

URL Inspection by WildFire:

The URL is immediately inspected for potential threats. This involves analyzing the webpage associated with the link to detect:

Known malicious indicators.

Suspicious elements like embedded scripts, links, or calls to external resources.

Forwarding the PE File for Analysis:

The PE file downloaded as a result of clicking the link is sent to the WildFire cloud or on-premises appliance for detailed behavior-based analysis.

Dynamic and Static Analysis:

Static Analysis: WildFire examines the PE file's attributes without executing it, looking for:

Suspicious code patterns.

Known malicious signatures.

Anomalous PE header details (e.g., timestamp irregularities, unexpected sections).

Dynamic Analysis: The file is executed in a controlled virtual environment to observe:

Behavioral anomalies, like privilege escalation attempts.

Network communication, such as connections to Command and Control (C2) servers.

File system modifications or registry changes indicative of malicious intent.

Threat Verdict:

Based on its findings, WildFire classifies the URL and PE file into one of the following categories:

Benign.

Grayware.

Malware.

Phishing.

Automated Response:

If either the webpage or the PE file is deemed malicious, the firewall takes predefined actions:

Blocking access to the webpage.

Quarantining or blocking the downloaded file.

Generating a detailed alert or log entry for administrators.

Signature Update:

WildFire automatically creates a signature for the detected threat and distributes it globally. This ensures that other systems in the WildFire network are protected against the same threat.

Advanced WildFire Configuration and Behavior

Forwarding File Types:

The WildFire analysis profile must be configured to forward relevant file types. In this case:

PE files are commonly forwarded by default since they are a known vector for malware.

Administrators can define custom forwarding rules based on file type and traffic.

Integration with the Security Profile:

WildFire integrates with other security profiles (e.g., Antivirus, Anti-Spyware, URL Filtering).

URL Filtering ensures that the link itself is categorized and blocked if malicious.

WildFire's output informs and updates the threat prevention database dynamically.

Why the Answer is B?

WildFire performs dual analysis:

The linked webpage is checked for malicious scripts or phishing attempts.

The PE file downloaded is analyzed for malware through both static and dynamic methods.

This layered analysis ensures robust protection against modern threats, which often combine malicious webpages with harmful payloads.

Document References:

PCNSA Study Guide: Domain 4, Section 4.1.5 ("WildFire Analysis") explains the WildFire analysis process in detail, emphasizing its role in inspecting files and URLs for malicious behavior​.

Palo Alto Networks WildFire Admin Guide:

This guide details file forwarding configurations, supported file types, and the global signature distribution process.

PAN-OS Admin Guide:

Sections on Security Profiles and URL Filtering elaborate on how WildFire integrates with other threat prevention mechanisms.

Schedule content updates so that they download-and-install automatically. Then, set a Threshold that determines the amount of time the firewall waits before installing the latest content. In a security-first network, schedule a six to twelve hour threshold. https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/8-1/pan-os-admin/threat-prevention/best-practices-for-content-and-threat-content-updates/best-practices-security-first.html#id184AH00F06E

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-1/pan-os-upgrade/software-and-content-updates/best-practices-for-app-and-threat-content-updates/best-practices-security-first

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClEiCAK

Based on PAN-OS 11.0 documentation, the forwarding configuration for specific log types in Device > Log Settings involves selecting log types for system-level logs, which include HIP Match and Configuration logs.

Explanation for Each Option

A. Threat

Threat logs record detected security threats such as malware, viruses, and vulnerabilities.

Forwarding of Threat logs is not configured in Device > Log Settings. Instead, Threat logs are forwarded using Log Forwarding Profiles applied to Security Policies.

Verdict: Incorrect.

B. HIP Match

HIP Match logs capture information about endpoint compliance reported by GlobalProtect clients.

These logs can be configured for forwarding in Device > Log Settings for monitoring and compliance purposes.

Verdict: Correct.

C. Traffic

Traffic logs provide details about allowed or denied network traffic.

Forwarding of Traffic logs is configured using Log Forwarding Profiles applied to Security Policies, not in Device > Log Settings.

Verdict: Incorrect.

D. Configuration

Configuration logs track administrative changes to the firewall, such as updates to policies, settings, and objects.

These logs can be forwarded from Device > Log Settings for auditing purposes.

Verdict: Correct.

Correct Answer

B. HIP Match

D. Configuration

Key Points from PAN-OS 11.0 Documentation

Device > Log Settings is specifically for system-related logs like HIP Match and Configuration.

Logs like Threat and Traffic are handled through Log Forwarding Profiles applied to Security or NAT policies.

