PSE-SWFW-Pro-24 Exam Dumps - Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall

This question asks about common characteristics of Cloud NGFW (specifically referring to Cloud NGFW for AWS and Azure) and VM-Series firewalls.

B. In Azure and AWS, both offerings can be managed by Panorama. This is correct. Panorama is the centralized management platform for Palo Alto Networks firewalls, including both VM-Series and Cloud NGFW deployments in AWS and Azure. Panorama allows for consistent policy management, logging, and reporting across these different deployment models.  

D. In Azure, inbound destination NAT configuration also requires source NAT to maintain flow symmetry. This is accurate specifically within the Azure environment. Due to how Azure networking functions, when performing destination NAT (DNAT) for inbound traffic to resources behind a firewall (whether VM-Series or Cloud NGFW), it's typically necessary to also implement source NAT (SNAT) to ensure return traffic follows the same path. This maintains flow symmetry and prevents routing issues. This is an Azure networking characteristic, not specific to the Palo Alto offerings themselves, but it applies to both in Azure.  

E. In Azure and AWS, internal (east-west) flows can be inspected without any NAT. This is generally true. For traffic within the same Virtual Network (Azure) or VPC (AWS), both VM-Series and Cloud NGFW can inspect traffic without requiring NAT. This is a key advantage for microsegmentation and internal security. The firewalls can act as transparent security gateways for internal traffic.

Why other options are incorrect:

A. In Azure, both offerings can be integrated directly into Virtual WAN hubs. While VM-Series firewalls can be integrated into Azure Virtual WAN hubs as secured virtual hubs, Cloud NGFW for Azure is not directly integrated into Virtual WAN hubs in the same way. Cloud NGFW for Azure uses a different architecture, deploying as a service within a virtual network.  

C. In AWS, both offerings can be managed by AWS Firewall Manager. AWS Firewall Manager is a service for managing AWS WAF, AWS Shield, and network firewalls (AWS Network Firewall). While AWS Firewall Manager can be used to manage AWS Network Firewall, it is not the management plane for Palo Alto Networks VM-Series or Cloud NGFW for AWS. These are managed by Panorama.  

Palo Alto Networks References:

To validate these points, refer to the following documentation areas on the Palo Alto Networks support site (live.paloaltonetworks.com):

Panorama Administrator's Guide: This guide details the management capabilities of Panorama, including managing VM-Series and Cloud NGFW deployments in AWS and Azure.  

Cloud NGFW for AWS/Azure Documentation: This documentation outlines the architecture and deployment models of Cloud NGFW, including its management and integration with cloud platforms.

VM-Series Deployment Guides for AWS/Azure: These guides describe the deployment and configuration of VM-Series firewalls in AWS and Azure, including networking considerations and integration with cloud services.

Palo Alto Networks provides various reference architectures for deploying VM-Series firewalls in different cloud environments. Let's examine the options:

A. Cloud NGFW for AWS: Combined Model: While Cloud NGFW is an offering, the term "Combined Model" isn't a standard, documented reference architecture name. Cloud NGFW for AWS focuses on simplified deployment and management but doesn't use this specific terminology for its deployment models.

B. AWS VM-Series: Isolated Transit Gateway: This is a VALID deployment model. It involves deploying VM-Series firewalls in an isolated VPC connected to AWS Transit Gateway. This provides centralized security inspection for traffic flowing between different VPCs and on-premises networks connected to the Transit Gateway.

The init-cfg.txt file configures the management interface during bootstrapping.

Why B is correct: The init-cfg.txt file is the primary configuration file used during the bootstrap process. It contains settings for the management interface (IP address, netmask, gateway, DNS), as well as other initial configurations.

Why A, C, and D are incorrect:

A. init-mgmt-cfg.txt: This file does not exist in the standard bootstrap process.

C. init-cfg.bat: This is a batch file, not a configuration file. Batch files are sometimes used to automate the deployment process, but the actual configuration is in init-cfg.txt.

D. bootstrap.bat: Similar to C, this is a batch file, not the configuration file itself.

Palo Alto Networks References: VM-Series deployment guides provide detailed instructions on the bootstrapping process and the contents of the init-cfg.txt file.

