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PCNSA Policy Evaluation and Management Practice Question
Drag and drop the steps to configure Active/Passive High Availability on a Palo Alto Networks firewall into the correct order.
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
✓
Configure HA interfaces (control link and data link), then Set HA mode to Active-Passive, then Configure device priority (lower value = higher priority), then Configure peer IP address, then Enable preemption and session synchronization.
HA configuration requires setting up interfaces, mode, priority, peer IP, preemption, and synchronization.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Configure HA interfaces (control link and data link), then Set HA mode to Active-Passive, then Configure device priority (lower value = higher priority), then Configure peer IP address, then Enable preemption and session synchronization.
Why this is correct
This is the correct order because HA interfaces must be set up first to enable communication, then the mode defines the HA type, priority determines which firewall becomes active, the peer IP is needed for the HA link, and finally preemption and synchronization ensure consistent failover and state sharing.
- ✗
Configure device priority, then Configure HA interfaces, then Set HA mode to Active-Passive, then Configure peer IP address, then Enable preemption and session synchronization.
Why it's wrong here
This is incorrect because device priority should be configured after the HA interfaces and mode are set, as the priority is part of the HA configuration that depends on the established HA link and mode.
- ✗
Configure HA interfaces, then Set HA mode to Active-Passive, then Configure peer IP address, then Configure device priority, then Enable preemption and session synchronization.
Why it's wrong here
This is incorrect because the peer IP address is used for the HA control link, but device priority should be set before the peer IP to ensure proper election process during initial handshake.
- ✗
Enable preemption and session synchronization, then Configure HA interfaces, then Set HA mode to Active-Passive, then Configure device priority, then Configure peer IP address.
Why it's wrong here
This is incorrect because preemption and synchronization are the last steps after all other HA parameters are configured; they rely on the HA link, mode, priority, and peer IP to function correctly.
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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.