Documentation Reference

For further details, refer to the official Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS 11.0 Admin Guide under Device > Log Settings. This section outlines which log types can be forwarded from this menu.

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000PP3ICAW

The SSL/TLS Service Profile (Option A) defines ciphers and protocols for management access (e.g., HTTPS GUI, API), allowing specific cipher suites to be enforced.

Option B (SSH Service Profile) doesn’t exist; SSH uses global settings. Option C (Certificate Profile) handles authentication, not ciphers. Option D (Decryption Profile) is for traffic decryption, not management. Documentation specifies SSL/TLS profiles for this.

The template stack should consist of four templates arranged according to the diagram. The template values that will be configured on the firewall if each template has an SSL/TLS Service profile configured named Management will be the values in Chicago. This is because the SSL/TLS Service profile is configured in the Chicago template, which is the highest priority template in the stack. The firewall will inherit the settings from the highest priority template that has the setting configured, and ignore the settings from the lower priority templates that have the same setting configured. Therefore, the values in Datacenter, efwOlab.chi, and Global Settings will not be applied to the firewall. References:

[Manage Templates and Template Stacks]

[Template Stack Configuration]

[Template Stack Priority]

https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/content/dam/pan/en_US/assets/pdf/datasheets/education/pcnse-study-guide.pdf page 83

>Threat logs, create a log forwarding profile to define how you want the firewall or Panorama to handle logs. >Configure an HTTP server profile to forward logs to a remote User-ID agent. > Select the log forwarding profile you created then select this server profile as the HTTP server profile https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/11-0/pan-os-admin/policy/use-auto-tagging-to-automate-security-actions

To collect User-ID information from third-party proxies, Palo Alto Networks supports several methods of integrating user information. Syslog parsing allows the firewall to receive syslog messages from external services, parse them, and extract user information. X-Forwarded-For (XFF) headers, which are used in HTTP requests and proxies, can carry the original IP address of a client connecting through a proxy, and this information can be used by the firewall to map the user IDs.

Syslog is commonly used for integrating third-party devices like proxies with User-ID, and XFF headers are specifically mentioned in the context of integrating user mappings from HTTP traffic. Client probing and Server Monitoring are not the correct methods for pulling data from third-party proxies.

For further details, refer to the Palo Alto Networks documentation on User-ID integration and the "PAN-OS® Administrator’s Guide".

WildFire logs showing a "malicious" verdict with an "allow" action indicate that the initial traffic wasn’t blocked in real-time, likely because the Antivirus profile isn’t configured to act immediately on WildFire verdicts. By default, WildFire submits files for analysis, and signatures may take up to 24 hours to propagate globally unless real-time blocking is enabled. Configuring the Antivirus security profile (Option B) to "block" on malicious WildFire verdicts ensures that threats are blocked within minutes once the verdict is returned (typically 5-15 minutes), leveraging WildFire’s real-time signature updates.

Option A (WildFire analysis profile) defines what files are sent to WildFire but doesn’t control blocking actions. Option C (File Blocking profile) manages file type blocking, not threat verdicts. Option D (file size limits) affects submission eligibility, not blocking behavior. The Antivirus profile is the key to real-time WildFire enforcement, as per Palo Alto Networks documentation.

In order to see what is in a template, the device-group needs the template referenced. Even if you add the firewall to both the template and device-group, the device-group will not see what is in the template. The following link has a video that demonstrates that B is the correct answer. https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000PNfeCAG

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/panorama/11-0/panorama-admin/manage-log-collection/manage-collector-groups/configure-a-collector-group

"Log redundancy is available only if each Log Collector has the same number of logging disks." (Recommended) Enable log redundancy across collectors if you are adding multiple Log Collectors to a single Collector group. Redundancy ensures that no logs are lost if any one Log Collector becomes unavailable. Each log will have two copies and each copy will reside on a different Log Collector. For example, if you have two Log Collectors in the collector group the log is written to both Log Collectors. Enabling redundancy creates more logs and therefore requires more storage capacity, reducing storage capability in half. When a Collector Group runs out of space, it deletes older logs. Redundancy also doubles the log processing traffic in a Collector Group, which reduces its maximum logging rate by half, as each Log Collector must distribute a copy of each log it receives.

The CLI command "show system state filter-pretty sys.sl.p8.phy" is used to display detailed physical layer information, which would include the physical media connected to a specific interface such as ethernet1/8. This command is designed to filter the output to show relevant physical layer information for the specified interface.

For more information on Palo Alto Networks CLI commands and their outputs, refer to the "PAN-OS® CLI Reference Guide".

