NSE7_PBC-7.2 Fortinet NSE 7 - Public Cloud Security 7.2 Question and Answers

For Transit Gateway Connect peers in an IPv4 BGP configuration, the correct statements are:

• The inside CIDR blocks are used for BGP peering (Option A):In a BGP configuration for Transit Gateway Connect, the inside CIDR blocks, typically within the 169.254.0.0/16 range, are designated for the BGP peering connections. These blocks are reserved for internal network protocols and are commonly used in AWS for automatic IP address assignment within managed networking services.
• You must specify a /29 CIDR block from the 169.254.0.0/16 range (Option C):It is a requirement to specify a /29 CIDR block within the 169.254.0.0/16 range for setting up the network interfaces that facilitate BGP peering. This specific range allows for the necessary number of IP addresses to establish BGP sessions effectively between the transit gateway and on-premises or other virtual appliances.

References:These practices are in line with AWS guidelines for Transit Gateway Connect, which stipulate the use of specified CIDR blocks for internal networking and BGP configurations, ensuring seamless connectivity and routing management.

According to the AWS documentation for Transit Gateway, a Transit Gateway is a network transit hub that connects VPCs and on-premises networks. To route traffic from Linux instances to the TGW, you need to do the following steps:

• In the TGW route table, associate two attachments. An attachment is a resource that connects a VPC or VPN to a Transit Gateway. By associating the attachments to the TGW route table, you enable the TGW to route traffic between the VPCs and the VPN.
• In the main subnet routing table in VPC A and B, add a new route with destination 0_0.0.0/0, next hop TGW. This route directs all traffic from the Linux instances to the TGW, which can then forward it to the appropriate destination based on the TGW route table.

The other options are incorrect because:

• In the TGW route table, adding route propagation to 192.168.0 0/16 is not necessary, as this is already the default route for the TGW. Route propagation allows you to automatically propagate routes from your VPC or VPN to your TGW route table.
• In the main subnet routing table in VPC A and B, adding a new route with destination 0_0.0.0/0, next hop Internet gateway (IGW) is not correct, as this would bypass the TGW and send all traffic directly to the internet. An IGW is a VPC component that enables communication between instances in your VPC and the internet.

[Transit Gateways - Amazon Virtual Private Cloud]

The correct answer is C and D. FortiGate NGFW can inspect north-south container traffic with label aware policies and FortiGate NGFW and FortiSandbox can be used to secure container traffic.

According to the Fortinet documentation for container security1, FortiGate NGFW can provide the following benefits for securing container infrastructure:

• It can inspect north-south traffic between containers and external networks using label aware policies, which allow for dynamic policy enforcement based on Kubernetes labels and metadata.
• It can integrate with FortiSandbox to provide advanced threat protection for container traffic, by sending suspicious files or URLs to a cloud-based sandbox for analysis and detection.
• It can leverage FortiGuard Security Services to provide real-time threat intelligence and updates for container traffic, such as antivirus, web filtering, IPS, and application control.

The other options are incorrect because:

• FortiGate NGFW cannot be placed between each application container for north-south traffic inspection, as this would create unnecessary complexity and overhead. Instead, FortiGate NGFW can be deployed at the edge of the container network or as a sidecar proxy to inspect traffic at the ingress and egress points.
• FortiGate NGFW cannot connect to the worker node and protect the container, as this would not provide sufficient visibility and control over the container traffic. Instead, FortiGate NGFW can leverage the native Kubernetes APIs and services to monitor and secure the container traffic.

1:Fortinet Documentation Library - Container Security

The correct answer is A and C. A transport attachment and a connect attachment are necessary to connect a transit gateway to an existing VPC with BGP.

