156-315.81 Check Point Certified Security Expert R81.20 Questions and Answers

 The type of SecureXL template that is not valid among the options is Deny template. SecureXL templates are pre-allocated data structures that store information about connections that match certain criteria. They are used to accelerate the processing of packets that belong to those connections. The valid types of SecureXL templates are Accept, Drop, NAT, and Crypt. The Accept template is used for connections that are allowed by the Firewall policy. The Drop template is used for connections that are blocked by the Firewall policy. The NAT template is used for connections that require Network Address Translation. The Crypt template is used for connections that require encryption or decryption. References: [SecureXL Templates]

 The CPM process handles connection from SmartConsole R81. The CPM process is the main process of the Security Management Server and the Multi-Domain Security Management Server. It is responsible for managing the database, handling policy installation, communicating with SmartConsole clients, and providing REST API services. The CPM process runs on port 19009 and uses the CPD process as a proxy for communication with other processes.

References:

• Check Point Processes and Daemons, section “CPM”
• Check Point R81, section “SmartConsole”
• Check Point R81.20, section “REST API”

The two ClusterXL Deployment options are Distributed and Full High Availability. Distributed deployment means that each cluster member has its own Security Management Server and synchronizes with other members. Full High Availability deployment means that one cluster member is active and handles all traffic, while the other members are in standby mode and ready to take over in case of a failure. The other options are not valid ClusterXL Deployment options, but rather ClusterXL Modes or ClusterXL Load Sharing Methods. References: [Check Point Security Expert R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide], page 6.

The Hit Count feature allows tracking the number of connections that each rule matches, regardless of the Track option set for the rule. When you enable Hit Count, the Security Management Server collects the data from supported Security Gateways and displays it in SmartConsole. You can use the Hit Count feature to optimize your rule base by identifying unused or rarely used rules, or rules that match too many connections. 

Comprehensive and Detailed Explanation: The “MAC magic” value, also known as the “Cluster Global ID”, is a mechanism that identifies different clusters on the same network segment. It is used to prevent MAC address conflicts and ensure proper load balancing among cluster members. The “MAC magic” value is a hexadecimal number that is appended to the virtual MAC address of the cluster interface. By default, the “MAC magic” value is set to 1 for all clusters, but it must be changed manually if there is more than one cluster connected to the same VLAN. Otherwise, the clusters will not be able to communicate with each other or with external hosts.

The “MAC magic” value does not need to be modified under the other conditions listed in the question. The firewall cluster can use either Broadcast or Multicast for CCP traffic without affecting the “MAC magic” value. The number of members in a firewall cluster also does not affect the “MAC magic” value, as long as they belong to the same cluster and have the same Cluster Global ID.

References: Verifying Magic Mac - R81.20 - Check Point CheckMates; What is Magic MAC? - Check Point CheckMates; Check Point R81 CLI Reference Guide, page 17; R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide, page 9-10

 In the Check Point Security Management Architecture, both the Security Management Server and Security Gateway can store logs. The Security Management Server stores logs related to management activities, while the Security Gateway stores logs related to network traffic1. References: Check Point Resource Library, page 3.

 SDF (Sticky Decision Function) and Flush and ACK are the two correction mechanisms that are available with ClusterXL under R81.20. According to the ClusterXL R81.20 Administration Guide1, correction mechanisms are methods that ClusterXL uses to prevent or recover from out-of-state situations, which occur when different Cluster Members have different information about the connections that they handle1. ClusterXL supports two types of correction mechanisms: SDF and Flush and ACK1.

SDF (Sticky Decision Function) is a mechanism that ensures that packets of the same connection are always handled by the same Cluster Member, regardless of the load balancing algorithm. SDF uses a hash table that maps each connection to a specific Cluster Member, based on the 5-tuple of source IP, destination IP, source port, destination port, and protocol. SDF prevents out-of-state situations by avoiding the switch of Cluster Members for existing connections1.

Flush and ACK is a mechanism that synchronizes the connection tables of different Cluster Members when an out-of-state situation is detected. Flush and ACK works as follows:

• When a Cluster Member receives a packet that belongs to an unknown connection, it sends a Flush message to all other Cluster Members, asking them to delete the connection from their tables.
• When a Cluster Member receives a Flush message, it checks if it has the connection in its table. If it does, it deletes the connection and sends an ACK message to the sender of the Flush message, indicating that it has performed the deletion.
• When a Cluster Member receives an ACK message, it creates a new connection entry in its table for the packet that triggered the Flush message, and processes the packet normally.
• If a Cluster Member does not receive any ACK message within a timeout period, it assumes that no other Cluster Member has the connection, and creates a new connection entry in its table for the packet that triggered the Flush message1.

References: : ClusterXL R81.20 Administration Guide

Mobile Access Portal is a clientless solution that provides secure web access to corporate resources from any device and any browser. Mobile Access Portal uses SSL encryption and authentication to protect the data and the identity of the users. Mobile Access Portal supports various types of web applications, such as webmail, file shares, intranet sites, and web-based applications.

The references are:

• Check Point Certified Security Expert R81.20 (CCSE) Core Training, slide 15
• Check Point R81 Mobile Access Blade Administration Guide, page 7
• [Check Point Mobile Access Software Blade]

The recommended way to have a redundant Sync connection between the cluster nodes is to use a group of bonded interfaces connected to different switches. In the SmartConsole / Gateways & Servers -> select Cluster Properties / Network Management, you should define a dedicated sync interface, only one interface per node.

 The CLISH command to change the default Gaia WebUI Portal port number is set web ssl-port . This command will change the port that the WebUI listens on for HTTPS connections. After changing the port, you need to save the configuration with save config and verify that the change was applied with show web ssl-port. You also need to update the Main URL in the Platform Portal section of the gateway object in SmartConsole and install the policy. 

 The correct way to enable Identity Captive Portal for a specific rule is to right click Accept in the rule, select “More”, and then check ‘Enable Identity Captive Portal’. This will allow guest users to see the splash page and accept the Terms of Service before accessing the Internet. Identity Captive Portal is a feature that enables identity awareness for guest users who are not authenticated by other methods, such as Active Directory or Identity Agent. Identity Captive Portal can be enabled globally or per rule, depending on the security policy requirements. 

 SandBlast Agent is a comprehensive endpoint security solution that extends 0-day prevention to web browsers and user devices. It protects against advanced threats such as ransomware, phishing, and zero-day attacks by using a combination of static, dynamic, and behavioral analysis. References: [SandBlast Agent Datasheet]

The options that are given on features, when editing a Role on Gaia Platform are Read/Write, Read Only, and None. These options determine the level of access that a user has to a specific feature or command in Gaia. If a user has Read/Write access to a feature, they can view and modify the settings of that feature. If a user has Read Only access to a feature, they can only view the settings of that feature, but not change them. If a user has None access to a feature, they cannot view or modify the settings of that feature. 

 The correct command for checking the Deployment Agent status over the GAIA CLISH is “show installer status”. This command displays information about the Deployment Agent such as its version, status, last update time, and last operation result. The other commands are either invalid or irrelevant for this purpose. References: [Check Point Security Expert R81 Installation and Upgrade Guide], page 23.

 cp.macro is an electronically signed file used by Check Point to translate the features in the license into a code. It is located in the $FWDIR/conf directory on the Security Management Server. The cp.macro file contains a list of features and their corresponding codes, which are used to generate the license file (.lic) based on the contract file (.xml). The license file (.lic) is then installed on the Security Gateway or Security Management Server to activate the licensed features. References: Check Point R81 Licensing and Contract Administration Guide, page 10

In Management HA, you should use the active SmartConsole for making changes. The active SmartConsole is connected to the Primary Security Management Server, which is responsible for synchronizing the configuration with the Secondary Security Management Server. If you use the secondary SmartCenter, your changes will not be replicated to the primary SmartCenter and will be lost in case of a failover. References: Check Point Resource Library, page 9

The "Network Access VPN Domain" feature allows remote-access VPN users to access resources across a site-to-site VPN tunnel. This feature allows remote users to securely access internal network resources as if they were physically connected to the network. This is achieved by adding the remote-access VPN users to a "VPN Domain" that has access to the internal network resources via a site-to-site VPN tunnel. This VPN Domain is also referred to as a "Network Access VPN Domain".

There are four ways to use the Management API for creating host object with R81 Management API: Using Web Services, Using mgmt_cli tool, Using CLISH, and Using SmartConsole GUI console. Events are collected with SmartWorkflow from Trouble Ticket systems is not a correct option. References: Check Point Management APIs

The Audit Log is a feature that records all the actions performed by R81 SmartConsole administrators, such as logging in, logging out, publishing, installing policy, creating objects, modifying rules, etc. You can see and search records of action done by R81 SmartConsole administrators by following these steps:

• In SmartConsole, go to Logs & Monitor view.
• In the left pane, select Open Audit Log View.
• In the right pane, you will see a table that shows all the audit log records. You can filter, sort, group, or search the records by using the toolbar options.
• You can also double-click on a record to see more details in a pop-up window. References: R81 Logging and Monitoring Administration Guide

The command migrate import can be used to restore a backup of Check Point configurations without the OS information. This command imports the configuration from a file that was created using the migrate export command, which backs up only the Check Point configuration and not the OS settings. The other commands are either not valid or not suitable for restoring a backup without the OS information. References: Check Point R81 Installation and Upgrade Guide

 Dynamic Dispatcher is a feature that optimizes the performance of Security Gateways with multiple CPU cores by dynamically allocating traffic to different cores based on their load and priority. Firewall Priority Queues is a feature that prioritizes traffic based on its type and importance by assigning it to different queues with different weights and limits. To fully enable Dynamic Dispatcher with Firewall Priority Queues on a Security Gateway, you need to run the following command in Expert mode then reboot:

This command sets the multi-core mode to 9, which means that Dynamic Dispatcher is enabled with Firewall Priority Queues. The other commands are not valid or do not enable both features. References: R81 Performance Tuning Administration Guide

When two Security Gateways are managed by the same Security Management Server, they use certificate based authentication to establish a VPN tunnel. This is because the Security Management Server acts as an internal certificate authority (ICA) that can issue and revoke certificates for the Security Gateways. The Security Management Server also maintains a trust relationship with the Security Gateways, which is based on a one-time password (OTP) that is used to initialize secure internal communication (SIC). Therefore, there is no need to use a pre-shared secret for authentication between two Security Gateways managed by the same SMS.

The SmartEvent component that creates events is the Correlation Unit, which is responsible for correlating and analyzing security events to identify patterns and potential threats.

Option A, "Consolidation Policy," does not create events but is used to configure policies for event consolidation.

Option C, "SmartEvent Policy," is not responsible for creating events but is used to configure policies related to SmartEvent.