To configure SSL Forward Proxy decryption on a Palo Alto Networks firewall, certain key components must be set up to ensure secure and effective decryption and inspection of SSL/TLS encrypted traffic:

B. Define a Forward Trust Certificate:

A Forward Trust Certificate is essential for SSL Forward Proxy decryption. This certificate is used by the firewall to dynamically generate certificates for SSL sites that are trusted. When the firewall decrypts and inspects the traffic and then re-encrypts it, the new certificate presented to the client comes from the Forward Trust Certificate authority. This certificate must be trusted by client devices, often requiring the Forward Trust CA certificate to be distributed and installed on client devices.

C. Configure SSL decryption rules:

SSL decryption rules are the policies that determine which traffic is to be decrypted. These rules specify the source, destination, service, and URL category, among other criteria. The rules define what traffic the SSL Forward Proxy will apply to, enabling selective decryption based on security and privacy requirements.

Together, these components form the basis of the SSL Forward Proxy decryption setup, allowing for the decryption, inspection, and re-encryption of SSL/TLS encrypted traffic to identify and prevent threats hidden within encrypted sessions.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/policy/use-address-object-to-represent-ip-addresses/address-objects

URL profile action alert.

File Profile action alert.

AV and Wildfire action Reset-both

Policy Action Allow.

The firewall inspects the content as per all the security profiles attached to the original matching rule. If it results in threat detection, then the corresponding security profile action is taken.

Policy-Based Forwarding (PBF) on Palo Alto Networks firewalls allows administrators to define forwarding decisions based on criteria other than the destination IP address, such as the application, source address, or user. It can address scenarios like:

A. Routing FTP to a backup ISP link to save bandwidth on the primary ISP link: PBF can be configured to identify FTP traffic and route it through a different ISP, preserving bandwidth on the primary link for other critical applications.

B. Providing application connectivity when the primary circuit fails: PBF can be used for failover purposes, directing traffic to an alternate path if the primary connection goes down, ensuring continuous application availability.

PBF is not designed to bypass Layer 7 inspection or forward traffic based solely on source port, as these tasks are managed through different mechanisms within the firewall's operating system.

The best way for the administrator to meet the requirement of managing all configuration from Panorama and preventing local overrides is B: Perform a template commit push from Panorama using the “Force Template Values” option. This option allows the administrator to overwrite any local configuration on the firewall with the values defined in the template1. This way, the administrator can ensure that the interface configuration and any other

A transparent proxy operates by intercepting traffic without client configuration, typically redirecting HTTP (port 80) or HTTPS (port 443) to a proxy port on the firewall. In Palo Alto Networks NGFWs, when configuring a NAT rule for a transparent proxy, the standard translated port is 8080 (Option C), commonly used for proxy services. This port is where the firewall redirects client traffic for processing (e.g., URL filtering or decryption) before forwarding it to the destination.

Option A (80) is the original HTTP port, not a proxy port. Option B (443) is for HTTPS, not transparent proxy redirection. Option D (4443) is non-standard and unrelated. Documentation and best practices confirm 8080 for this use case.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/certificate-management/configure-an-ssltls-service-profile

A Panorama upgrade can fail if expired certificates (Option D) prevent secure communication with update servers or managed devices. Certificates (e.g., device certificates) must be valid for the upgrade process to proceed.

Option A (GlobalProtect) is unrelated to Panorama upgrades. Option B (outdated plugins) may cause compatibility issues post-upgrade, not install failure. Option C (management-only mode) doesn’t block upgrades. Documentation lists certificate expiration as a common issue.

The vsysadmin role in Palo Alto Networks firewalls is a virtual system (vsys)-specific administrative role with limited privileges. It can commit changes to the candidate configuration of the assigned vsys (Option B) and create/edit Security policies and profiles specific to that vsys (Option C). This role is designed for multi-tenant environments where administrators manage only their assigned virtual systems.

Option A (configure resource limits) is a superuser or device-level task, not within vsysadmin’s scope. Option D (configure interfaces) is also outside vsysadmin’s permissions, as interface management is a device-wide function. Official documentation defines these privileges clearly.