Comprehensive and Detailed In-Depth Step-by-Step Explanation:Increasing throughput for a VM-Series firewall running on VMware ESXi with flexible licensing requires adjusting virtual CPU (vCPU) resources, which impacts performance tiers. The Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall documentation outlines the process for modifying VM-Series resources to minimize downtime, particularly for flexible-license models.

Option B (Correct Answer): This order minimizes downtime by ensuring all steps are performed efficiently and safely:

Power-off the VM and increase the vCPUs within the hypervisor: Shutting down the VM-Series firewall on ESXi avoids any risk of corruption or performance issues during resource changes. Increasing vCPUs in the hypervisor (e.g., VMware vSphere) adjusts the hardware resources allocated to the VM, enabling higher throughput.

Increase the vCPU within the deployment profile: After adjusting the hypervisor, update the deployment profile in the Palo Alto Networks Customer Support Portal or Strata Cloud Manager to reflect the new vCPU count, ensuring the flexible license aligns with the updated resources.

Retrieve or fetch license keys on the VM-Series NGFW: With the vCPU change applied, the VM-Series fetches or retrieves new license keys based on the updated deployment profile, activating the higher-tier performance level (e.g., from Tier 1 to Tier 2).

Confirm the correct tier level and vCPU appear on the NGFW dashboard: After powering on and licensing, verify the VM-Series dashboard shows the updated vCPU count and corresponding performance tier, ensuring throughput increases as expected.

Power-on the VM-Series NGFW: Restart the VM to apply changes, minimizing downtime by ensuring all preparatory steps (power-off, resource adjustment, licensing) are completed before rebooting.This sequence minimizes downtime by handling resource changes offline, updating licensing, and validating the configuration before bringing the firewall back online, as recommended in the documentation for flexible licensing and VM resource adjustments.

Options A, C, and D are incorrect because they involve powering off the VM after licensing or resource changes, increasing downtime or risking configuration errors. For example, Option A powers off after increasing vCPUs in the profile and licensing, delaying the physical resource adjustment. Option C powers off after licensing, potentially causing licensing mismatches. Option D powers on the VM before licensing and profile updates, risking operational issues or downtime during reconfiguration. The documentation emphasizes minimizing downtime by completing all preparatory steps before rebooting, making Option B the optimal sequence.

References: Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall, Section: VM-Series Flexible Licensing, VMware ESXi Deployment Guide, Performance Tuning and Resource Adjustment Documentation.

The question asks about a capability common to VM-Series deployments across Azure, GCP, and AWS, as described in the "Securing Applications" design guides.

C. Horizontal scalability through cloud-native load balancers: This is the correct answer. A core concept in cloud deployments, and emphasized in the "Securing Applications" guides, is using cloud-native load balancers (like Azure Load Balancer, Google Cloud Load Balancing, and AWS Elastic Load Balancing) to distribute traffic across multiple VM-Series firewall instances. This provides horizontal scalability, high availability, and fault tolerance. This is common across all three major cloud providers.  

Why other options are incorrect:

A. BGP dynamic routing to peer with cloud and on-premises routers: While BGP is supported by VM-Series and can be used for dynamic routing in cloud environments, it is not explicitly highlighted as a common capability across all three clouds in the "Securing Applications" guides. The guides focus more on the application security aspects and horizontal scaling. Also, the specific BGP configurations and integrations can differ slightly between cloud providers.

B. GlobalProtect portal and gateway services: While GlobalProtect can be used with VM-Series in cloud environments, the "Securing Applications" guides primarily focus on securing application traffic within the cloud environment, not remote access. GlobalProtect is more relevant for remote user access or site-to-site VPNs, which are not the primary focus of these guides.

D. Site-to-site VPN: While VM-Series firewalls support site-to-site VPNs in all three clouds, this is not the core focus or common capability highlighted in the "Securing Applications" guides. These guides emphasize securing application traffic within the cloud using techniques like microsegmentation and horizontal scaling.

Palo Alto Networks References:

The key reference here is the "Securing Applications" design guides for VM-Series firewalls. These guides are available on the Palo Alto Networks support site (live.paloaltonetworks.com). Searching for "VM-Series Securing Applications" along with the name of the respective cloud provider (Azure, GCP, AWS) will usually provide the relevant guides

Comprehensive and Detailed In-Depth Step-by-Step Explanation:Cloud-Delivered Security Services (CDSS) are subscription-based services that enhance the capabilities of Palo Alto Networks firewalls, including VM-Series, CN-Series, and Cloud NGFW. The Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall documentation highlights the evolution of CDSS, with advanced versions offering significant improvements over legacy versions.