Option D, "SmartEvent GUI," is the graphical user interface for managing SmartEvent but does not create events itself.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

The statement that is not true about Delta synchronization is Using UDP Multicast or Broadcast on port 8161. Delta synchronization is a mechanism that transfers only the changes in the kernel tables between cluster members, instead of sending the entire tables. It uses UDP Multicast or Broadcast on port 8116, not 81612. The other statements are true about Delta synchronization. References: Check Point R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide

SecureXL Templating is a feature that accelerates the processing of packets that belong to the same connection or session by creating a template for the first packet and applying it to the subsequent packets. SecureXL Templating is precluded by factors that prevent the creation of a template, such as source port ranges, encrypted connections, NAT, QoS, etc. References: SecureXL Mechanism

 The inspection point Big l is the first point immediately following the tables and rule base check of a packet coming from outside of the network. It is also the last point before the packet leaves the Security Gateway to the internal network1. The other inspection points are either before or after the rule base check, or in a different direction of traffic flow2. References: Check Point R81 Security Gateway Architecture and Packet Flow, 156-315.81 Checkpoint Exam Info and Free Practice Test - ExamTopics

 CPM process stores objects, policies, users, administrators, licenses and management data in a Postgres SQL database. This database is located in $FWDIR/conf and can be accessed using the pg_client command2. The other options are not the correct database type for CPM. References: Check Point R81 Security Management Administration Guide

The cpmq set command enables or disables multi-queue per interface. Multi-queue is a feature that allows distributing the network traffic among several CPU cores, improving the throughput and performance of the Security Gateway. References: Multi-Queue

The Check Point ThreatCloud is a worldwide collaborative security network that collects and analyzes threat data from millions of sensors, security gateways, and other sources, and delivers real-time threat intelligence and protection to Check Point products. References: Check Point ThreatCloud

When requiring certificates for mobile devices, the authentication method should be set to one of the following:

Username and Password

RADIUS

SecurID (RSA SecurID)

So, the correct answer is option B, "SecurID."

Options A, C, and D are not standard authentication methods for mobile devices in this context.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

CPInfo is an auto-updatable utility that collects diagnostics data on a customer's machine at the time of execution and uploads it to Check Point servers (it replaces the standalone cp_uploader utility for uploading files to Check Point servers).

The CPInfo output file allows analyzing customer setups from a remote location. Check Point support engineers can open the CPInfo file in a demo mode, while viewing actual customer Security Policies and Objects. This allows the in-depth analysis of customer's configuration and environment settings.

References:

 Automatic affinity means that if SecureXL is running, the affinity for each interface is automatically reset every 60 seconds based on the current traffic load. This ensures optimal performance and load balancing of SecureXL instances. References: SecureXL Mechanism

The benefit of fw monitor over tcpdump is that with fw monitor, you can see the inspection points, which cannot be seen in tcpdump. Inspection points are the locations in the firewall kernel where packets are inspected by the security policy and other software blades. Fw monitor allows you to capture packets at different inspection points and see how they are processed by the firewall. Tcpdump, on the other hand, is a generic packet capture tool that only shows the packets as they enter or leave the network interface. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, fw monitor, tcpdump

The clusterXL_admin down -p command disables a Cluster Member permanently, meaning that it will not rejoin the cluster even after a reboot. The other commands either disable a Cluster Member temporarily or are invalid. References: [ClusterXL Administration Guide]

The three components for Check Point Capsule are Capsule Workspace, Capsule Docs, and Capsule Cloud. Capsule Workspace is a secure container app that allows users to access corporate data and applications from their mobile devices. Capsule Docs is a solution that protects documents with encryption and granular access control. Capsule Cloud is a cloud-based security service that enforces security policies on devices that are outside the corporate network. References: Check Point Capsule

The Event List within the Event tab contains events generated by a query. The Event List shows the events that match the query criteria, such as time range, filter, and aggregation. The events can be sorted by different columns, such as severity, time, action, and source3. The other options are either not part of the Event tab or not related to the Event List. References: Check Point R81 Logging and Monitoring Administration Guide

 According to out of the box SmartEvent policy, the blade that will automatically be correlated into events is IPS. IPS (Intrusion Prevention System) is a blade that detects and prevents network attacks by inspecting traffic and applying signatures and protections. SmartEvent correlates IPS logs into events based on predefined event definitions, such as IPS Attack, IPS Attack High Confidence, IPS Attack Critical Confidence, etc. The other blades are not automatically correlated into events by default, but they can be added to the SmartEvent policy manually. References: [SmartEvent Policy]

 The statement that is not true about site-to-site VPN domain-based is that a VPN domain is a service or user that can send or receive VPN traffic through a VPN gateway. A VPN domain is a host or network that can send or receive VPN traffic through a VPN gateway, not a service or user. A service or user can be part of a VPN community, which defines the encryption and authentication methods for the VPN traffic. References: [Check Point Security Expert R81 Administration Guide], page 146.

The feature that provides Full Layer3 VPN –IPSec VPN, giving users network access to all mobile applications, is the correct answer.

Capsule Connect/VPN is used to establish secure VPN connections for mobile devices, and the Full Layer3 VPN (IPSec VPN) option provides comprehensive network access.

References: Check Point documentation or training materials related to Mobile Access Methods and VPN configurations.

The directory /opt/CPsuite-R81/fw1/log contains the log files for the Security Gateway, such as firewall, VPN, IPS, and anti-virus logs1. These log files can be viewed and analyzed using SmartConsole or SmartView2. The other directories are not correct because:

• A. The directory /opt/CPSmartlog-R81/log contains the log files for the SmartLog server, which is a separate component that indexes and searches the logs from multiple Security Gateways3.
• B. The directory /opt/CPshrd-R81/log contains the log files for the shared components of the Check Point suite, such as cpwd, cpca, cpd, and cpwatchdog4.
• D. The directory /opt/CPsuite-R81/log does not exist by default and is not used for logging purposes.

References: Logging and Monitoring R81 Administration Guide, SmartConsole R81 Help, SmartLog R81 Help, Check Point Processes and Daemons

The correct syntax to import a host object using mgmt_cli is mgmt_cli add host name ip-address --format 1. The name and ip-address parameters are mandatory, while the format parameter is optional and can be either json or txt. The other options are incorrect because they either use wrong parameters, wrong hyphens, or wrong object types. References: 1: Check Point Resource Library2

To use SmartConsole R81 for managing SmartEvent R81, you need to have the following ports open:

• Port 19009 for communication over HTTPS (443)
• Port 19009 for communication over HTTP (80)

These ports are necessary for the SmartConsole to communicate with SmartEvent for management and monitoring purposes.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 documentation and learning resources.

When an encrypted packet is received by a Check Point Security Gateway, it is decrypted according to the security policy. The security policy defines the rules and settings for encryption and decryption of traffic, such as the encryption algorithm, the encryption domain, the pre-shared secret or certificate, etc. The security policy is enforced by the Firewall kernel, which is responsible for decrypting the packets before passing them to the inbound chain for further inspection. The inbound chain consists of various inspection modules that apply security checks and actions on the decrypted packets. The outbound chain is the reverse process, where the packets are inspected and then encrypted according to the security policy before being sent out.

References: Check Point Firewall Security Solution, Check Point R81 Cyber Security Platform, Check Point VPN Administration Guide R81

In R81.20, dbedit scripts are being replaced by the mgmt_cli utility for managing and configuring security policies and objects. Here's an explanation of each option:

A. dbedit is not supported in R81.20: This is not entirely accurate. While dbedit is still available and functional in R81.20, it is being phased out in favor of mgmt_cli for policy and object management.

B. dbedit is fully supported in R81.20: This statement is not accurate because although dbedit can still be used, it is not the primary recommended tool for policy management in R81.20.

C. You can use dbedit to modify threat prevention or access policies, but not create or modify layers: This statement is partially true, but it does not provide the complete picture. You can use dbedit for some policy-related tasks, but it's not the primary tool for policy management in R81.20.

D. dbedit scripts are being replaced by mgmt_cli in R81.20: This is the correct and recommended approach. mgmt_cli is the primary tool for managing security policies and objects in R81.20, and it is gradually replacing dbedit for these tasks.

Therefore, option D is the most accurate and recommended answer.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

The command "fw tab -s" is used to display information about the state of various kernel tables in a Check Point firewall. It provides a perspective on the number and status of these tables, which can be helpful for troubleshooting and monitoring firewall performance.

Option B correctly identifies the command that gives a perspective of the number of kernel tables, making it the verified answer.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

Threat Extraction is a software blade that delivers PDF versions of original files with active content removed. Active content, such as macros, scripts, or embedded objects, can be used by attackers to deliver malware or exploit vulnerabilities. Threat Extraction removes or sanitizes the active content from the files and converts them to PDF format, which is safer and more compatible. Threat Extraction can also work together with Threat Emulation to provide both clean and original files to the users. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, Threat Extraction Administration Guide

 Connections to the Check Point R81 Web API use the HTTPS protocol. The Web API is a RESTful web service that allows you to perform management tasks on the Security Management Server using HTTP requests. References: Check Point Management APIs

 The API command add host name ip-address  can be used in a script to create 100 new host objects with different IP addresses. This command adds a new host object with the specified name and IP address to the database. The other commands are either not valid or not suitable for creating new host objects. References: Check Point - Management API reference

The API server is a service that runs on the Security Management Server and enables external applications to communicate with the Check Point management database using REST APIs. You can verify that the API server is responding by using the following command in Expert mode:

This command will display the current status of the API server, such as running, stopped, or initializing. It will also show the API version, port number, and SSL certificate information. References: Check Point R81 REST API Reference Guide

In R81, spoofing is defined as a method of making packets appear as if they come from an authorized IP address. Spoofing can be used by attackers to bypass security policies or hide their identity. Check Point firewalls use anti-spoofing mechanisms to prevent spoofed packets from entering or leaving the network. References: Security Gateway R81 Administration Guide:

On R81.20, when configuring Third-Party devices to read the logs using the LEA (Log Export API), the default Log Server uses port 18184. This port can be changed using the lea_server command in expert mode. The other ports are either not related to LEA, or used for different purposes, such as 18210 for CPMI, 257 for FW1_log, and 18191 for SIC. References: [Check Point R81 Logging and Monitoring Administration Guide], [Check Point Ports Used for Communication by Various Check Point Modules]

When configuring Management HA, you have to take into consideration that the Database revisions will not be synchronized between the management servers. Database revisions are snapshots of the database that are created manually or automatically when installing a policy or saving changes. They are stored locally on each management server and are not replicated by Management HA. The other options are either not true or not relevant to Management HA. References: Check Point R81 Installation and Upgrade Guide

The least ideal Synchronization Status for Security Management Server High Availability deployment is Collision. This status indicates that both members have modified the same object independently, resulting in a conflict that needs to be resolved manually. The other statuses are either normal or indicate a temporary delay in synchronization. References: High Availability Administration Guide

An event is a notification that something significant has occurred on a Check Point product or network. Events are generated by various sources, such as blades, gateways, servers, SmartEvent, etc. You can view and manage events in SmartConsole by using the Events tab in the Logs & Monitor view. Selecting an event displays its configurable properties in the Detail pane and a description of the event in the Description pane. The configurable properties include:

• Severity: The level of importance or urgency of the event. You can change the severity of an event by selecting a different value from the drop-down list.
• Automatic reactions: The actions that are triggered when an event occurs. You can add, edit, or delete automatic reactions for an event by clicking on the + icon or the pencil icon.
• Threshold: The minimum number or frequency of occurrences of an event that triggers an automatic reaction. You can change the threshold of an event by entering a different value in the text box.

