Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Engineer
(PCNSE)
Exam Blueprint
We are currently updating the PCNSE exam. The new exam will be live in May 2022. Candidates should
reference this Blueprint for the upcoming exam.
Domain Weight (%)
Core Concepts 12%
Deploy and Configure Core Components 20%
Deploy and Configure Features and Subscriptions 17%
Deploy and Configure Firewalls Using Panorama 17%
Manage and Operate 16%
Troubleshooting 18%
Domain 1 Core Concepts 12%
Task 1.1 Identify how Palo Alto Networks products work together to
improve PAN-OS services
1.1.1 Security components
1.1.2 Firewall components
1.1.3 Panorama components
1.1.4 PAN-OS subscriptions and the features they enable
1.1.5 Plug-in components
1.1.6 Heatmap and BPA reports
Task 1.2 Determine and assess appropriate interface types for various
environments
1.2.1 Layer 2 interfaces
1.2.2 Layer 3 interfaces
1.2.3 vWire interfaces
1.2.4 Tap interfaces
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1.2.5 Subinterfaces
1.2.6 Tunnel interfaces
1.2.7 Aggregate interfaces
1.2.8 Loopback interfaces
1.2.9 Decrypt mirror interfaces
1.2.10 VLAN interfaces
Task 1.3 Identify decryption deployment strategies
1.3.1 Risks and implications of enabling decryption
1.3.2 Use cases
1.3.3 Decryption types
1.3.4 Decryption profiles and certificates
1.3.5 Create decryption policy in the firewall
1.3.6 Configure SSH proxy
Task 1.4 Enforce User-ID
1.4.1 Methods of building user-to-IP mappings
1.4.2 Determine if User-ID agent or agentless should be used
1.4.3 Compare and contrast User-ID agents
1.4.4 Methods of User-ID redistribution
1.4.5 Methods of group mapping
1.4.6 Server profile & authentication profile
Task 1.5 Determine when to use the Authentication policy and methods
for doing so
1.5.1 Purpose of, and use case for, the Authentication policy
1.5.2 Dependencies
1.5.3 Captive portal versus GP client
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Task 1.6 Differentiate between the fundamental functions that reside on
the management plane and data plane.
Domain 2 Deploy and Configure Core Components 20%
Task 2.1 Configure management profiles
2.1.1 Interface management profile
2.1.2 SSL/TLS profile
Task 2.2 Deploy and configure Security profiles
2.2.1 Custom configuration of different Security profiles and Security
profile groups
2.2.2 Relationship between URL filtering and credential theft prevention
2.2.3 Use of username and domain name in HTTP header insertion
2.2.4 DNS Security
2.2.5 How to tune or add exceptions to a Security profile
2.2.6 Compare and contrast threat prevention and advanced threat
prevention
2.2.7 Compare and contrast URL Filtering and Advanced URL Filtering
Task 2.3 Configure zone protection, packet buffer protection, and DoS
protection
Task 2.4 Define the initial design/deployment configuration of a Palo Alto
Networks firewall
2.4.1 Considerations for advanced HA deployments
2.4.2 Implement a high availability pair
2.4.3 Implement Zero Touch Provisioning
2.4.4 Configure bootstrapping
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Task 2.5 Configure authorization, authentication and device access
2.5.1 Role-based access control for authorization
2.5.2 Different methods used to authenticate
2.5.3 The authentication sequence
2.5.4 The device access method
Task 2.6 Configure and manage certificates
2.6.1 Certificate usage
2.6.2 Certificate profiles
2.6.3 Certificate chains
Task 2.7 Configure routing
2.7.1 Dynamic routing
2.7.2 Redistribution profiles
2.7.3 Static routes
2.7.4 Route monitoring
2.7.5 Policy-based forwarding
2.7.6 Virtual router versus. logical router
Task 2.8 Configure NAT
2.8.1 NAT policy rules
2.8.2 Security rules
2.8.3 Sourcenet
2.8.4 No NAT
2.8.5 Use session browser to find NAT rule name
2.8.6 U-Turn NAT
2.8.7 Check HIT counts
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Task 2.9 Configure site-to-site tunnels
2.9.1 IPSec components
2.9.2 Static peers and dynamic peers for IPSec
2.9.3 IPSec tunnel monitor profiles
2.9.4 IPSec tunnel testing
2.9.5 GRE
2.9.6 One-to-one and one-to-many tunnels
2.9.7 Determine when to use proxy IDs
Task 2.10 Configure service routes
2.10.1 Default service routes
2.10.2 Custom service routes
2.10.3 Destination service routes
2.10.4 Custom routes for different VSYS versus destination routes
2.10.5 How to verify service routes
Task 2.11 Configure application-based QoS
2.15.1 Enablement requirements
2.15.2 QoS policy rule
2.15.3 Add DSCP/TOS component
2.15.4 QoS profile
2.15.5 Determine how to control bandwidth use on a per-application basis
2.15.6 Use QoS to monitor bandwidth utilization
Domain 3 Deploy and Configure Features and Subscriptions 17%
Task 3.1 Configure App-ID
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3.1.1 Create security rules with App-ID
3.1.2 Convert port and protocol rules to App-ID rules
3.1.3 Identify the impact of application override to the overall functionality
of the firewall
