PCNSE Secure Access and VPN Practice Question
Which THREE are valid methods for configuring a site-to-site VPN on a Palo Alto Networks firewall?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse remote access VPN methods (GlobalProtect Gateway and Portal) with site-to-site VPN methods, leading them to select options B or D, which are exclusively for client-to-site connectivity.
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
✓
Policy-based VPN using a tunnel monitor
A policy-based VPN on Palo Alto Networks uses a tunnel monitor to verify the health of the IPSec tunnel by sending ICMP probes to the peer's tunnel IP address. This allows the firewall to detect tunnel failures and trigger failover or route changes, which is a standard method for site-to-site VPN configuration.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Policy-based VPN using a tunnel monitor
Why this is correct
Policy-based VPN uses security policies to define interesting traffic.
- ✗
GlobalProtect Gateway configuration
Why it's wrong here
GlobalProtect Gateway is for remote access VPN, not site-to-site.
- ✓
Route-based VPN using a virtual router and static route
Why this is correct
Route-based VPN uses a tunnel interface and static routes.
- ✗
SSL VPN using GlobalProtect portal
Why it's wrong here
SSL VPN is for remote access, not site-to-site.
- ✓
Tunnel interface with IPSec tunnel configuration
Why this is correct
This is the standard route-based VPN method.
Quick reference
VPN Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Port | Encryption | Authentication | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEv2 / IPsec | UDP 500 / 4500 | AES-256 | Certificates / PSK | Site-to-site & remote access |
| SSL / TLS VPN | TCP 443 | TLS 1.3 | Certificates / MFA | Clientless remote access |
| L2TP / IPsec | UDP 1701 | AES (IPsec) | PSK / Certificates | Legacy remote access |
| WireGuard | UDP 51820 | ChaCha20 | Public keys | Modern high-performance VPN |
| PPTP | TCP 1723 | MPPE (weak) | MS-CHAPv2 | Legacy — avoid in production |
PPTP is considered insecure. IKEv2/IPsec and SSL VPN are the current recommended options.
Go deeper
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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.