The policy is not an option to adjust or configure for an event. The policy is a set of rules that define how to handle events based on their source, type, severity, etc. You can create and manage policies in SmartEvent by using the Policies tab in the Logs & Monitor view. References: R81 Logging and Monitoring Administration Guide

SmartView is a web-based application that allows you to view and analyze logs, reports, and events from multiple Check Point products. You can access SmartView by using the following URL:

You need to use HTTPS protocol and the default port 443. You also need to enter the IP address of the Security Management Server that hosts the SmartView application. You cannot use the host name of the Security Management Server or a different port number. References: SmartView R81 Administration Guide

 SSL Network Extender (SNX) has two modes of operation: Network Mode and Application Mode. Network Mode provides full network connectivity to the remote user, while Application Mode provides access to specific applications on the corporate network. References: [SSL Network Extender]

 Check Point Central Deployment Tool (CDT) communicates with the Security Gateway / Cluster Members over Check Point SIC using TCP port 18191 by default. CDT is a tool that allows you to perform simultaneous configuration changes on multiple gateways or clusters using predefined commands or scripts. References: Check Point Central Deployment Tool (CDT)

To simplify security administration when working with multiple Security Gateways enforcing an extensive number of rules, you would choose to create a separate Security Policy package for each remote Security Gateway. A Security Policy package is a set of rules and objects that can be assigned to one or more Security Gateways. This allows you to manage different policies for different gateways from the same Management Server1. The other options are either not effective or not feasible for simplifying security administration. References: Check Point R81 Security Management Administration Guide

The statement that is true regarding redundancy is Both ClusterXL and VRRP are fully supported by Gaia and available to all Check Point appliances, open servers, and virtualized environments. ClusterXL and VRRP are two technologies that provide high availability and load sharing for Security Gateways. They are both supported by Gaia OS and can be deployed on various platforms5. The other statements are either false or incomplete regarding redundancy. References: Check Point R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide, Check Point R81 Gaia Administration Guide

The command cphaprob igmp can be used to display the Multicast MAC address of a cluster. This command shows the IGMP (Internet Group Management Protocol) information for each cluster interface, including the VRID (Virtual Router ID), the Multicast IP address, and the Multicast MAC address3. The other commands do not show the Multicast MAC address information. References: Check Point R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide

 Threat Extraction is a technology that removes potentially malicious features that are known to be risky from files (macros, embedded objects and more), rather than determining their maliciousness. By cleaning the file before it enters the organization, Threat Extraction preemptively prevents both known and unknown threats, providing better protection against zero-day attacks1. Any active contents of a document, such as JavaScripts, macros and links will be removed from the document and forwarded to the intended recipient, which makes this solution very fast2. The other options are either incorrect or irrelevant to the mechanism behind Threat Extraction. References: Threat Extraction (CDR) - Check Point Software, Check Point Document Threat Extraction Technology

The CPD daemon is a Firewall Kernel Process that does not pull application monitoring status. The CPD daemon is responsible for Secure Internal Communication (SIC), restarting daemons if they fail, transferring messages between Firewall processes, and managing policy installation. References: CPD process

 In R81, IPS is managed by the Threat Prevention Policy. The Threat Prevention Policy is a unified policy that allows you to configure and enforce IPS, Anti-Bot, Anti-Virus, Threat Emulation, and Threat Extraction settings in one place. References: Threat Prevention Administration Guide

 Gaia can be configured using the command line interface (CLI) or the WebUI. The CLI is a text-based interface that allows users to enter commands and view responses in a terminal window. The CLI can be accessed through a console connection, an SSH connection, or a Telnet connection. The WebUI is a graphical interface that allows users to configure Gaia settings through a web browser. The WebUI can be accessed by entering the IP address of the Gaia device in the browser’s address bar.

 On R81.20 the IPS Blade is managed by the Threat Prevention policy. The Threat Prevention policy is a unified policy that includes Anti-virus, IPS, Anti-bot, and Threat Emulation software blades. The IPS blade provides protection against network attacks and exploits by inspecting the traffic and blocking malicious packets. The IPS blade can be configured with different profiles and exceptions to suit different security needs. References: R81 Threat Prevention Administration Guide, page 15.

 SecureXL does not use the TCP acknowledgment number as an attribute for identifying connections. SecureXL is a technology that accelerates the performance of the firewall by offloading some of the traffic processing from the firewall kernel to a more efficient path. SecureXL identifies connections by five attributes: source address, destination address, source port, destination port, and protocol1. These attributes are also known as the 5-tuple or the connection key. SecureXL uses these attributes to match packets to existing connections and apply the appropriate security policy and actions. SecureXL does not need to inspect the TCP sequence or acknowledgment numbers, as they are irrelevant for the connection identification and security enforcement2. The TCP sequence and acknowledgment numbers are used by the TCP protocol to ensure reliable and ordered delivery of data between endpoints

https://resources.checkpoint.com/datasheet/certified-security-expert-ccse-r8120-course-overview

Dynamic log distribution is a feature that allows you to configure the Security Gateway to distribute logs between multiple active Log Servers to support a better rate of Logs and Log Servers redundancy. This means that each log is sent to only one Log Server and the load is balanced between the primary Log Servers. If all the primary Log Servers are disconnected, the logs are distributed between the backup Log Servers. If no Log Servers are connected, the gateway writes the logs locally. This feature improves the performance and reliability of logging and reduces the network traffic and disk space consumption. You can enable this feature on the SmartConsole -> Gateways & Servers -> Logs -> Dynamic Log Distribution1.

The other options are incorrect because they do not describe the dynamic log distribution feature. Option B is wrong because the Management High Availability does not store the logs dynamically on the member with the most available disk space, but rather synchronizes the logs between the members using the cpd process2. Option C is wrong because the dynamic log distribution feature does not synchronize the logs between the primary and secondary management server, but rather distributes the logs between the Log Servers. Option D is wrong because the dynamic log distribution feature does not save disk space in case of a firewall cluster, but rather distributes the logs between the Log Servers. The firewall cluster members do not store local logs, but rather send them to the Log Servers3.

Proxy ARP is a technique that allows a device to respond to ARP requests on behalf of another IP address. Proxy ARP is required for Manual Static NAT when the translated IP address does not belong to one of the firewall’s interfaces. This is because the firewall needs to intercept the packets destined to the translated IP address and forward them to the original IP address after applying the NAT rule. Without Proxy ARP, the packets would not reach the firewall and the NAT would not work. Proxy ARP is not required for Automatic Static NAT or Automatic Hide NAT, because these types of NAT use IP addresses that belong to the firewall’s interfaces. Proxy ARP is also not required for Manual Hide NAT, because this type of NAT does not change the destination IP address of the packets, only the source IP address. References: Check Point R81 Security Management Administration Guide, page 115

 The file that contains the host address to be published, the MAC address that needs to be associated with the IP address, and the unique IP of the interface that responds to ARP request is $FWDIR/conf/local.arp. Local.arp is a configuration file that defines static ARP entries for hosts behind NAT devices. This file allows the Security Gateway to respond to ARP requests for NATed hosts with the correct MAC address, and to publish the NATed IP address instead of the real IP address. The other files are either not related or not valid. 

According to the Check Point website, you can use the pre_upgrade_verifier tool to verify if your management server is ready to upgrade to R81.20. This tool checks the compatibility of your current configuration and database with the target version, and provides a detailed report of any issues or warnings. The other tools are either used for exporting or importing databases, or not valid tools. References: Upgrade Verification Service

The SmartEvent R81 Web application for real-time event monitoring is called SmartEventWeb. SmartEventWeb is a web-based interface that allows administrators to view and analyze security events from various sources, such as logs, reports, incidents, and indicators. SmartEventWeb provides dashboards, widgets, filters, and drill-down options to help administrators gain insights into their security posture. The other options are either incorrect or refer to different applications.

According to the Check Point R81 training course, the Proxy ARP feature for Manual NAT in R81.20 requires the configuration of the local.arp file on the Security Gateway. This file contains the mapping of IP addresses to MAC addresses for NATed hosts. The other options are either incorrect or irrelevant. References: Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81.20 Course Overview

 According to the Check Point website, Whitelist Files is the tool that provides a list of trusted files to the administrator so they can specify to the Threat Prevention blade that these files do not need to be scanned or analyzed. Whitelist Files can be configured in SmartConsole under Threat Prevention > Policy > Whitelist Files. The other tools are either not related or not valid tools. References: Whitelist Files

Ken can use either of the two commands lock database override or unlock database to obtain a configuration lock from another administrator on R81 Security Management Server via CLI. These commands allow him to override the existing lock and gain exclusive access to the database. He can also use the WebUI to perform the same action. References: Training & Certification | Check Point Software, New Courses and Certificates for R81.20 - Check Point CheckMates

 To set the IP address and default gateway of the Management interface on a Check Point appliance, you can use the following commands:

• set interface Mgmt ipv4-address 192.168.80.200 mask-length 24 - This command sets the IPv4 address of the Management interface to 192.168.80.200 and the subnet mask to 255.255.255.0 (24 bits).
• set static-route default nexthop gateway address 192.168.80.1 on - This command sets the default gateway to 192.168.80.1 and enables the static route.
• save config - This command saves the configuration changes to the appliance.

These commands are documented in the Check Point appliance initial installation guide, which you can find in the web search results.

The other options are incorrect because they use invalid syntax or parameters for the commands. For example, option B uses add static-route instead of set static-route, option C uses 0.0.0.0. instead of 0.0.0.0, and option D uses add static-route default instead of set static-route default.

 Office mode is a feature that allows a security gateway to assign a remote client an IP address from a network that is protected by the security gateway. This way, the remote client can access resources on the internal network as if it was physically connected to it. The IP address is assigned to the remote client after the user authenticates for a tunnel, and it is routable, meaning that it can be reached by other hosts on the network. Office mode is useful for scenarios where the remote client needs to use applications that rely on IP addresses, such as VoIP or file sharing12.