The compare option for a specific rule in the New App Viewer under Policy Optimizer allows an administrator to compare the applications configured in the rule with the applications seen from traffic matching the same rule. This helps the administrator to identify any new applications that are not explicitly defined in the rule, but are implicitly allowed by the firewall based on the dependencies of the configured applications. The compare option also shows the usage statistics and risk levels of the applications, and provides suggestions for optimizing the rule by adding, removing, or replacing applications12. References: New App Viewer (Policy Optimizer), PCNSE Study Guide (page 47)

The cause of the unsecured website warnings is that the forward trust certificate has not been signed by the self-signed root CA certificate. The forward trust certificate is used by the firewall to generate a copy of the server certificate for outbound SSL decryption (SSL Forward Proxy). The firewall signs the copy with the forward trust certificate and presents it to the client. The client then verifies the signature using the public key of the CA that issued the forward trust certificate. If the client does not trust the CA, it will display a warning message. Therefore, the forward trust certificate must be signed by a CA that is trusted by the client. In this case, the administrator has installed the self-signed root CA certificate in all client systems, so this CA should be used to sign the forward trust certificate. However, as shown in the screenshot, the forward trust certificate has a different issuer than the self-signed root CA certificate, which means it has not been signed by it. This causes the client to reject the signature and show a warning message. To fix this issue, the administrator should generate a new forward trust certificate and sign it with the self-signed root CA certificate12. References: Keys and Certificates for Decryption Policies, How to Configure SSL Decryption

TIPS & TRICKS: REDUCING MANAGEMENT PLANE LOAD:

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClSvCAK

TIPS & TRICKS: REDUCING MANAGEMENT PLANE LOAD—PART 2:

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClU4CAK

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClGJCA0

To determine which sources an engineer can use to gather information about application patterns for creating custom signatures, let’s analyze each option based on PAN-OS 11.0 documentation and typical network troubleshooting practices.

A. Traffic Logs

Why It’s Correct:

Traffic logs in PAN-OS provide details about all traffic flowing through the firewall, including:

Application details.

Source and destination IPs.

Ports used.

This data is essential for identifying patterns, such as specific ports, protocols, or behaviors associated with an application.

How to Use:

Navigate to Monitor > Logs > Traffic in the web interface.

Look for the relevant application traffic and note recurring patterns.

Documentation Reference:

PAN-OS 11.0 Admin Guide, Logging and Reporting Section: Discusses traffic logs as a resource for application and behavior analysis.

B. Data Filtering Logs

Why It’s Incorrect:

Data filtering logs focus on inspecting files, data patterns, or sensitive information such as credit card numbers. These logs are not designed for gathering application-specific traffic patterns.

Documentation Reference:

PAN-OS 11.0 Admin Guide: Details how data filtering logs are used for content inspection, not for creating application signatures.

C. Policy Optimizer

Why It’s Incorrect:

Policy Optimizer helps refine security policies by identifying unused or overly permissive rules. It does not provide information about traffic patterns for applications.

Documentation Reference:

PAN-OS 11.0 Admin Guide, Policy Optimization Section: Focuses on rule management rather than traffic pattern analysis.

D. Wireshark

Why It’s Correct:

Wireshark is a powerful network protocol analyzer that captures and analyzes traffic at a granular level. Engineers can:

Identify application-specific headers or payloads.

Examine protocol behaviors.

Spot unique signatures in application traffic.

How to Use:

Capture traffic flowing to/from the application using a span or mirrored port on the switch or firewall.

Analyze the captured packets for recurring patterns (e.g., specific headers or payload data).

Documentation Reference:

While not directly mentioned in PAN-OS documentation, Wireshark is commonly recommended as a tool for packet analysis in custom application signature creation.

Summary of Correct Choices

Traffic Logs:

Provides a high-level view of application behavior and network patterns.

Wireshark:

Allows deep packet inspection and analysis for identifying unique application behaviors.

PAN-OS 11.0 Study Guide References

PCNSA Study Guide:

Domain 3: Policy Evaluation and Management:

Discusses using traffic logs to refine policies and understand application behavior.

PCNSE Study Guide:

Domain 4: Securing Traffic:

Emphasizes tools like Wireshark for advanced traffic and application analysis.

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClRdCAK

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/url-filtering/configure-url-filtering

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/pan-os/10-2/pan-os-admin/url-filtering/allow-password-access-to-certain-sites#id7e63ce07-8b30-4506-a1e3-5800303954e8

The type of policy in Palo Alto Networks firewalls that can use Device-ID as a match condition is QoS. This is because Device-ID is a feature that allows the firewall to identify and classify devices on the network based on their characteristics, such as vendor, model, OS, and role1. QoS policies are used to allocate bandwidth and prioritize traffic based on various criteria, such as application, user, source, destination, and device2. By using Device-ID as a match condition in QoS policies, the firewall can apply different QoS actions to different types of devices, such as IoT devices, laptops, smartphones, etc3. This can help optimize the network performance and ensure the quality of service for critical applications and devices.