According to the AWS documentation for Transit Gateway, a transit gateway is a network transit hub that connects VPCs and on-premises networks. To connect a transit gateway to an existing VPC with BGP, you need to do the following steps:

• Create a transport attachment. A transport attachment is a resource that connects a VPC or VPN to a transit gateway. You can specify the BGP options for the transport attachment, such as the autonomous system number (ASN) and the BGP peer IP address.
• Create a connect attachment. A connect attachment is a resource that enables you to use your own appliance to provide network services for traffic that flows through the transit gateway. You can use a connect attachment to route traffic between the transport attachment and your appliance using GRE tunnels and BGP.

The other options are incorrect because:

• A BGP attachment is not a valid type of attachment for a transit gateway. BGP is a protocol that enables dynamic routing between the transit gateway and the VPC or VPN.
• A GRE attachment is not a valid type of attachment for a transit gateway. GRE is a protocol that encapsulates packets for tunneling purposes. GRE tunnels are established between the connect attachment and your appliance.

[Transit Gateways - Amazon Virtual Private Cloud] : [Transit Gateway Connect - Amazon Virtual Private Cloud]

Network ACLs are stateless, and they evaluate each packet separately based on the rules that you define. The rules are processed in order, starting with the lowest numbered rule1. If the traffic matches a rule, the rule is applied and no further rules are evaluated1. Therefore, if you want to allow SSH traffic to a subnet, you must create a new allow SSH rule above rule number 5, which denies SSH and telnet traffic. Otherwise, the deny rule will take precedence and block the SSH traffic.

The other options are incorrect because:

• Creating a new allow SSH rule below rule number 5 will not allow SSH traffic, because the deny rule will be evaluated first and block the traffic.
• Creating a new allow SSH rule anywhere in the network ACL rule base will not guarantee that SSH traffic will be allowed, because it depends on the order of the rules. If the allow SSH rule is below the deny rule, it will not be effective.
• You cannot rely on the default security group rule to allow SSH traffic to the subnet, because network ACLs act as an additional layer of security for your VPC. Even if your security group allows SSH traffic, your network ACL must also allow it. Otherwise, the traffic will be blocked at the subnet level.

According to the AWS documentation for Transit Gateway, a transit gateway is a network transit hub that connects VPCs and on-premises networks. A transit gateway route table is a set of rules that determines how traffic is routed among the attachments to the transit gateway1.

A transit gateway can have multiple route tables, and you can associate different attachments with different route tables. This allows you to control how traffic is routed between your VPCs and VPNs based on your network design and security requirements1.

The other options are incorrect because:

• Both the TGW attachment and propagation must be in the same TGW route table is not true. You can associate an attachment with one route table and enable propagation from another attachment to a different route table. This allows you to separate the routing domains for your attachments1.
• A TGW attachment can be associated with multiple TGW route tables is not true. You can only associate an attachment with one route table at a time. However, you can change the association at any time1.
• The TGW default route table cannot be disabled is not true. You can disable the default route table by deleting all associations and propagations from it. However, you cannot delete the default route table itself1.

1: Transit Gateways - Amazon Virtual Private Cloud

Considering the situation where the administrator is unable to access the FortiGate VM using its public IP address and no traffic is reaching the FortiGate's external interface, the administrator should check:

D.Check the inbound network security group rules.

• Network Security Group Rules:AWS uses security groups as a virtual firewall that controls inbound and outbound traffic to AWS resources such as EC2 instances. If the FortiGate VM’s public interface is not receiving HTTPS or SSH traffic, it's likely because the inbound security group rules associated with that interface are not allowing access on the necessary ports (HTTPS - port 443, SSH - port 22).
• Troubleshooting:The administrator should verify that the security group rules for the FortiGate VM’s network interface allow inbound traffic on the specific ports used for management access. If these rules are absent or misconfigured, the intended traffic will be blocked, resulting in the inability to connect.

References:The role of security groups in network traffic management is a core concept in AWS and is outlined in AWS documentation. Checking security group rules is a standard troubleshooting step when dealing with connectivity issues to AWS resources.

In an HA active-active load balance configuration with FortiGate VMs, especially in Microsoft Azure where FGSP (FortiGate Session Life Support Protocol) is used for session synchronization, the correct configuration for thepeeripis:

D.The opposite FortiGate port 2 IP address.

