easyMultiple SelectObjective-mapped
PCNSA Practice Question: Which TWO of the following are stages in the…
Which TWO of the following are stages in the packet processing flow on a Palo Alto Networks firewall?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse the order of operations, thinking that routing table lookup happens before security policy lookup, but in Palo Alto firewalls, security policy lookup is performed first to determine if traffic is allowed, and then routing is done for forwarding decisions.
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
✓
Security policy lookup
Security policy lookup is a core stage in the Palo Alto Networks firewall packet processing flow. After the packet is decoded and identified, the firewall performs a security policy lookup to determine whether to allow or deny the traffic based on the configured rules. This is a mandatory step for all traffic traversing the firewall.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Encryption of the packet
Why it's wrong here
Encryption is not a standard stage in the processing flow.
- ✓
Security policy lookup
Why this is correct
After decoding, the firewall checks security rules.
- ✗
Log generation
Why it's wrong here
Logging happens after a session is created.
- ✗
Routing table lookup
Why it's wrong here
Routing occurs after security but is not a stage in the processing flow.
- ✓
Decoding for application identification
Why this is correct
App-ID decoding occurs early in the flow.
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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.