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/panorama/9-1/panorama-admin/panorama-overview/centralized-firewall-configuration-and-update-management/device-groups/device-group-hierarchy

https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/wildfire/10-2/wildfire-admin/wildfire-overview/wildfire-concepts/verdicts

Each WildFire cloud—global (U.S.), regional, and private—analyzes samples and generates WildFire verdicts independently of the other WildFire clouds. With the exception of WildFire private cloud verdicts, WildFire verdicts are shared globally, enabling WildFire users to access a worldwide database of threat data. https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/wildfire/10-1/wildfire-admin/wildfire-overview/wildfire-concepts/verdicts.html

If you have clients running multi-user systems in a Windows environment, such as Microsoft Terminal Server or Citrix Metaframe Presentation Server or XenApp, Configure the Palo Alto Networks Terminal Server (TS) Agent for User Mapping

When using certificate authentication for firewall administration on Palo Alto Networks devices, the method used for authorization is typically the Local database. Certificate authentication ensures that the entity attempting to access the firewall is in possession of a valid certificate. Once the certificate is validated for authentication, the authorization process determines what level of access or permissions the authenticated entity has. This is usually managed locally on the firewall, where administrators can define roles and permissions associated with different users or certificates. Thus, the authorization process, in this case, leverages the Local database to enforce access controls and permissions, aligning with best practices for secure management of network devices.

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClF4CAK

The image shows an IKE Gateway configuration where Site B is set to IKEv1 only mode, and passive mode is not enabled. For dynamic peering to work when Site A is using a DHCP assigned address:

Passive mode on Site A needs to be disabled. In passive mode, the firewall will not initiate the IKE negotiation and will only respond to negotiation requests from the peer. Since Site A has a dynamic IP, it must be able to initiate the connection to Site B, which has a static IP.

Matching the IKE version between Site A and Site B is also necessary for successful IPSec tunnel establishment. Since Site B is set to IKEv1 only mode, Site A also needs to be configured to use IKEv1 to ensure that both sites are using the same version for the IKE negotiation process.

NAT Traversal is used when there are NAT devices between the two endpoints, but there's no indication that this is the case here. Additionally, local identification on Site A is not necessarily related to the issue with dynamic peering not working.

 The correct packet-flow sequence is C. PBF > Static route > Security policy enforcement. This sequence describes the order of operations that the firewall performs when processing a packet. PBF stands for Policy-Based Forwarding, which is a feature that allows the firewall to override the routing table and forward traffic based on the source and destination addresses, application, user, or service. PBF is evaluated before the static route lookup, which is the default method of forwarding traffic based on the destination address and the longest prefix match. Security policy enforcement is the stage where the firewall applies the security policy rules to allow or block traffic based on various criteria, such as zone, address, port, user, application, etc12. References: Policy-Based Forwarding, Packet Flow Sequence in PAN-OS

The timer that determines the frequency between packets sent to verify that the HA functionality on the other HA firewall is operational is the Hello Interval. The Hello Interval is the interval in milliseconds between hello packets that are sent to check the HA status of the peer firewall. The default value for the Hello Interval is 8000 ms for all platforms, and the range is 8000-60000 ms. If the firewall does not receive a hello packet from its peer within the specified interval, it will declare the peer as failed and initiate a failover12. References: HA Timers, Layer 3 High Availability with Optimal Failover Times Best Practices

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) and Virtual Machine (VM) environments, such as Citrix XenApp and XenDesktop or VMWare Horizon and Vcenter, support access natively through HTML5. You can RDP, VNC, or SSH to these machines through Clientless VPN without requiring additional third-party middleware. In environments that do not include native support for HTML5 or other web application technologies supported by Clientless VPN, you can use third-party vendors, such as Thinfinity, to RDP through Clientless VPN. Reference: https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/globalprotect/10-1/globalprotect-admin/globalprotect-clientless-vpn/supported-technologies

https://networkwiki.blogspot.com/2017/03/palo-alto-networks-clientless-vpn-and.html

The AIOps Plugin for Panorama enhances security management by proactively validating commits against best practices (Option B). It analyzes policies, provides recommendations (e.g., unused rules, misconfigurations), and advises administrators before pushing changes, improving security posture without automatic enforcement.

Option A (auto-push) overstates its role; it advises, not pushes. Option C (auto-correct) is inaccurate; it suggests, not fixes. Option D (retroactive checks) misaligns with its proactive design. Documentation highlights its advisory function.

https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/KCSArticleDetail?id=kA10g000000ClG2CAK