3.1.4 Create custom apps and threats
3.1.5 Review App-ID dependencies
Task 3.2 Configure GlobalProtect
3.2.1 GlobalProtect licensing
3.2.2 Configure gateway and portal
3.2.3 GlobalProtect agent
3.2.4 Differentiate between login methods
3.2.5 Configure clientless VPN
3.2.6 HIP
3.2.7 Configure multiple gateway agent profiles
3.2.8 Split tunneling
Task 3.3 Configure decryption
3.3.1 Inbound decryption
3.3.2 SSL forward proxy
3.3.3 SSL decryption exclusions
3.3.4 SSH proxy
Task 3.4 Configure User-ID
3.4.1 User-ID agent and agentless
3.4.2 User-ID group mapping
3.4.3 Shared User-ID mapping across virtual systems
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3.4.4 Data redistribution
3.4.5 User-ID methods
3.4.6 Benefits of using dynamic user groups in policy rules
3.4.7 Requirements to support dynamic user groups
3.4.8 How GlobalProtect internal and external gateways can be used
Task 3.5 Configure WildFire
3.5.1 Configure WildFire submission profile and add it to the security rule
3.5.2 Configure WildFire action profile and add it to the security rule
3.5.3 Review the WildFire submissions and verdicts
3.5.4 Review WildFire signature actions
3.5.5 Supported file types and file sizes
3.5.6 Configure WildFire update schedule
3.5.7 Configure forwarding decrypted traffic to WildFire
Domain 4 Deploy and Configure Firewalls Using Panorama 17%
Task 4.1 Configure templates and template stacks
4.1.1 Components configured in a template
4.1.2 How the order of templates in a stack affects the configuration push
to a firewall
4.1.3 Overriding a template value in a stack
4.1.4 Configure variables in templates
4.1.5 Relationship between Panorama and devices as pertaining to
dynamic updates versions, policy implementation and/or HA peers
Task 4.2 Configure device groups
4.2.1 Device group hierarchies
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4.2.2 Identify what device groups contain
4.2.3 Differentiate between different use cases for pre-rules, local rules,
the default rules and post-rules
4.2.4 Identify the impact of configuring a primary device
4.2.5 Assign firewalls to device groups
Task 4.3 Manage firewall configurations within Panorama
4.3.1 Licensing
4.3.2 Panorama commit recovery feature
4.3.3 Configuration settings for Panorama automatic commit recovery
4.3.4 Commit types and schedules
4.3.5 Config backups
4.3.6 Software and dynamic updates
4.3.7 Import firewall configuration into Panorama
4.3.8 Configure log collectors
4.3.9 Check firewall health and status from Panorama
4.3.10 Configure role-based access on Panorama
Domain 5 Manage and Operate 16%
Task 5.1 Manage and configure Log Forwarding
5.1.1 Identify log types and criticalities
5.1.2 Manage external services
5.1.3 Create and manage tags
5.1.4 Identify system and traffic issues using the web interface and CLI
tools
5.1.5 Configure Log Forwarding profile and device log settings
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5.1.6 Log monitoring
5.1.7 Customize logging and reporting settings
Task 5.2 Plan and execute the process to upgrade a Palo Alto Networks
system
5.2.1 Update a single firewall
5.2.2 Update high availability pairs
5.2.3 Perform Panorama push
5.2.4 Schedule and manage dynamic updates
Task 5.3 Manage HA functions
5.3.1 Link monitoring
5.3.2 Path monitoring
5.3.3 HA links
5.3.4 Failover
5.3.5 Active/active and active/passive
5.3.6 HA interfaces
5.3.7 Clustering
5.3.8 Election setting
Domain 6 Troubleshooting 18%
Task 6.1 Troubleshoot site-to-site tunnels
6.1.1 IPSec
6.1.2 GRE
6.1.3 One-to-one and one-to-many tunnels
6.1.4 Route-based versus policy-based remote hosts
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6.1.5 Tunnel monitoring
Task 6.2 Troubleshoot interfaces
6.2.1 Transceivers
6.2.2 Settings
6.2.3 Aggregate interfaces, LACP
6.2.4 Counters
6.2.5 Tagging
Task 6.3 Troubleshoot Decryption
6.3.1 Inbound decryption
6.3.2 SSL forward proxy
6.3.3 SSH proxy
6.3.4 Identify what cannot be decrypted and configure exclusions and
bypasses
6.3.5 Certificates
Task 6.4 Troubleshoot routing
6.4.1 Dynamic routing
6.4.2 Redistribution profiles
6.4.3 Static routes
6.4.4 Route monitoring
6.4.5 Policy-based forwarding
6.4.6 Multicast routing
6.4.7 Service routes
Task 6.5 Use logs, reports, and graphs to troubleshoot
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6.5.1 Identify system and traffic issues using the web interface and CLI
tools
6.5.2 Create and interpret reports
6.5.3 Create and interpret graphs
Task 6.6 Troubleshoot resource protections
6.6.1 Zone protection profiles
6.6.2 Denial-of-service protections
6.6.3 Packet buffer protections
Task 6.7 Troubleshoot GlobalProtect
6.7.1 Portal and Gateway
6.7.2 Access to resources
6.7.3 GlobalProtect client
Task 6.8 Troubleshoot policies
6.8.1 NAT policies
6.8.2 Security policies
6.8.3 Decryption policies
6.8.4 Authentication policies
Task 6.9 Troubleshoot HA functions
6.9.1 Monitor
6.9.2 Failover triggers
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