PSE-SoftwareFirewall Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer (PSE): Software Firewall Professional Questions and Answers

The number of required flex credits for a VM-Series firewall primarily depends on the vCPU allocation. Flex credits are used to license VM-Series firewalls, and the number of credits required is determined by the number of virtual CPUs (vCPUs) allocated to the firewall. Higher vCPU allocations provide greater performance capabilities and thus require more flex credits.

References:

Palo Alto Networks Licensing Guide: VM-Series Licensing

Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Datasheet: VM-Series Datasheet

Geneve (Generic Network Virtualization Encapsulation) is the protocol used for communication between VM-Series firewalls and a Gateway Load Balancer (GWLB) in AWS. Geneve provides a flexible encapsulation method and is specifically supported for integrating with AWS GWLB to ensure seamless traffic flow and security inspection.

References:

AWS Gateway Load Balancer Documentation:AWS GWLB

Palo Alto Networks Integration Guide: Integrating VM-Series with AWS GWLB

Using the Heartbeat Backup:

The heartbeat backup is a mechanism that helps to prevent split-brain scenarios in a high availability (HA) configuration by providing an additional path for heartbeatcommunication. This ensures that both firewalls in the HA pair are aware of each other's status.

OpenShift:

The CN-Series firewall supports deployment in Red Hat OpenShift environments. OpenShift is a Kubernetes-based container platform that provides a comprehensive solution for container orchestration.

NAT (Network Address Translation) protects and hides an internal network in an outbound flow by translating internal private IP addresses to a public IP address. This process masks the internal IP addresses from external networks, providing security and privacy for the internal network. NAT is commonly used in outbound traffic to allow multiple devices on a local network to communicate with external networks while appearing as a single IP address.

References:

Palo Alto Networks NAT Configuration Guide: NAT Configuration

Palo Alto Networks Concepts: NAT

The Cloud NGFW by Palo Alto Networks is a managed cloud service designed to provide advanced network security capabilities within AWS deployments. This service leverages Palo Alto Networks’ technology to deliver scalable and comprehensive security without the need for users to manage the infrastructure themselves. It is ideal for organizations looking to integrate robust security within their cloud environments efficiently.

References:

Palo Alto Networks Cloud NGFW for AWS: Cloud NGFW for AWS

AWS Marketplace:Cloud NGFW for AWS

Containers are typically designed to run a specific application or service, meaning they have a limited and well-defined set of processes. This makes it easier to implement and manage runtime security based on allow lists, as any deviation from the expected processes can be quickly identified and mitigated.

Reference: Security best practices for container environments emphasize the use of allow lists to enforce runtime security, leveraging the predictable nature of container processes.

Palo Alto Networks Container Security Guide

YAML File Structure:

The structure of a YAML file repository for managing configurations typically follows the order of Kubernetes/Deployment_Type/Environment. This hierarchy ensures that the configurations are organized logically, with Kubernetes-specific settings at the top level, followed by the type of deployment, and then the specific environment.

Ping monitoring:

This mechanism involves monitoring the reachability of a specified IP address. If the firewall cannot ping the address, it may trigger a failover.

Creating a New Virtual Switch:

By creating a new virtual switch, you can segment the network within the ESXi environment. The VM-Series firewall can then be used to provide security controls between these virtual switches using virtual wire mode.

CN-Series devices obtain a VM-Series authorization key from Panorama. Panorama is the centralized management platform for Palo Alto Networks firewalls, including CN-Series and VM-Series. It provides the necessary authorization keys and other configurations to ensure proper deployment and operation of the firewalls.

References:

Palo Alto Networks Panorama Documentation: Panorama Overview

Palo Alto Networks CN-Series Setup Guide: CN-Series Setup

For automating the deployment of VM-Series firewalls from NSX Manager, Panorama must be configured to recognize and communicate with both the NSX Manager and vCenter. This ensures that Panorama can manage the firewall policies and orchestration efficiently.

Palo Alto Networks has deep integrations with:

Cisco ACI:Integration with Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) allows for automated security provisioning and enforcement within the Cisco data center environment, leveraging the tight coupling of network and security policies.

VMware NSX-T:Integration with VMware NSX-T enables advanced security features and visibility within VMware's software-defined data center (SDDC) environment, facilitating automated security policies and enforcement across virtualized workloads.

References:

Palo Alto Networks Integration with Cisco ACI: Cisco ACI Integration

Palo Alto Networks Integration with VMware NSX-T: VMware NSX-T Integration

For deploying VM-Series firewalls in high availability (HA), it is crucial to ensure that both firewalls in the HA pair have identical licenses and subscriptions to ensure feature parity and uninterrupted service during failover. Additionally, both firewalls must be deployed on the same type of hypervisor to ensure compatibility and proper synchronization of state and configurations between the active and passive units.

References:

Palo Alto Networks High Availability Guide: HA Requirements

Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Deployment Guide: High Availability

When using Terraform templates with a Cloud next-generation firewall (NGFW) for Amazon Web Services (AWS), you must enable access to the Cloud NGFW for AWS console to manage and deploy firewall resources effectively:

Access to the Cloud NGFW for AWS console: This access is crucial for the initial setup, configuration, and ongoing management of the Cloud NGFW resources. Terraform templates automate the provisioning and management of these resources, but initial access to the console is necessary to configure and retrieve necessary information (such as API keys and configuration details) for the Terraform scripts.

VM-Series qcow2 image:

The qcow2 image format is commonly used in OpenStack environments. The VM-Series firewalls are provided in the qcow2 format for compatibility with OpenStack.