References: 1: Support, Support Requests, Training … - Check Point Software 2: Gaia R81.20 Administration Guide - Check Point Software

 If Deyra sees the gateway status as shown in the image, it means that there is a blade reporting a problem. The red exclamation mark indicates that one or more blades on the gateway have an issue that needs attention. The issue could be related to configuration, license, policy, or other factors. Deyra can hover over the icon to see more details about the problem. References: Training & Certification | Check Point Software, New Courses and Certificates for R81.20 - Check Point CheckMates

The kind of information that you would expect to see using the sim affinity command is network interfaces and core distribution used for CoreXL. Sim affinity is a command that allows administrators to view and modify the CPU core affinity of network interfaces and SecureXL instances. CoreXL is a technology that improves the performance of the Security Gateway by using multiple cores to handle concurrent connections. The sim affinity command can show which network interfaces and SecureXL instances are bound to which CPU cores, and allow administrators to change the affinity settings.

The port that the CPM process runs on is TCP 19009. CPM stands for Check Point Management, and it is the main process that runs on the Security Management Server and interacts with SmartConsole clients. CPM is responsible for managing policies, objects, logs, tasks, and other management functions. CPM listens on TCP port 19009 for incoming connections from SmartConsole clients. The other ports are either used by other processes or not related to CPM. 

According to the Check Point website, Capsule Connect and Capsule Workspace both offer secured connection for remote users who are using their mobile devices. However, there are differences between the two. For credential protection, Connect uses One-time Password login support and has no SSO support, whereas Workspace offers both One-Time Password and certain SSO login support. The other statements are either false or partially true. References: Capsule Connect and Capsule Workspace

 The order of NAT priorities is determined by the type of NAT rule that is applied to the traffic. There are three types of NAT rules in Check Point: static NAT, IP pool NAT, and hide NAT12.

• Static NAT: This type of NAT rule maps a single IP address to another single IP address. It is usually used to allow external hosts to access internal servers or devices. Static NAT has the highest priority among the NAT rules, and it is applied before the security policy is enforced12.
• IP pool NAT: This type of NAT rule maps a range of IP addresses to another range of IP addresses. It is usually used to balance the load among multiple servers or devices. IP pool NAT has the second highest priority among the NAT rules, and it is applied after the security policy is enforced12.
• Hide NAT: This type of NAT rule hides a group of IP addresses behind a single IP address or an interface. It is usually used to allow internal hosts to access external resources. Hide NAT has the lowest priority among the NAT rules, and it is applied after the security policy is enforced12.

Therefore, the order of NAT priorities is: static NAT, IP pool NAT, hide NAT.

References: 1: Check Point R81 Security Administration Guide - Check Point Software, page 209 2: Check Point R81 Security Engineering Guide - Check Point Software, page 163

 One of the requirements for Joey’s success in upgrading from R75.40 to R81 version of Security management using Advanced Upgrade with Database Migration method is that the size of the /var/log folder of the target machine must be at least 25% of the size of the /var/log directory on the source machine. Advanced Upgrade with Database Migration method is a procedure that allows administrators to upgrade their Security Management Server to a newer version by migrating their database from an older version to a new machine with a fresh installation of the newer version. One of the steps in this procedure is to copy the /var/log folder from the source machine to the target machine, which contains important log files and configuration files. To ensure that there is enough disk space on the target machine for this operation, it is required that the size of the /var/log folder on the target machine must be at least 25% of the size of the /var/log folder on the source machine. 

The NAT rules that are prioritized first are Manual/Pre-Automatic NAT. NAT stands for Network Address Translation, and it is a feature that allows Security Gateways to modify the source or destination IP addresses or ports of packets that pass through them. NAT rules are the rules that define how NAT is applied to traffic that matches certain criteria. There are three types of NAT rules: Manual/Pre-Automatic NAT, Automatic NAT, and Manual/Post-Automatic NAT. Manual/Pre-Automatic NAT rules are the rules that are manually created by administrators and placed before the automatic NAT rules in the rulebase. These rules have the highest priority and are processed first by the Security Gateway. Automatic NAT rules are the rules that are automatically generated by the Security Gateway based on the NAT properties of network objects. These rules have the second highest priority and are processed after the manual/pre-automatic NAT rules. Manual/Post-Automatic NAT rules are the rules that are manually created by administrators and placed after the automatic NAT rules in the rulebase. These rules have the lowest priority and are processed last by the Security Gateway. 

The best suggestion for Pamela to make sure she successfully captures entire traffic in context of Firewall and problematic traffic is: Pamela should check SecureXL status on DMZ Security gateway and if it’s turned ON. She should turn OFF SecureXL before using fw monitor to avoid misleading traffic captures. SecureXL is a technology that accelerates network traffic processing by offloading intensive operations from the Firewall kernel to a dedicated SecureXL device. However, this also means that some traffic might not be seen by fw monitor, which is a tool that captures packets at different inspection points in the Firewall kernel. Therefore, to ensure that fw monitor captures all traffic, SecureXL should be turned OFF before using fw monitor. The other suggestions are either incorrect or less effective in capturing traffic. 

The “fw monitor” tool can be best used to troubleshoot network traffic issues. Fw monitor is a tool that allows administrators to capture packets at different inspection points in the Firewall kernel, and apply filters and flags to analyze the traffic. Fw monitor can help troubleshoot network connectivity problems, packet drops, NAT issues, VPN issues, and more. The other options are either not related or less suitable for fw monitor.

One of the major features in R81 SmartConsole is concurrent administration. This feature allows multiple administrators to work on the same Security Policy simultaneously, without blocking each other or creating conflicts. Concurrent administration improves the efficiency and productivity of security management operations1.

However, not all of the options given are possible considering that AdminA, AdminB and AdminC are editing the same Security Policy. The correct answer is B. AdminA and AdminB are editing the same rule at the same time. This is not possible because concurrent administration uses a locking mechanism to prevent multiple administrators from modifying the same rule or object at the same time. When an administrator clicks on a rule or an object, it becomes locked and a lock icon appears next to it. The lock icon shows the name of the administrator who is working on that rule or object, and prevents other administrators from editing it until it is unlocked12.

Therefore, the other options are possible considering that AdminA, AdminB and AdminC are editing the same Security Policy. Option A is possible because a lock icon shows that a rule or an object is locked and will be available when the administrator who locked it finishes working on it or logs out of SmartConsole12. Option C is possible because a lock icon next to a rule informs that any administrator is working on this particular rule, and hovering over the lock icon will show the name of that administrator12. Option D is possible because AdminA, AdminB and AdminC are editing three different rules at the same time, which does not create any conflicts or blockages12.

 The first thing that must be done if “fwm sic_reset” could not be completed is to change internal CA via cpconfig. Fwm sic_reset is a command that allows administrators to reset Secure Internal Communication (SIC) between Security Management Server and Security Gateways or other Check Point modules. SIC is a mechanism that ensures secure and authenticated communication between Check Point components by using certificates issued by an internal Certificate Authority (ICA). If fwm sic_reset fails, it means that there is a problem with the ICA or the certificates that prevents SIC from being reset. To resolve this problem, administrators need to change internal CA via cpconfig, which is a command that allows administrators to configure various settings on Security Gateways or Management Servers, including the ICA. Changing internal CA via cpconfig will create a new ICA with a new certificate, and allow SIC to be reset with the new certificate.

 To ensure that VMAC mode is enabled, the CLI command that should be run on all cluster members is fw ctl get int fwha_vmac_global_param_enabled; result of command should return value 1. VMAC mode is a feature that allows ClusterXL to use virtual MAC addresses for cluster interfaces, instead of physical MAC addresses. This improves the failover performance and compatibility of ClusterXL with switches and routers. To check if VMAC mode is enabled, the command fw ctl get int fwha_vmac_global_param_enabled can be used, which returns 1 if VMAC mode is enabled, and 0 if VMAC mode is disabled. 

After trust has been established between the Check Point components, the Security Gateway IP address cannot be changed without re-establishing the trust. This is because the trust is based on the Secure Internal Communication (SIC) mechanism, which uses certificates to authenticate and encrypt the communication. The certificates are issued by the Internal Certificate Authority (ICA) of the Security Management Server / Domain Management Server, and contain the name and IP address of the component. Therefore, if the IP address of a component is changed, the certificate will become invalid and the trust will be lost. To restore the trust, the certificate must be renewed or reissued by the ICA12.

However, there are some exceptions to this rule. The Security Gateway name can be changed in command line without re-establishing trust, as long as the IP address remains the same. This is because the SIC mechanism does not rely on the hostname, but on the IP address and the SIC name (which is usually derived from the hostname, but can be manually changed). The Security Management Server name can be changed in SmartConsole without re-establishing trust, as long as the IP address remains the same. This is because SmartConsole uses a different mechanism to connect to the Security Management Server, which does not depend on the SIC certificate. The Security Management Server IP address can be changed without re-establishing trust, as long as some steps are followed to update the Check Point Registry file on the managed Security Gateways / Cluster Members / VSX Virtual Devices. This is because the Registry file contains the IP address of the ICA, which is used for certificate renewal. If the Registry file is not updated, then the certificate renewal will fail and the trust will be lost3.

References: 1: Check Point R81 Security Administration Guide - Check Point Software, page 162 2: Check Point R81 Security Engineering Guide - Check Point Software, page 162 3: How to renew SIC after changing IP Address of Security Management Server - Check Point Software, Solution ID: sk103356

Browser-based Authentication is a method of acquiring identities from unidentified users by sending them to a web page where they can log in and authenticate. Browser-based Authentication uses two techniques to acquire identities: Captive Portal and Transparent Kerberos Authentication1.

Captive Portal is a simple method that attempts authentication through a web interface before granting a user access to Intranet resources. When a user tries to access a protected resource, they are redirected to a web page where they have to enter their credentials. The credentials are verified by the Identity Awareness Security Gateway or an external authentication server. If the authentication is successful, the user’s identity is associated with their IP address and they are allowed to access the resource12.

Transparent Kerberos Authentication is a more seamless method that leverages the existing Kerberos infrastructure in the network. When a user tries to access a protected resource, the Identity Awareness Security Gateway intercepts the Kerberos ticket request and extracts the user’s identity from it. The user’s identity is then associated with their IP address and they are allowed to access the resource without any additional prompts. This method requires that the Identity Awareness Security Gateway is configured as a trusted proxy in the Active Directory domain12.

Therefore, the correct answer is B. Browser-based Authentication sends users to a web page to acquire identities using Captive Portal and Transparent Kerberos Authentication.

References:

• 1, THE IMPORTANCE OF ACCESS ROLES - Check Point Software, page 2
• 2, Browser-based Authentication Check Point - Bing
• 3, How to Configure Client Authentication - Check Point Software, page 1
• 4, Identity Sources - Check Point Software
• 5, Configuring Browser-Based Authentication - Check Point Software
• 6, Two Factor Authentication - Check Point Software

According to the Check Point Resource Library, the minimum amount of RAM needed for a Threat Prevention Appliance is 4 GB. This applies to both physical and virtual appliances. The other options are either incorrect or irrelevant. References: Check Point Resource Library

 The CLI command that compiles and installs a Security Policy on the target’s Security Gateways is fwm load. Fwm stands for FireWall Management, and it is a command that allows administrators to perform various management tasks on the Security Management Server or Multi-Domain Server. Fwm load takes two arguments: the name of the Security Policy and the name or IP address of the target Security Gateway or Gateway Cluster. For example:

[Expert@SMS]# fwm load Standard_Policy fw1

This command will compile and install the Standard_Policy on the Security Gateway named fw1. The other commands are either invalid or perform different functions.

