PCNSE Troubleshoot Practice Question
A remote user is unable to connect to the GlobalProtect gateway. The user's client shows 'Connecting' but never establishes a tunnel. The firewall shows no drops in the GlobalProtect logs. Which of the following should be checked first?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often assume 'Connecting' means a network or authentication issue, but the key clue is the absence of drops in the GlobalProtect logs, which points to a pre-authentication TLS failure rather than a firewall policy or credential problem.
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
✓
Ensure the gateway's certificate is trusted by the client machine.
When the GlobalProtect client shows 'Connecting' but never establishes a tunnel, and the firewall logs show no drops, the issue is likely a certificate trust failure during the TLS handshake. The gateway's certificate must be trusted by the client machine (e.g., via a trusted root CA or imported certificate), otherwise the client cannot validate the gateway and will hang at 'Connecting' without generating a log drop on 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.
- ✗
Verify that the GlobalProtect portal is reachable from the internet.
Why it's wrong here
The portal is used for initial configuration download, but the tunnel connects directly to the gateway; portal reachability is secondary.
- ✗
Check if the user's authentication credentials are correct.
Why it's wrong here
Authentication occurs after the tunnel is established; the client is still 'Connecting', so it hasn't reached authentication stage.
- ✗
Confirm that the user's client is on the same subnet as the gateway.
Why it's wrong here
GlobalProtect is designed for remote access; the client can be anywhere as long as it can reach the gateway.
- ✓
Ensure the gateway's certificate is trusted by the client machine.
Why this is correct
If the client does not trust the gateway certificate, the SSL handshake fails and the connection never establishes.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCNSE 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 PCNSE exam.