Free Practice Questions for Checkpoint 156-587 Exam

The cpwd_admin list command is used to display the status of processes monitored by the Check Point WatchDog Daemon (CPWD). The CPM (Check Point Management) process is a core process on the Security Management Server, responsible for management operations. However, on aSecurity Gateway, the CPM process is not typically present, as it is specific to management functions.

Option A: Correct. The output of cpwd_admin list differs between a Security Gateway and a Security Management Server. On a Security Gateway, processes like FWD, VPND, and PEP are monitored, but CPM is not present because it runs on the Management Server. Thus, CPM will not appear in the cpwd_admin list output on a Gateway.

Option B: Incorrect. While it’s true that CPM is not running on the Security Gateway, the reason it’s not listed is not because it “can’t be monitored” by CPWD. On a Management Server, CPM is indeed monitored by CPWD, but this question pertains to a Gateway.

Option C: Incorrect. CPM is automatically monitored by CPWD on systems where it runs (e.g., Management Server). There is no need to manually add it to WatchDog’s monitoring list.

Option D: Incorrect. CPM does not have its own separate monitoring system. On a Management Server, CPM is monitored by CPWD like other critical processes. The statement about “only lower processes” being monitored is inaccurate.

The Unified Policy is a feature that allows you to create a single policy layer that combines the functionality of Access Control, Threat Prevention, and HTTPS Inspection12. To debug the Unified Policy, you need to use the command fw ctl debug with the module name UP and the flag all or specific flags for different aspects of the Unified Policy inspection34. The possible flags for the Unified Policy module are:

up_match: Shows the matching process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_inspect: Shows the inspection process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_action: Shows the action process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_log: Shows the logging process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_tls: Shows the TLS inspection process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_clob: Shows the CLOB (Content Limitation and Optimization Blade) inspection process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_rulebase: Shows the rulebase loading process of the Unified Policy rules.

up_connection: Shows the connection tracking process of the Unified Policy rules.

The flag tls is not a valid flag for the Unified Policy module, as it is used for the TLS Inspection module5. Therefore, the correct answer is A. tls. The other options are valid flags for the Unified Policy module, as explained above34. References:

1: CCTE Courseware, Module 8: Advanced Access Control, Slide 7

2: Check Point R81 Security Gateway Architecture and Packet Flow, Chapter 5: Unified Policy, Page 29

3: CCTE Courseware, Module 8: Advanced Access Control, Slide 17

4: Check Point R81 Security Gateway Architecture and Packet Flow, Chapter 5: Unified Policy, Page 32

5: Check Point R81 Security Gateway Architecture and Packet Flow, Chapter 6: TLS Inspection, Page 36

The main components of Check Point’s Security Management architecture are1:

Management server: This is the central component that manages the security policy, configuration, and licenses for the Security Gateways and other Check Point devices. It also provides the SmartConsole interface for the administrators to manage the security environment.

Management database: This is the database that stores the security policy, configuration, and objects for the Security Management Server. It also stores the logs and events from the Security Gateways and other Check Point devices.

Log server: This is the component that receives and stores the logs and events from the Security Gateways and other Check Point devices. It also provides the SmartLog and SmartEvent interfaces for the administrators to view, analyze, and manage the logs and events.

Automation server: This is the component that provides the REST API and the CLI for the administrators to automate and script the security management tasks.

1: (CCTE) - Check Point Software

 Dynamic log distribution is a feature that allows the Security Gateway to distribute logs between the active Log Servers, instead of sending a copy of every log to each Log Server. This feature was introduced in Check Point R81.10 version, and it requires boththe Management and the Gateways to be at least on version R81.10 for this to be supported12. With dynamic log distribution, the Gateway can optimize the disk space usage and network bandwidth consumption of the Log Servers, and also improve theperformance and reliability of the logging system3. References: Dynamic logs distribution - Check Point CheckMates1, (CCTE) - Check Point Software2, SmartLog and SmartEvent R81.10 Administration Guide3

1: https://community.checkpoint.com/t5/Management/Dynamic-logs-distribution/td-p/142732  2: https://www.checkpoint.com/downloads/training/DOC-Training-Data-Sheet-CCTE-R81.10-V1.0.pdf  3: https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/R81.10/WebAdminGuides/EN/CP_R81.10_LoggingAndMonitoring_AdminGuide/html_frameset.htm

The Global Domain is one of the relational database domains in the Postgres database that stores the management configuration. The purpose of the Global Domain is to serve as the global database for Multi-Domain Security Management (MDSM) and contain the global objects and policies that are shared across all domains. The Global Domain also stores the global settings, such as the administrator roles, the LDAP servers, the IPS profiles, and the SmartEvent views. The Global Domain can be managed by the Global Domain Administrator or the Super User Administrator using the SmartConsole. The Global Domain can be backed up and restored using the mds_backup and mds_restore commands.

When a Security Gateway performs a URL lookup and the URL is not found in the local caches, a request for online categorization is necessary. This process involves the Resource Advisor Daemon (RAD), which has components in both kernel space and user space.

Based on descriptions of the URL Filtering categorization process (often cited in CCTE R81.20 materials):

A client (internal component, potentially the URLF Kernel Client or a similar kernel module handling the traffic) initiates a URL lookup.

The URL is first checked against kernel caches.

If the URL is not found in the kernel cache (a cache miss), the RAD kernel component is notified.

The client component then typically sends an asynchronous request to the RAD kernel component.

The RAD Kernel Space component is then responsible for forwarding this request to the RAD User Space module.

The RAD User Space module handles the actual online categorization, often by querying the URLF Online Service (Check Point's cloud-based categorization service).

The result is then returned, and the kernel cache is updated.

The question asks where the sync-request (or a request requiring immediate online lookup) is forwarded from. In this flow, the RAD Kernel Space acts as the intermediary that forwards the request from the initial kernel-level lookup mechanism to the user-space RAD process for further handling.

Supporting Information (derived from CCTE R81.20 related materials/discussions):

The typical flow for URL categorization when an online lookup is needed involves these steps:

"The kernel cache notifies the RAD kernel of hits and misses."

"The client sends an a-sync request back to RAD if the URL was not found." (This request goes to the RAD Kernel Space).

"The a-sync request is forwarded to the RAD User space via the RAD kernel for online categorization."

This indicates that the RAD Kernel (RAD Kernel Space) is the component that forwards the request to the RAD User Space.

Therefore, if a sync-request (a request needing immediate online lookup) is required, it is forwarded from the RAD Kernel Space to the RAD User Space.

Reference Context (based on CCTE R81.20 materials and general Check Point URL Filtering architecture):

Discussions and explanations related to Check Point Certified Troubleshooting Expert (CCTE) R81.20 curriculum often detail this RAD architecture. For example, study materials might state: "RAD has a kernel module that looks up the kernel cache, notifies client about hits and misses and forwards a-sync requests to RAD user space module which is responsible for online categorization." The 1 "RAD kernel module" corresponds to the RAD Kernel Space, and it is this component that performs the forwarding action to the RAD User Space.(Exact page numbers like "CCTE R81.20, p338/339" have been referenced in public CCTE exam discussions pointing to this flow)