• HA Synchronization Requirements:FGSP requires direct communication between the FortiGates to synchronize the session table. This synchronization typically occurs over a dedicated HA link that connects the HA pair.
• Asymmetric Traffic Considerations:FGSP allows asymmetric traffic to rejoin the correct session by synchronizing session information, including NAT and TCP sequence tracking between the FortiGate units in a cluster.
• Configuration Specifics:For port 2, which is facing the internal load balancer, thepeeripshould be set to the corresponding port 2 IP address of the opposite FortiGate. This allows the internal interfaces to communicate directly with each other for session synchronization purposes, which is crucial in an active-active deployment to ensure sessions persist during failover scenarios.

References:The choice of using port 2's IP address for FGSP is supported by the Fortinet documentation, which explains how FortiGates should be configured for HA, especially in cloud environments where traditional HA links may not be available.

For administrators seeking to gain insights into user activities and data within major SaaS applications across multicloud environments, deploying FortiCASB (Cloud Access Security Broker) is the most effective solution (Option C).

• Role of FortiCASB:FortiCASB is specifically designed to provide security visibility, compliance, data security, and threat protection for cloud-based services. It acts as a mediator between users and cloud service providers, offering deep visibility into the operations and data handled by SaaS applications.
• Capabilities of FortiCASB:This product enables administrators to monitor and control the access and usage of SaaS applications. It helps in assessing security configurations, tracking user activities, and evaluating data movement across the cloud services. By doing so, it assists organizations in enforcing security policies, detecting anomalous behaviors, and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.
• Integration and Functionality:FortiCASB integrates seamlessly with major SaaS platforms, providing a centralized management interface that allows for comprehensive analysis and real-time protection measures. This integration ensures that organizations can maintain control over their data across various cloud services, enhancing the overall security posture in a multicloud environment.

References:Fortinet’s official documentation on FortiCASB details its functionalities and integration capabilities with SaaS applications, highlighting its role in providing enhanced security measures for cloud-based services.

The statement that best describes the concept of immutable infrastructure in the context of automation is:

A. It is the practice of deploying a new server for every configuration change.

• Immutable Infrastructure Concept:This approach to infrastructure management involves replacing servers or components entirely rather than making changes to existing configurations once they are deployed. When a change is needed, a new server instance is provisioned with the desired configuration and the old one is decommissioned after the new one is successfully deployed and tested.
• Benefits:Immutable infrastructure minimizes the risks associated with in-place updates, such as inconsistencies or failures due to configuration drift. It enhances reliability and predictability by ensuring that the deployed environment matches exactly what was tested in staging. Thispractice is particularly aligned with modern deployment strategies like blue/green or canary deployments.

References:The concept of immutable infrastructure is widely discussed in DevOps and cloud computing literature as a method to increase consistency and fault tolerance in automated environments.

When deploying resources in multiple places and regions in the public cloud using Terraform, the most efficient way is:

A.Use multiple terraform.tfvars files with a variables.tf file.

• Terraform.tfvars File:This file is used to assign values to variables defined in your Terraform configuration. By having multiple.tfvarsfiles, you can define different sets of values for different deployments, such as for different regions or environments, without changing the main configuration.
• Variables.tf File:This file contains the definition of variables that will be used within your Terraform configuration. It works in conjunction withterraform.tfvarsfiles, allowing you to parameterize your configuration so that you can deploy the same template in multiple environments with different variables.

References:This method is outlined in Terraform's official documentation and is a best practice for reusing code for different environments in infrastructure as code (IaC) deployments.

