Paloalto Networks PCSFE - Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE)

Tags allow a VM-Series firewall to adapt Security policy rules dynamically in a virtual environment. Tags are labels or identifiers that can be assigned to virtual machines (VMs), containers, or other resources in a virtual environment. Tags can be used to group resources based on various criteria, such as application, function, location, owner, or security posture. A VM-Series firewall can leverage tags to populate Dynamic Address Groups and update Security policies accordingly, without requiring manual changes. Tags do not enable machine learning (ML), integrate with security information and event management (SIEM) solutions, or provide adaptive reporting, but they are related features that can enhance security and visibility. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Tagging Overview], [Dynamic Address Groups Overview]

The two deployment modes of VM-Series firewalls that are supported across NSX-T are:

Bootstrap

Service Cluster

NSX-T is a software-defined network (SDN) solution that provides network virtualization, automation, and security for cloud-native applications. Bootstrap is a method of deploying and configuring VM-Series firewalls in NSX-T using a bootstrap package that contains the initial setup information, such as licenses, certificates, software updates, and configuration files. Service Cluster is a mode of deploying VM-Series firewalls in NSX-T as a group of firewalls that act as a single logical firewall to provide scalability and high availability. Prism Central, Host-based, and Service Insertion are not deployment modes of VM-Series firewalls in NSX-T, but they are related concepts that can be used for other purposes. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall on NSX-T], [Bootstrap the VM-Series Firewall for NSX-T], [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall as a Service Cluster on NSX-T]

Deployment of the NSX Distributed Firewall (DFW) must be configured in an NSX environment to ensure proper operation of a VM-Series firewall in order to secure east-west traffic. East-west traffic is the traffic that flows between applications or workloads within a network or a cloud environment. NSX environment is a private cloud environment that provides software-defined networking (SDN) and security for heterogeneous endpoints and workloads across multiple hypervisors, containers, bare metal servers, or clouds. NSX DFW is a feature that provides distributed stateful firewalling at the hypervisor level for every virtual machine (VM) in an NSX environment. Deployment of the NSX DFW must be configured in an NSX environment to ensure proper operation of a VM-Series firewall in order to secure east-west traffic by enabling features such as service insertion, policy redirection, service chaining, orchestration, monitoring, logging, and automation for VM-Series firewalls and Panorama on NSX environment. VMware Information Sources, User-ID agent on a Windows domain server, and device groups within VMware Services Manager do not need to be configured in an NSX environment to ensure proper operation of a VM-Series firewall in order to secure east-west traffic, as those are not required or relevant components for NSX integration. References: [Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE)], [Deploy the VM-Series Firewall on VMware NSX-T], [What is VMware NSX-T?], [What is NSX Distributed Firewall?]

The appropriate file format for Kubernetes applications is .yaml. YAML is a human-readable data serialization language that is commonly used for configuration files. Kubernetes applications are defined and deployed using YAML files that specify the desired state and configuration of the application components, such as pods, services, deployments, or ingresses. YAML files for Kubernetes applications follow a specific syntax and structure that adhere to the Kubernetes API specifications. .exe, .json, and .xml are not appropriate file formats for Kubernetes applications, but they are related formats that can be used for other purposes. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [What is YAML?], [Kubernetes Basics], [Kubernetes API Overview]

A design consideration for a prospect who wants to deploy VM-Series firewalls in an Amazon Web Services (AWS) environment is that only active-passive high availability (HA) is supported. High availability (HA) is a feature that provides redundancy and failover protection for firewalls in case of hardware or software failure. Active-passive HA is a mode of HA that consists of two firewalls in a pair, where one firewall is active and handles all traffic, while the other firewall is passive and acts as a backup. Active-passive HA is the only mode of HA that is supported for VM-Series firewalls in an AWS environment, due to the limitations of AWS networking and routing. Active-active HA, which is another mode of HA that consists of two firewalls in a pair that both handle traffic and synchronize sessions, is not supported for VM-Series firewalls in an AWS environment. A design consideration for a prospect who wants to deploy VM-Series firewalls in an AWS environment is not that special AWS plugins are needed for load balancing, resources are shared within the cluster, or high availability (HA) clusters are limited to fewer than 8 virtual appliances, as those are not valid or relevant factors for firewall deployment in an AWS environment. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [High Availability Overview], [High Availability on AWS]

The two features of CN-Series firewalls that protect east-west traffic between pods in different trust zones are:

Intrusion prevention system

Layer 7 visibility

East-west traffic is the traffic that flows between applications or workloads within a network or a cloud environment. Pods are the smallest units of deployment in Kubernetes, consisting of one or more containers that share resources and network space. Trust zones are segments of the network or the cloud environment that have different levels of security requirements or policies based on data sensitivity, user identity, device type, or application function. CN-Series firewalls are containerized firewalls that integrate with Kubernetes and provide visibility and control over container traffic. Intrusion prevention system is a feature of CN-Series firewalls that protects east-west traffic between pods in different trust zones by detecting and blocking known exploits and vulnerabilities using signature-based and behavior-based methods. Layer 7 visibility is a feature of CN-Series firewalls that protects east-west traffic between pods in different trust zones by identifying and classifying applications and protocols based on their content and characteristics, regardless of port, encryption, or evasion techniques. Communication with Panorama and external load balancer are not features of CN-Series firewalls that protect east-west traffic between pods in different trust zones, but they are related features that can enhance management and performance. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [CN-Series Concepts], [CN-Series Deployment Guide for Native K8], [Intrusion Prevention System Overview], [App-ID Overview]

To integrate a Palo Alto Networks VM-Series firewall with Azure Orchestration, you need an API Key. The API Key is used to authenticate and authorize requests from Azure Orchestration to the VM-Series firewall. The API Key is generated on the VM-Series firewall and copied to Azure Orchestration. References: [Azure Orchestration Integration with Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Firewalls]

The two routing options that are supported by VM-Series are:

OSPF

BGP

Routing is a process that determines the best path for sending network packets from a source to a destination. Routing options are protocols or methods that enable routing between different networks or devices. VM-Series firewall is a virtualized version of the Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewall that can be deployed on various cloud or virtualization platforms. VM-Series firewall supports various routing options that allow it to participate in dynamic routing environments and exchange routing information with other routers or devices. OSPF and BGP are two routing options that are supported by VM-Series. OSPF is a routing option that uses link-state routing algorithm to determine the shortest path between routers within an autonomous system (AS). BGP is a routing option that uses path vector routing algorithm to determine the best path between routers across different autonomous systems (ASes). RIP and IGRP are not routing options that are supported by VM-Series, but they are related protocols that can be used for other purposes. References: [Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE)], [VM-Series Deployment Guide], [Routing Overview], [What is OSPF?], [What is BGP?]

CN-Series high availability (HA) pair is the best solution for securing an EKS environment. EKS is a managed service that allows users to run Kubernetes clusters on AWS. CN-Series is a containerized firewall that integrates with Kubernetes and provides visibility and control over container traffic. CN-Series HA pair consists of two CN-Series firewalls deployed in active-passive mode to provide redundancy and failover protection. VM-Series single host, PA-Series using load sharing, and API orchestration are not optimal solutions for securing an EKS environment, as they do not offer the same level of integration, scalability, and automation as CN-Series. References: Palo Alto Networks Certified Software Firewall Engineer (PCSFE), [CN-Series Deployment Guide for AWS EKS], [CN-Series Datasheet]