 The TCP/IP model is a four-layer model that describes how data is transmitted over a network. The four layers are: Application, Transport, Internet, and Network Access. The Application layer provides services and protocols for applications to communicate with each other. The Transport layer provides reliable or unreliable data delivery between hosts. The Internet layer provides routing and addressing of packets across networks. The Network Access layer provides physical and logical access to the network media. References: Training & Certification | Check Point Software, Check Point Resource Library

The command that would show the API server status is api status. API stands for Application Programming Interface, and it is a web service that allows external applications to interact with the Check Point management server using standard methods such as HTTP(S) requests and JSON objects. API status is a command that shows the current status of the API server, such as whether it is enabled or disabled, running or stopped, listening on which port, using which certificate, etc. The other commands are either invalid or perform different functions. 

The true statement about the API server on R81.20 is: By default, the API server is active on management servers with 4 GB of RAM (or more) and on stand-alone servers with 8GB of RAM (or more). The API server is a web service that allows external applications to interact with the Check Point management server using standard methods such as HTTP(S) requests and JSON objects. The API server is enabled by default on R81.20 management servers that have at least 4 GB of RAM, and on stand-alone servers that have at least 8 GB of RAM. The API server can also be manually enabled or disabled from the WebUI or the CLI. 

 In the Firewall chain mode FFF refers to all packets. Firewall chain mode is a feature that allows administrators to define how packets are processed by different firewall kernel modules in inbound and outbound directions. FFF is one of the predefined chain modes that applies all firewall kernel modules (Firewall, VPN, IPS, etc.) to all packets, regardless of their state or connection. This mode provides maximum security, but also consumes more CPU resources. 

SandBlast Mobile has four components: Management Dashboard, Gateway, Behavior Risk Engine, and On-Device Network Protection. Personal User Storage is not part of the SandBlast Mobile solution. References: SandBlast Mobile Architecture

The cphaconf set_ccp multicast command is used to set the Cluster Control Protocol (CCP) to Multicast mode. This mode allows cluster members to communicate with each other using multicast packets. The other commands are either incorrect or set the CCP to Broadcast mode. References: ClusterXL Administration Guide

The correct command to show actual allowed connections in the state table is option B: fw tab –t connections. This command displays the contents of the "connections" table, which contains information about the active connections being tracked by the firewall.

Option A (fw tab –t StateTable) is incorrect as there is no "StateTable" table; it should be "connections."

Option C (fw tab –t connection) is also incorrect, as it should be "connections."

Option D (fw tab connections) is not the correct syntax for the command.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

Sticky Decision Function (SDF) is a feature that ensures that VPN traffic is handled by the same core on a Security Gateway with multiple CPU cores. This improves the performance and stability of VPN tunnels by avoiding out-of-order packets and reducing encryption overhead. However, the limitation of employing SDF is that acceleration technologies, such as SecureXL and CoreXL are disabled when activating SDF. This means that SDF may reduce the overall throughput and scalability of the Security Gateway. Therefore, SDF should be used only when necessary and only on gateways that are dedicated to VPN traffic. References: R81 Performance Tuning Administration Guide

Wire Mode is a VPN-1 NGX feature that enables VPN connections to successfully fail over, bypassing Security Gateway enforcement. This improves performance and reduces downtime. Based on a trusted source and destination, Wire Mode uses internal interfaces and VPN Communities to maintain a private and secure VPN session, without employing Stateful Inspection. Since Stateful Inspection no longer takes place, dynamic-routing protocols that do not survive state verification in non-Wire Mode configurations can now be deployed. The VPN connection is no different from any other connections along a dedicated wire, thus the meaning of "Wire Mode".

References: VPN Administration Guide

 The host having a Critical event found by Anti-Bot should be remediated first, as it indicates that the host is infected by a botnet malware that is communicating with a Command and Control server. This poses a serious threat to the network security and data integrity. The other events may indicate potential malware infection or attack attempts, but not necessarily successful ones. References: Threat Prevention Administration Guide

The correct command to observe the Sync traffic in a VRRP environment is fw monitor –e “accept dst=224.0.0.18;”. This command captures the packets that have the destination IP address of 224.0.0.18, which is the multicast address used by VRRP for synchronization. The other commands are either not valid or not specific to VRRP Sync traffic. References: [Check Point R81 ClusterXL Administration Guide], Check Point R81 Performance Tuning Administration Guide

In R81, you can manage your Mobile Access Policy through the Unified Policy. The Unified Policy is a single policy that combines access control, threat prevention, data protection, and identity awareness. You can create rules for mobile access in the Unified Policy rulebase and apply them to mobile devices, users, and applications. You can also use the Mobile Access blade to configure additional settings for mobile access, such as authentication methods, VPN settings, and application portal.

 Detecting and blocking malware by correlating multiple detection engines before users are affected is not a feature associated with the Check Point URL Filtering and Application Control Blade. This feature is part of the Check Point SandBlast Network solution, which uses Threat Emulation and Threat Extraction technologies to prevent zero-day attacks. The other features are part of the URL Filtering and Application Control Blade, which allows you to control access to web applications and sites based on various criteria. References: URL Filtering and Application Control Administration Guide

Multi-Version Cluster Upgrade (MVCLU) is a feature that allows you to upgrade a cluster of Security Gateways from one major version to another, without downtime1. MVCLU supports upgrading a cluster that runs on different versions, as long as the versions are compatible with the destination version1. The number of versions, besides the destination version, that are supported in a MVCLU depends on the destination version. For example, if the destination version is R81, then MVCLU supports up to three versions besides R81, which are R80.40, R80.30, and R80.202. Therefore, the correct answer is B, as three versions are supported in a MVCLU besides the destination version.

References: 1: ClusterXL upgrade methods and paths - Check Point Software 2: Check Point R81 - Check Point Software

Rugged appliances are small appliances with ruggedized hardware that are designed for harsh environments. Like Quantum Spark appliances, they use Gaia embedded as their operating system. Gaia embedded is a lightweight version of Gaia that supports a subset of features and commands. References: [Check Point R81 Gaia Embedded Administration Guide]

 When a packet arrives at the gateway, the gateway checks it against the rules in the top Policy Layer, sequentially from top to bottom, and enforces the first rule that matches the packet. The order of rule enforcement depends on the action of the matching rule. If the action is Accept, the gateway allows the packet to pass through the gateway, but also continues to check rules in the next Policy Layer down. If the action is Drop, Reject, or Encrypt, the gateway applies that action to the packet and stops checking rules in that Policy Layer and any subsequent Policy Layers. If there is no matching rule in a Policy Layer, the gateway applies the Implicit Clean-up Rule for that Policy Layer, which is usually Drop. 

 How many interfaces can you configure to use the Multi-Queue feature? You can configure up to 5 interfaces to use the Multi-Queue feature. Multi-Queue is a performance enhancement feature that allows distributing the network traffic among multiple CPU cores, instead of using a single core for all traffic. Multi-Queue can be enabled on interfaces that have high traffic load and support multiple receive/transmit queues. Multi-Queue can be configured via SmartConsole or via CLI with the command sim affinity -m. References: R81 Performance Tuning Administration Guide, page 18.

 The command to add users to or from existing roles is add rba user roles . This command allows you to assign one or more roles to a user in the Gaia database. Roles are collections of permissions that define what actions a user can perform on the system. You can use predefined roles or create your own custom roles. To remove a role from a user, you can use the command delete rba user roles . 

The back end database for Check Point R81 Management uses PostgreSQL, which is an open source relational database management system2. MongoDB, MySQL, and DBMS are not used by Check Point R81 Management. References: 2: Check Point Software, Getting Started, Database.

 Check Point API is an interface that allows users to automate tasks and manage Check Point products using RESTful web service calls. Check Point API uses JSON format for requests and responses. To create a new host object with the name “My Host” and IP address of “192.168.0.10”, users need to use the set host command with the name and ip-address parameters6. The command syntax is:

set host name “My Host” ip-address “192.168.0.10”

Therefore, the correct answer is A.

References: 6: Check Point API reference

 SmartEvent uses its event policy to identify events. The event policy can be customized by matching logs against event rules. Event rules define the conditions and actions for generating events. You can create, edit, delete, enable, or disable event rules in the SmartEvent Policy tab of the SmartConsole. References: [SmartEvent Administration Guide]

 The default port for the Gaia WebUI Portal is HTTPS 443. This is the standard port for secure web communication over SSL/TLS. Changing the port may cause inconsistency with the settings on the SmartConsole and is not recommended unless necessary. To change the port, you can use the CLISH command set web ssl-port  and save the configuration. References: 13

 The main objective when using Application Control is to ensure security and privacy of information. Application Control is a blade that enables administrators to control access to web applications and web sites based on categories, users, groups, machines, and time. Application Control can also block or limit usage of applications that pose security risks or consume excessive bandwidth2. References: Check Point R81 Application Control Administration Guide

Check Point Management uses MongoDB as its back-end database. MongoDB is a NoSQL database that offers high performance, high availability, and easy scalability, which are essential for managing the complex and dynamic nature of network security configurations and logs.

The FWD process provides logging services, such as forwarding logs from Gateway to Log Server, providing Log Export API (LEA) and Event Logging API (EL-A) services. The FWD process is responsible for sending logs from the Security Gateway to the Security Management Server or Log Server, and for fetching logs from the Security Management Server or Log Server to SmartConsole. The FWD process also handles the communication with external logging applications that use the LEA or EL-A protocols.

References:

• FWD process does not work after reboot - Check Point CheckMates, section “FWD process does not work after reboot”
• Check Point R81, section “Logging and Monitoring”
• CoreXL Dynamic Dispatcher - Check Point Software, section “Example of output”

 Check Point Support in many cases asks you for a configuration summary of your Check Point system. This is also called cpinfo. Cpinfo is a utility that collects diagnostic data on a Check Point gateway, management server, or log server. It generates a file that contains information such as product version, license details, OS details, network configuration, installed hotfixes, status of Check Point processes, firewall tables, etc. This file can be used by Check Point Support to troubleshoot issues or analyze performance. References: [Cpinfo Utility]

 CoreXL is not supported when one of the following features is enabled: Check Point QoS (Quality of Service), Route-based VPN, IPv6 on IPSO, or Overlapping NAT. CoreXL is a performance-enhancing technology that allows multiple CPU cores to concurrently handle network traffic. IPS is supported by CoreXL and can benefit from its acceleration. References: : Check Point Software, Getting Started, CoreXL; : Check Point Software, Getting Started, IPS.