Threats are detected with inline cloud-scale machine learning (ML) (Option A): Advanced CDSS subscriptions leverage inline cloud-scale machine learning to detect and prevent threats in real time. This capability provides superior threat detection compared to legacy versions, which relied on traditional signature-based methods without the same level of ML-driven analysis. This is a key differentiator and advantage of the advanced CDSS offerings.

Options B, C, and D are incorrect. While new threat-related signature databases (Option B) and external dynamic lists (Option C) are features of CDSS, they are not unique to advanced versions and are available in legacy versions as well. Firewall throughput improvement by inspecting hashes of advanced packet headers (Option D) is not a documented advantage of advanced CDSS and does not align with the primary benefits outlined in the documentation.

References: Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall, Section: Cloud-Delivered Security Services, Advanced Threat Prevention Documentation, CDSS Comparison Guide.

Comprehensive and Detailed In-Depth Step-by-Step Explanation:In the presales phase, Palo Alto Networks employs various strategies to demonstrate the value and technical superiority of its software firewalls (e.g., VM-Series, CN-Series, Cloud NGFW) to prospective customers. The Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall documentation outlines effective presales methods to secure a technical win, focusing on customer engagement and proof of concept.

Proof of Value (POV) product evaluations (Option B): POVs are hands-on evaluations where customers can test Palo Alto Networks software firewalls in their own environment or a controlled lab setting. This method demonstrates the firewall’s capabilities, such as application visibility, threat prevention, and scalability, in real-world scenarios. The documentation highlights POVs as a critical presales tool to build confidence and secure technical wins by showcasing tangible benefits and performance metrics for software firewalls like VM-Series and Cloud NGFW.

Network Security Design workshops (Option C): These workshops involve collaboration between Palo Alto Networks engineers and the customer’s IT team to design a tailored network security architecture using software firewalls. The workshops cover multi-cloud strategies, policy enforcement, and integration with existing infrastructure, helping customers understand how VM-Series, CN-Series, or Cloud NGFW can address their specific security needs. This interactive approach is emphasized in the documentation as a key presales method to secure technical wins by aligning solutions with customer requirements.

Options A (PA-Series security lifecycle review [SLR] report) and D (Link to PAYG Cloud NGFW in the Azure Marketplace) are incorrect. PA-Series firewalls are physical appliances, not software firewalls, so an SLR report for PA-Series is irrelevant for securing a win for software firewalls like VM-Series or Cloud NGFW. A link to PAYG (Pay-As-You-Go) Cloud NGFW in the Azure Marketplace (Option D) is a deployment resource, not a presales method for demonstrating technical value or securing a win, as it focuses on deployment rather than evaluation or design.

References: Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall, Section: Presales Strategies, Proof of Value Documentation, Network Security Design Workshop Guide.

Comprehensive and Detailed In-Depth Step-by-Step Explanation:The CN-Series firewall is a containerized next-generation firewall designed to secure workloads in containerized environments, particularly those running on Kubernetes. According to the Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall documentation, the primary tool for deploying CN-Series firewalls is Kubernetes, as it integrates natively with Kubernetes clusters to provide security for containerized applications.

Kubernetes (Option B): Kubernetes is the orchestration platform used to deploy, manage, and scale CN-Series firewalls within containerized environments. It allows for dynamic scaling and integration with container workloads, ensuring security policies are applied consistently across pods and services.

Options A (GCP Automated Deployment Services), C (Docker Swarm), and D (Terraform Automated Deployment Services) are incorrect. While GCP Automated Deployment Services and Terraform can be used for automation, they are not specific to CN-Series deployment in the context of Kubernetes. Docker Swarm, while a container orchestration platform, is not supported for CN-Series firewalls, as Palo Alto Networks focuses on Kubernetes for CN-Series deployment.

References: Palo Alto Networks Systems Engineer Professional - Software Firewall, Section: CN-Series Deployment Guide, Kubernetes Integration Documentation.