• A is incorrect because the terraform plan command will not deploy any resources at all. It will only show the changes that would be made if the terraform apply command was run. The error message in the exhibit indicates that the service principal details are invalid, which means that Terraform cannot authenticate to Azure and cannot create any resources1.
• B is incorrect because you can run the terraform apply command without running the terraform plan command first. The terraform apply command will automatically generate a new plan and prompt you to approve it before applying it2. However, running the terraform plan command first can help you preview the changes and avoid any unwanted or unexpected actions.
• C is correct because you must run the terraform init command once before the terraform plan command. The terraform init command initializes a working directory containing Terraform configuration files. It downloads and installs the provider plugins required for your configuration, such as the Azure provider2. It also creates a hidden directory called .terraform to store the plugin binaries and other metadata1. Without running the terraform init command, the terraform plan command will fail because it cannot find the required plugins or modules.
• D is correct because the terraform plan command makes Terraform do a dry run. A dry run is a simulation of what would happen if you executed a certain action, without actually performing it. The terraform plan command creates an execution plan, which is a description of the actions that Terraform would take to make your infrastructure match your configuration2. The execution plan shows you what resources will be created, modified, or destroyed, and what attributes will be changed. The execution plan does not affect your infrastructure or state file until you apply it with the terraform apply command1.

Ansible connects to FortiGate using an API, which is a method of communication between different software components. Ansible uses the fortios_* modules to interact with the FortiOS API, which is a RESTful API that allows configuration and monitoring of FortiGate devices12. Ansible can use either HTTP or HTTPS as the transport protocol, and can authenticate with either a username and password or an API token3.

The other options are incorrect because:

• Ansible does not use TCP port 21 to connect to FortiGate. Port 21 is typically used for FTP, which is not supported by FortiOS4.
• Ansible does not use SSH as a connection method to FortiOS. SSH is a secure shell protocol that allows remote command execution and file transfer, but it is not the preferred way of automating configuration changes on FortiGate devices.
• Ansible does not use YAML to connect to FortiGate. YAML is a data serialization language that Ansible uses to write playbooks and inventory files, but it is not a connection method. References:
• Fortinet.Fortios — Ansible Documentation
• FortiOS REST API Reference
• FortiOS Module Guide — Ansible Documentation
• FortiOS 7.0 CLI Reference
• [Connection methods and details — Ansible Documentation]
• [YAML Syntax — Ansible Documentation]

The two best connection solutions available between your company headquarters, branch sites, and the Azure vWAN hub are A. ExpressRoute and E. VPN Gateway.

According to the Azure documentation for Virtual WAN, ExpressRoute and VPN Gateway are two of the supported connectivity options for connecting your on-premises sites and Azure virtual networks to the Azure vWAN hub1. These options provide secure, reliable, and high-performance connectivity for your network traffic.

ExpressRoute is a service that lets you create private connections between your on-premises sites and Azure.ExpressRoute connections do not go over the public internet, and offer more reliability, faster speeds, lower latencies, and higher security than typical connections over the internet2.

VPN Gateway is a service that lets you create encrypted connections between your on-premises sites and Azure over the internet using IPsec/IKE protocols.VPN Gateway also supports point-to-site VPN connections for individual clients using OpenVPN or IKEv2 protocols3.

The other options are incorrect because:

• GRE tunnels are not a supported connectivity option for Azure vWAN. GRE is a protocol that encapsulates packets for tunneling purposes.GRE tunnels are established between the connect attachment and your appliance in Azure vWAN4.
• SSL VPN connections are not a supported connectivity option for Azure vWAN. SSL VPN is a type of VPN that uses the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol to secure the connection between a client and a server.SSL VPN is not compatible with the Azure vWAN hub5.
• An L2TP connection is not a supported connectivity option for Azure vWAN. L2TP is a protocol that creates a tunnel between two endpoints at the data link layer (Layer 2) of the OSI model.L2TP is not compatible with the Azure vWAN hub.

1:Azure Virtual WAN Overview | Microsoft Learn2: [ExpressRoute overview - Azure ExpressRoute | Microsoft Docs]3: [VPN Gateway - Virtual Networks | Microsoft Azure]4: [Transit Gateway Connect - Amazon Virtual Private Cloud]5: [SSL VPN - Wikipedia] : [Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol - Wikipedia]