 In the R81 SmartConsole, Permissions and Administrators are defined on the Manage and Settings tab. The Manage and Settings tab allows administrators to configure various settings and options for the SmartConsole, such as global properties, network objects, services, users and user groups, permissions, licenses, certificates, etc. To define Permissions and Administrators, the administrator can go to the Manage and Settings tab and select Permissions and Administrators from the left pane. This will open a window where the administrator can create, edit, or delete administrators and roles, assign permissions and access profiles, enable multi-domain support, etc.

The other options are incorrect because:

• The Security Policies tab allows administrators to create, edit, or delete security policies for different blades, such as Access Control, Threat Prevention, Identity Awareness, Mobile Access, etc. It also allows administrators to install policies on selected gateways or servers.
• The Logs and Monitor tab allows administrators to view, filter, analyze, or export logs and reports for different blades, such as Access Control, Threat Prevention, Identity Awareness, Mobile Access, etc. It also allows administrators to monitor the status and performance of gateways and servers.
• The Gateways and Servers tab allows administrators to add, edit, or delete gateways and servers that are managed by the Security Management Server or the Multi-Domain Security Management Server. It also allows administrators to view the details and configuration of each gateway or server.

 The CPU load on a Secure Network Distributor (SND) indicates how much processing power is available for distributing traffic among cluster members. If the CPU load is high, it means that the SND is overloaded and cannot handle more traffic efficiently. A good indicator of SND overload is when the Idle CPU percentage is less than 20%. In this case, you may need to add another SND to balance the load or optimize your cluster configuration. References: Getting Started - Check Point Software, section “Monitoring ClusterXL Status”

 The statement that could not be a reason for synchronization issues in a Management HA environment is that the products installed on the servers do not match: one device is a Standalone Server while the other is only a Security Management server. This is not a valid reason because Management HA requires that both servers have the same products installed, either both as Standalone Servers or both as Security Management servers. The other statements are possible reasons for synchronization issues in a Management HA environment. References: [Check Point Security Expert R81 High Availability Administration Guide], page 11.

The secure application for Mail/Calendar for mobile devices in Check Point is called "Capsule Workspace." Capsule Workspace provides secure access to email and calendar data on mobile devices while maintaining security policies and controls.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 documentation and learning resources.

VPN Link Selection is a feature that allows the Security Gateway to select the best link for each VPN tunnel based on the network topology and the Link Selection configuration1. When the primary VPN link goes down, the Firewall can update the Link Selection entries to start using a different link for the same tunnel, as long as the remote peer supports this feature and has multiple IP addresses configured2. This way, the VPN tunnel can be maintained without interruption or renegotiation. The other options are not correct because:

Firewall

• A. The Firewall will not drop the packets, but will try to send them over another link if possible.

Firewall

• C. The Firewall will not send out the packet on all interfaces, but will use the routing table to determine the best interface for each destination.

Firewall

• D. The Firewall will not inform the client that the tunnel is down, but will try to keep the tunnel up by switching to another link.

References: IPSec VPN - Link Selection, Outgoing VPN Link Selection on a gateway with multiple external interfaces

In SmartEvent, the administrator can configure different types of automatic reactions, which include:

• Mail notifications
• Blocking the source of the event
• Blocking the event activity
• Running an external script
• Sending an SNMP trap

So, the correct answer is "Mail, Block Source, Block Event Activity, External Script, SNMP Trap."

References: Check Point documentation or training materials related to SmartEvent configuration and automatic reactions.

 The cpinfo command is a tool that collects diagnostic data from a Check Point gateway or management server. The data includes configuration files, logs, status reports, and more. The cpinfo output can be used for troubleshooting or sent to Check Point support for analysis. The -x parameter is used to get information about the specified Virtual System on a VSX gateway. A Virtual System is a virtualized firewall instance that runs on a VSX gateway and has its own security policy and objects. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, cpinfo Utility, VSX Administration Guide

Firewall Management (fwm) is available on any management product, including Multi-Domain and on products that requite direct GUI access, such as SmartEvent, It provides the following:

– GUI Client communication

– Database manipulation

– Policy Compilation

– Management HA sync

 The Check Point R81 Identity Awareness Web API uses the REST web services protocol to communicate with external identity sources. REST stands for Representational State Transfer, and it is an architectural style for designing web services that use HTTP methods to access and manipulate resources. The Identity Awareness Web API allows external identity sources to send identity and session information to the Security Gateway, which can then use this information for policy enforcement. 

The component of R81 Management that is used for indexing is SOLR. SOLR is an open-source enterprise search platform that provides fast and scalable indexing and searching capabilities. SOLR is used by SmartConsole to index the objects and rules in the security policy, as well as the logs and events in SmartLog and SmartEvent. SOLR enables quick and easy access to the relevant information in the management database. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, SOLR Troubleshooting

In SmartDashboard, Threat Prevention profiles can be assigned to one or more rules. This means that you can have multiple profiles assigned to a single gateway, and each of these profiles can be associated with one or more rules. This allows for granular control over threat prevention settings for different rules or scenarios.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 documentation and learning resources.

The command vpn tu tlist shows detailed information about VPN tunnels, such as the peer IP address, encryption domain, IKE phase 1 and phase 2 status, encryption algorithm, and tunnel uptime. The command vpn tu is an interactive tool that allows users to list, delete, or reconnect VPN tunnels. The command cpview is a real-time performance monitoring tool that shows various statistics about the system and network. References: VPN Administration Guide, SK97638 - What is cpview Utility and How to Use it

When simulating a problem on a ClusterXL cluster with the command "cphaprob –d STOP -s problem -t 0 register" to initiate a failover on an active cluster member, you can use the command "cphaprob –d STOP unregister" to remove the problematic state and return the cluster to normal operation.

Option A correctly identifies the command that allows you to remove the problematic state, making it the verified answer.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

The blades of Threat Prevention in Check Point include:

Intrusion Prevention System (IPS)

AntiVirus

AntiBot

SandBlast Threat Emulation/Extraction

So, the correct answer is D, which includes all the mentioned blades.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

 The extended master key extension/session hash is a feature introduced in TLS 1.3 to prevent a Man-in-the-Middle attack/disclosure of the client-server communication. It works by generating a unique session hash for each connection, which is derived from the master key and other parameters. This session hash is then used to authenticate the application data and the end-of-handshake messages, ensuring that no one can tamper with or eavesdrop on the communication. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, TLS 1.3 RFC

 In R81, more than one administrator can login to the Security Management Server with write permission at the same time. This feature is enabled by default and allows concurrent administration of the security policy. Every administrator works in a session that is independent of the other administrators. Changes made by one administrator are not visible to others until they are published. Administrators can also lock objects to prevent others from editing them until they are unlocked. References: R81 Security Management Administration Guide, page 43.

The SandBlast Agent is designed to prevent malware from spreading within the network if it enters an end user’s system. SandBlast Agent is a lightweight endpoint security solution that protects devices from advanced threats such as ransomware, phishing, zero-day attacks, and data exfiltration. SandBlast Agent uses various technologies such as behavioral analysis, anti-exploitation, anti-ransomware, threat emulation, threat extraction, and forensics to detect and block malware before it can harm the device or the network. The other options are either not the main purpose or not the functionality of SandBlast Agent. 

 The key C is used to save the current CPView page in a filename format cpview_“cpview process ID”.cap"number of captures". This is a feature of CPView that allows the user to capture the current page for later analysis or troubleshooting. The file is saved in the /var/log directory on the Security Gateway. References: Check Point Resource Library, page 3.

The file that gives you a list of all security servers in use, including port number, is $FWDIR/conf/fwauthd.conf. Security servers are processes that handle application-level protocols such as HTTP, FTP, SMTP, etc., and perform security checks on them. Fwauthd.conf is a configuration file that defines which security servers are enabled, which ports they listen on, and which inspection points they are attached to. 

Once a certificate is revoked from the Security Gateway by the Security Management Server, the certificate information is stored on the Certificate Revocation List (CRL). The CRL is a list of certificates that have been revoked by the Internal Certificate Authority (ICA) and are no longer valid for Secure Internal Communication (SIC). The CRL is signed by the ICA and issued to all the managed Security Gateways the next time a SIC connection is made12. The CRL helps to prevent unauthorized access to the Security Management Server by revoked Security Gateways.

References: 1: How to renew SIC after changing IP Address of Security Management Server - Check Point Software, Solution ID: sk43784 2: Check Point R81 Security Engineering Guide - Check Point Software, page 162

The valid range for VRID value in VRRP configuration is 1 - 255. VRID stands for Virtual Router ID, and it is a number that identifies a virtual router in a VRRP cluster. A VRRP cluster consists of one or more routers that share a virtual IP address and provide redundancy and load balancing for network traffic. Each router in the cluster must have a unique VRID value, and the VRID value must match the VRID value configured on the interface that connects to the VRRP cluster. The VRID value can be any number from 1 to 255, inclusive. 

 In Logging and Monitoring, the tracking options are Log, Detailed Log and Extended Log. The option that can be added to each Log, Detailed Log and Extended Log is Accounting/Suppression. Accounting/Suppression is a feature that allows administrators to control how often logs are generated for certain rules or connections. Accounting means that logs are generated periodically based on a specified interval or volume. Suppression means that logs are generated only for the first and last packet of a connection or session. Accounting/Suppression can be added to any tracking option to reduce the number of logs and save disk space.

According to the Check Point website, INSPECT Engine is the technology that extracts detailed information from packets and stores that information in state tables. INSPECT Engine is the core of Check Point’s Stateful Inspection technology, which enables Security Gateways to inspect traffic at multiple layers and enforce security policies. The other technologies are either not related or not specific enough. References: INSPECT Engine

Check Point APIs let system administrators and developers make changes to the security policy with CLI tools and web-services. You can use an API to:

• Use an automated script to perform common tasks

• Integrate Check Point products with 3rd party solutions

• Create products that use and enhance the Check Point solution

References:

A star community is a VPN topology where one or more satellites connect to a center gateway. The center gateway can be a Security Gateway or a Security Management Server. The VPN routing option determines how the traffic is routed between the satellites and the center, and between the satellites themselves. There are three VPN routing options available in a star community12:

• To center only: The satellites can only communicate with the center gateway, and not with each other or with any other VPN targets. This option is useful for remote access clients that only need to access resources on the center gateway.
• To center, or through the center to other satellites, to Internet and other VPN targets: The satellites can communicate with the center gateway, and also with other satellites, Internet hosts, and other VPN targets through the center gateway. This option is useful for branch offices that need to access resources on the center gateway, as well as on other branch offices, Internet hosts, and other VPN targets.
• To center and to other satellites through center: The satellites can communicate with the center gateway, and also with other satellites through the center gateway. However, they cannot communicate with Internet hosts or other VPN targets. This option is useful for branch offices that need to access resources on the center gateway and on other branch offices, but not on Internet hosts or other VPN targets.

