hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
PCNSA Practice Question: A network administrator is designing a Palo Alto…
A network administrator is designing a Palo Alto Networks firewall deployment for a large enterprise with multiple branch offices. The requirement is to ensure that if the primary firewall at headquarters fails, the branch offices can still access the internet via a local breakout using a redundant firewall at the branch. Which architecture best meets this requirement with minimal complexity?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates assume hub-and-spoke (Option A) is sufficient for redundancy, overlooking that it fails to provide local internet breakout when the hub fails, which is the core requirement for branch internet access continuity.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Deploy active/passive HA at headquarters and active/passive HA at each branch with local internet breakout
Deploying active/passive HA at each branch with local internet breakout ensures that if the primary firewall at headquarters fails, branch offices can still access the internet directly through their redundant firewall without relying on the hub. This design minimizes complexity by using simple HA pairs and local breakout policies, avoiding the need for complex routing or full mesh VPNs.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use a hub-and-spoke VPN topology with headquarters as the hub
Why it's wrong here
Hub-and-spoke forces all branch traffic through headquarters, which does not meet the local breakout requirement.
- ✓
Deploy active/passive HA at headquarters and active/passive HA at each branch with local internet breakout
Why this is correct
This provides redundancy for both locations and allows branch offices to break out locally to the internet.
- ✗
Use a full mesh VPN topology between all firewalls
Why it's wrong here
Full mesh VPN adds complexity and does not inherently provide local internet breakout.
- ✗
Deploy active/active HA at headquarters and use IPsec VPN tunnels to each branch
Why it's wrong here
Active/active HA does not provide local breakout; branch traffic would still go through headquarters via VPN.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCNSA practice question is part of Courseiva's free Palo Alto Networks certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the PCNSA exam.