PCNSA Policy Evaluation and Management Practice Question
What does a 'shadowed' rule mean in the context of policy evaluation?
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
✓
A rule that is never evaluated because a previous rule with same or broader match already matches the traffic.
A shadowed rule is one that is never evaluated because a previous rule with the same or broader match already matches the traffic. This occurs when a rule is redundant due to an earlier rule covering the same or a superset of conditions. Option B is incorrect because a rule at the bottom is still evaluated if no earlier rule matches. Option C is incorrect because a disabled rule is not the same as a shadowed rule. Option D is incorrect because a rule without an action would still be evaluated but would likely result in an error or default action, not shadowing.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
A rule that is never evaluated because a previous rule with same or broader match already matches the traffic.
Why this is correct
Policy evaluation proceeds top-down and stops at the first matching rule. A shadowed rule sits below an earlier rule whose match criteria are identical or broader, so any traffic it could match is already consumed upstream and it never receives evaluation.
- ✗
A rule that is never hit because it is at the bottom of the rulebase.
Why it's wrong here
A rule at the bottom of the rulebase is simply unmatched or unreachable by ordering, which is a rulebase-hygiene issue, not shadowing. Shadowing occurs when an earlier rule matches the same traffic with a broader scope, so the later rule can never be evaluated.
- ✗
A rule that is disabled.
Why it's wrong here
A disabled rule is administratively inactive, so it is skipped by design rather than hidden by another rule. Shadowing specifically means an earlier rule matches the same traffic, making the later rule unreachable during evaluation.
- ✗
A rule that matches traffic but has no action configured.
Why it's wrong here
A rule with no action configured is incomplete or malformed, not shadowed. Shadowing is defined by evaluation order: an earlier rule matches the same traffic, so the later rule is never reached regardless of whether its own action is set.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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