Therefore, the options A (To satellites through center only) and D (To center only) are not valid VPN routing options in a star community.

References: 1: Remote Access VPN R81.20 Administration Guide - Check Point Software, page 13 2: Gaia R81.20 Administration Guide - Check Point Software, page 1030

 UserCheck is a communication tool used to inform a user about a website or application they are trying to access. UserCheck allows administrators to interact with users in real time, informing them of the security policy and the actions they need to take. UserCheck can also enable users to self-remediate incidents or request exceptions from the administrator. References: Training & Certification | Check Point Software, Check Point Resource Library

The formats in which Threat Emulation forensics reports can be viewed in are PDF, HTML, and XML. Threat Emulation is a feature that detects and prevents zero-day attacks by emulating files in a sandbox environment and analyzing their behavior. Threat Emulation generates forensics reports that provide detailed information about the emulated files, such as verdict, severity, activity summary, screenshots, network activity, registry activity, file activity, and process activity. These reports can be viewed in PDF, HTML, or XML formats from SmartConsole or SmartView.

 For Stateful Mode configuration, chain modules marked with 2 will not apply. Stateful Mode configuration is a feature that allows administrators to define how packets are processed by different firewall kernel modules in inbound and outbound directions. Chain modules are firewall kernel modules that perform various security functions, such as VPN, IPS, QoS, etc. Each chain module is associated with a key, which specifies the type of traffic applicable to the chain module. The key can be one of the following values: 0 for all packets, 1 for stateful packets, 2 for stateless packets, and 3 for no match packets. For Stateful Mode configuration, only chain modules with key 0 or 1 will apply, as they handle all packets or stateful packets. Chain modules with key 2 will not apply, as they handle stateless packets, which are not relevant for Stateful Mode configuration.

The Implicit Clean-up Rule is another name for the Clean-up Rule, which is the last rule in every policy layer. The Clean-up Rule defines the default action for traffic that does not match any of the preceding rules in the layer. The default action is to drop the traffic and log it, but it can be changed by the administrator. References: Training & Certification | Check Point Software, Check Point Resource Library

 According to the Check Point R81 training course, the medium path is available only when CoreXL is enabled. CoreXL is a performance-enhancing technology that allows multiple CPU cores to process traffic simultaneously. The medium path handles packets that require deeper inspection or content awareness, such as IPS, Anti-Virus, or URL Filtering. The other paths are either available regardless of CoreXL or not valid terms. References: Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81.20 Course Overview

The process that handles connection from SmartConsole R81 is cpm. Cpm stands for Check Point Management, and it is the main process that runs on the Security Management Server and interacts with SmartConsole clients. Cpm is responsible for managing policies, objects, logs, tasks, and other management functions. The other processes are either obsolete or irrelevant for SmartConsole connection.

 For best practices, the recommended time for automatic unlocking of locked admin accounts is 30 minutes at least. Admin accounts can be locked due to failed login attempts, password expiration, or manual locking by another admin. To prevent unauthorized access or brute force attacks, locked admin accounts should not be unlocked automatically too soon. The recommended minimum time for automatic unlocking is 30 minutes, which can be configured from the SmartConsole under Manage > Permissions and Administrators > Advanced > Unlock locked administrators after. 

The software blade package that uses CPU-level and OS-level sandboxing in order to detect and block malware is the Next Generation Threat Emulation. This package is part of the Check Point SandBlast Zero-Day Protection solution, which protects organizations against unknown malware, zero-day threats and targeted attacks, and prevents infections from undiscovered exploits1.

CPU-level and OS-level sandboxing are two techniques that Check Point uses to analyze files and objects for malicious behavior. CPU-level inspection is a unique technology that detects malware at the pre-infection stage by examining the CPU instructions that the file executes. This allows Check Point to identify and block malware that tries to evade detection by using obfuscation, encryption, or polymorphism12.

OS-level sandboxing is a complementary technology that runs files and objects in a virtualized environment and monitors their behavior for malicious indicators. This allows Check Point to detect and block malware that tries to exploit vulnerabilities in the operating system or applications, or that performs malicious actions such as downloading additional payloads, modifying system settings, or communicating with command and control servers12.

Therefore, the correct answer is B. The Next Generation Threat Emulation software blade package uses CPU-level and OS-level sandboxing in order to detect and block malware.

References:

• 1, Understanding SandBlast - Check Point Software Technologies
• 2, HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR NEXT SANDBOXING SOLUTION - Check Point Software
• 3, CHECK POINT + SERVICENOW
• 4, Check Point Quantum Edge Datasheet

The option that is NOT an option to calculate the traffic direction is Outgoing. Traffic direction is a parameter that determines how traffic is classified as internal or external based on its source and destination. Traffic direction can be calculated using three options: Incoming, Internal, or External. Incoming means that traffic is classified as internal if its destination is one of the Security Gateway’s interfaces, and external otherwise. Internal means that traffic is classified as internal if its source or destination belongs to one of the internal networks defined in the topology, and external otherwise. External means that traffic is classified as internal if both its source and destination belong to one of the internal networks defined in the topology, and external otherwise. Outgoing is not a valid option to calculate traffic direction. 

 Log Consolidator is NOT a SmartEvent component. SmartEvent is a unified security event management solution that provides visibility, analysis, and reporting of security events across multiple Check Point products. SmartEvent consists of three main components: SmartEvent Server, Correlation Unit, and Log Server. SmartEvent Server is responsible for storing and displaying security events in SmartConsole and SmartEventWeb. Correlation Unit is responsible for collecting and correlating logs from various sources and generating security events based on predefined or custom scenarios. Log Server is responsible for receiving and indexing logs from Security Gateways and other Check Point modules. Log Consolidator is not a valid component or blade of SmartEvent.

Threat Emulation downloads packages by default once per day. The packages contain updates for the Threat Emulation engine, signatures, and images. The download frequency can be changed in the Threat Prevention policy settings. References: Threat Emulation Administration Guide, Threat Prevention R81 Release Notes

ClusterXL supports Dynamic Routing for both Unicast and Multicast traffic. Dynamic Routing protocols, such as OSPF, BGP, or PIM, can be configured on cluster members to exchange routing information with other routers. ClusterXL supports two modes of operation for Dynamic Routing: New Mode and Legacy Mode. References: ClusterXL Administration Guide, SK98226 - ClusterXL New Mode Overview

 To add the company logo to reports, you would save the logo as a PNG file with the name ‘cover-company-logo.png’ and then copy that image file to the $RTDIR/smartview/conf directory on the SmartEvent server. The $RTDIR is an environment variable that points to the runtime directory of the SmartEvent server, which is usually /opt/CPrt-R81. The smartview/conf directory contains the configuration files for SmartView, which is a web-based interface for viewing reports and dashboards generated by SmartEvent. References: SmartEvent Administration Guide, SK120193 - How to add a company logo to SmartView reports

Check Point Protect is a lightweight app that can be used to gather and analyze threats to your mobile device. It provides real-time threat intelligence, device posture assessment, and secure browsing protection3. The other applications are either not designed for mobile devices, or do not offer threat analysis features. References: R81 CCSA & CCSE exams released featuring Promo for… - Check Point …, Check Point Protect - Apps on Google Play

 The main stages of a policy installation are Verification & Compilation, Transfer and Commit. Verification & Compilation is the stage where the Security Management Server checks the validity and consistency of the policy and compiles it into a binary format. Transfer is the stage where the compiled policy is sent to the Security Gateways over a secure channel. Commit is the stage where the Security Gateways activate the new policy and update their connections table accordingly. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, Policy Installation Process

The configuration file that contains the structure of the Security Server showing the port numbers, corresponding protocol name, and status is $FWDIR/conf/fwauthd.conf. This file is used for configuring authentication services in Check Point Security Servers.

References: Check Point documentation or training materials related to Security Server configuration.

The correct steps to configure the HTTPS Inspection Policy in Check Point R81 are as follows1:

• Go to Manage&Settings > Blades > HTTPS Inspection > Configure in SmartDashboard.
• Enable HTTPS Inspection and select the Policy tab.
• Create a new HTTPS Inspection Layer or edit an existing one.
• Define the rules for inspecting HTTPS traffic based on the source, destination, service, and action.
• Install the policy on the relevant gateways.

The other options are incorrect because they either use wrong blade names, wrong menu options, or wrong configuration steps. References: 1: LAB:25 How to Configure HTTPS Inspection in Check Point Firewall R81(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCvV7-R9ZgU)

The cvpnd_restart command is used to restart the daemon after making modifications to the $CVPNDIR/conf/cvpnd.C file. The cvpnd daemon is responsible for managing the communication between the Check Point components and the Content Vectoring Protocol (CVP) server. The CVP server is an external server that provides content inspection and filtering services for Check Point gateways. The $CVPNDIR/conf/cvpnd.C file contains the configuration settings for the cvpnd daemon, such as the CVP server IP address, port number, timeout value, and debug level. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, Content Inspection Using ICAP, cvpnd daemon debug file

Implicit MEP (Multicast Ethernet Point) options refer to the way multicast traffic is handled within a network. In this case, the question is asking about an implicit MEP option, and the correct answer is:

A. Primary-backup: This is an implicit MEP option where one switch (primary) forwards multicast traffic while the other switch (backup) does not forward the traffic. It is used to ensure redundancy in case the primary switch fails.

B. Source address-based, C. Round-robin, and D. Load Sharing are not implicit MEP options; they are different methods of handling multicast traffic and do not describe the concept of primary-backup.

Therefore, option A is the correct answer as it represents an implicit MEP option.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

The API command to create a new host with the name "New Host" and IP address "192.168.0.10" is:

This command adds a host object with the specified name and IP address to the Check Point configuration.

References: Check Point documentation or training materials related to API commands.

Check Point's SecureXL technology, which is responsible for acceleration, has certain limitations and conditions under which acceleration may not occur. In this context, the question is asking about factors that will NOT affect acceleration.

Option B, "A 5-tuple match," will not affect acceleration. A 5-tuple match refers to the matching of source IP, source port, destination IP, destination port, and protocol. SecureXL can accelerate traffic that matches these criteria, but it's not a factor that hinders acceleration.

Options A, C, and D can all affect acceleration:

Option A mentions "Connections destined to or originated from the Security gateway," which implies that SecureXL acceleration can apply to these connections.

Option C mentions "Multicast packets," and SecureXL may have limitations in handling multicast traffic efficiently.

Option D mentions "Connections that have a Handler (ICMP, FTP, H.323, etc.)," and certain protocols (such as FTP) may require special handling and might not be fully accelerated by SecureXL.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 Study Guide

 The SmartEvent Correlation Unit is responsible for analyzing the log entries and identifying events from them. It runs on the Log Server machine or on a dedicated machine1. To check the status of the SmartEvent Correlation Unit, you can use the command cpstat cpsead on the machine where it is installed. This command will show you information such as the number of logs processed, the number of events generated, the CPU and memory usage, and the status of the connection to the SmartEvent Server23.

References: SmartEvent Administration Guide R76, SmartEvent Administration Guide R75, SmartEvent Performance Tuning Guide

The Sticky Decision Function in ClusterXL is primarily used in Load Sharing implementations. In Load Sharing, the pivot member is responsible for determining the destination of new connections and ensures that traffic from the same source IP address is directed to the same cluster member. This ensures session stickiness for the same source IP, improving load sharing efficiency.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 documentation and learning resources.

In a Cpinfo (Checkpoint information) command, various information is collected from a Security Gateway. However, firewall logs are NOT collected from a Security Gateway in a Cpinfo.

A. Firewall logs

The Cpinfo command typically collects information such as configuration and database files, system message logs, OS and network statistics, but it does not include firewall logs. Firewall logs are usually obtained separately using other methods or tools.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 Study Guide, Check Point documentation on Cpinfo.

 CPUSE offline upgrade is the best upgrade method when the management server is not connected to the Internet. CPUSE (Check Point Upgrade Service Engine) is a tool that automates the process of upgrading and installing software packages on Check Point devices. CPUSE can work in online mode or offline mode. Online mode requires an Internet connection to download the packages from Check Point servers. Offline mode allows you to download the packages manually from another device and transfer them to the management server using a USB drive or SCP. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, CPUSE Administration Guide

 The fwaccel stat command on the gateway shows the status of SecureXL acceleration, including the number of accelerated and non-accelerated connections, and the reason for non-acceleration. The reason for non-acceleration can be either a rule that disables templating, or a feature that is not supported by SecureXL. To determine which rule disables templating, the administrator can use the -s option to show the rule numbers and names. For example:

Threat Extraction (Answer B): Threat Extraction always delivers a file, but it removes potentially malicious content from the file before delivering it to the user. It is designed to provide a safe version of the file quickly, taking less than a second to complete.

Threat Emulation (Option A): Threat Emulation does not deliver the original file to the user until it has been thoroughly analyzed for threats. It may take more than 3 minutes to complete the analysis. The emphasis here is on safety and thorough inspection, which may result in a longer processing time.

Therefore, Option B correctly describes the main difference between Threat Extraction and Threat Emulation.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 training materials and documentation.

The correct command to verify the CPUSE (Check Point Update Service Engine) version is:

Option B is incorrect because it uses the "[Expert@HostName:0]#" prompt, which is typically used for expert mode commands, but the CPUSE version can be checked using the "show installer status build" command in standard mode.

Option C is incorrect because it uses the "[Expert@HostName:0]#" prompt, and while it includes the "build" parameter, it's not the standard command to check the CPUSE version.

Option D is incorrect because it uses the "HostName:0>" prompt, but it lacks the "show" command and uses "build" instead of "status build."

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 documentation

To see the cluster status in CLI expert mode, you can use the command cphaprob stat. This command displays the status of the Check Point High Availability cluster. It provides information about the state of the cluster members, such as "Active," "Standby," or "Collision."

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

To enable VMAC mode on a cluster member, you need to set the value of the global kernel parameter fwha_vmac_global_param_enabled to 1. This can be done on-the-fly using the command fw ctl set int fwha_vmac_global_param_enabled 1 on all cluster members. This command does not require a reboot or a policy installation. VMAC mode allows the cluster to use a virtual MAC address for its virtual IP addresses, which reduces the number of gratuitous ARP packets sent upon failover and avoids ARP cache issues on some routers and switches. References: How to enable ClusterXL Virtual MAC (VMAC) mode

Management HA is a feature that allows the Security Management server to have one or more backup Standby Security Management servers that are ready to take over in case of failure1. The Active Security Management server is the one that handles all the management operations, such as policy installation, object creation, configuration backup, etc. The Standby Security Management servers are synchronized with the Active Security Management server and store the same data, such as databases, certificates, CRLs, etc. The Standby Security Management servers can also perform some operations, such as fetching a Security Policy or retrieving a CRL1.

To make changes to the system, such as editing objects or policies, the administrator needs to connect to the Active Security Management server. This is because the Active Security Management server is the only one that can modify the data and synchronize it with the Standby Security Management servers. The administrator can use SmartConsole to connect to the Active Security Management server by entering its IP address or hostname1. The administrator can also use SmartDashboard to connect to the Active Security Management server by selecting Policy > Management High Availability. This shows information about the Security Management server that includes its peers - displayed with the name, status and type of Security Management server1.

The other options are incorrect because:

• A. secondary Smartcenter: This is a synonym for a Standby Security Management server, which cannot be used to make changes to the system.
• C. connect virtual IP of Smartcenter HA: This is not a valid option because there is no virtual IP for Smartcenter HA. Each Security Management server has its own IP address and hostname.
• D. primary Smartcenter: This is a synonym for the Active Security Management server, but it is not the correct term to use. The term primary implies that there is only one Active Security Management server, which is not true. The administrator can put the Active Security Management server on standby and promote a Standby Security Management server to active at any time1.

References: How to Configure Management HA

The command cpinfo -y all can be used to have cpinfo display all installed hotfixes. Cpinfo is a tool that collects diagnostic data from a Check Point gateway or management server. The data includes configuration files, logs, status reports, and more. The -y parameter is used to specify which sections of data to include in the cpinfo output. The value all means to include all sections, including the hotfixes section, which shows the list of hotfixes installed on the system. References: Check Point Security Expert R81 Course, cpinfo Utility

The Check Point daemon that monitors the other daemons is cpwd (Check Point Watchdog). It is responsible for monitoring the health and status of various Check Point daemons and processes running on the Security Gateway. If any daemon or process stops responding or encounters an issue, cpwd can restart it to ensure the continued operation of the Security Gateway.

References: Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) R81 documentation and learning resources.

CPM stands for Check Point Management, which is a process that runs on the Security Management server and controls the management operations, such as policy installation, object creation, configuration backup, etc. CPM also controls other processes that are related to the management functions, such as:

• web_services: This process is responsible for providing web services for the communication between SmartConsole and the Security Management server. It handles requests from SmartConsole clients and forwards them to CPM or other processes.
• dle_server: This process is responsible for managing the log files and indexes. It handles queries from SmartLog and SmartEvent and provides log data to CPM or other processes.
• object_Store: This process is responsible for storing and retrieving objects from the database. It handles requests from CPM or other processes and provides object data.

Therefore, the correct answer is D.

The other options are incorrect because:

• A. Object-Store, Database changes, CPM Process and web-services: This option includes some processes that are controlled by CPM, such as Object-Store, CPM Process, and web-services, but it also includes Database changes, which is not a process but an action performed by CPM or other processes.
• B. web-services, CPMI process, DLEserver, CPM process: This option includes some processes that are controlled by CPM, such as web-services, DLEserver, and CPM process, but it also includes CPMI process, which is not a process but a protocol used by CPM or other processes to communicate with each other.
• C. DLEServer, Object-Store, CP Process and database changes: This option includes some processes that are controlled by CPM, such as DLEServer and Object-Store, but it also includes CP Process and database changes, which are not processes but a generic term for any Check Point process and an action performed by CPM or other processes respectively.

References: Check Point Processes and Daemons, Check Point Processes Cheat Sheet, Check Point Firewall Security Solution

Dynamic Dispatch is a feature that enhances CoreXL performance by dynamically assigning new connections to CoreXL FW instances based on their CPU utilization1. To enable Dynamic Dispatch on Security Gateway without enabling Firewall Priority Queues (FPQ), you need to run the command fw ctl multik set_mode 4 in Expert mode and reboot2. This command will set the CoreXL mode to Dynamic Dispatcher without FPQ. The other options are not correct because:

• A. fw ctl Dyn_Dispatch on: This command does not exist and will return an error message.
• B. fw ctl Dyn_Dispatch enable: This command does not exist and will return an error message.
• D. fw ctl multik set_mode 1: This command will set the CoreXL mode to Static Dispatcher without FPQ, which is the default mode2. This mode will use a static hash function to assign new connections to CoreXL FW instances based on their IP addresses and protocol.

References: CoreXL Dynamic Dispatcher, To fully enable Dynamic Dispatcher on a Security Gateway, Running Dynamic Dispatch / Dynamic Split / Dynamic Balancing on VSEC/IaaS in Vmware, Dynamic Balancing for CoreXL

The correct command to store the GAIA configuration in a file is save configuration 1. This will create a file with the current system level configuration in the home directory of the current user1. The other commands are incorrect because they either do not exist or do not save the configuration to a file. References: 1: Backing up Gaia system level configuration(https://supportcenter.checkpoint.com/supportcenter/portal?eventSubmit_doGoviewsolutiondetails= &solutionid=sk102234)

SecureXL is a technology that improves the performance of Security Gateway by offloading the processing of some packets from the Firewall kernel to the SecureXL device driver1. SecureXL can handle packets in three different paths, depending on the type and state of the packet2:

• Firewall Path: This is the slowest path, where packets are processed by the Firewall kernel and all the inspection blades. This path is used for packets that require full inspection, such as the first packet of a connection, packets that match a rule with a UTM blade, or packets that are not eligible for acceleration.
• Accelerated Path: This is the fastest path, where packets are processed by the SecureXL device driver and bypass the Firewall kernel. This path is used for packets that belong to an established connection that is marked for acceleration, and do not require any further inspection by the Firewall or other blades.
• Medium Path: This is a hybrid path, where packets are processed by both the SecureXL device driver and the Firewall kernel, but skip some inspection steps. This path is used for packets that belong to an established connection that is not marked for acceleration, but do not require full inspection by all the blades.

The other options are not correct because:

• A. Initial Path; Medium Path; Accelerated Path: There is no such thing as Initial Path in SecureXL terminology. The initial packet of a connection is always handled by the Firewall Path.
• B. Layer Path; Blade Path; Rule Path: These are not paths of traffic flow, but components of the unified policy in R80 and above versions. The Layer Path refers to the order of layers in the policy, the Blade Path refers to the order of blades within a layer, and the Rule Path refers to the order of rules within a blade3.
• C. Firewall Path; Accept Path; Drop Path: These are not paths of traffic flow, but possible actions that the Firewall can take on a packet. The Firewall Path is one of the paths of traffic flow, but the Accept Path and Drop Path are not. The Accept Path means that the packet is allowed to pass through the Firewall, and the Drop Path means that the packet is blocked by the Firewall4.

References: Part 3 - SecureXL, What is CoreXL & SecureXL, SecureXL Fast Accelerator (fw fast_accel) for R80.20 and above, QUANTUM 7000 SECURITY GATEWAY