Free Practice Questions for HP HPE7-A02 Exam

When HPE Aruba Networking Central detects an Infrastructure Attack, such as "Detect adhoc using Valid SSID," the next step is to locate the general area of the threat. You can use HPE Aruba Networking Central floorplans or the identities of the detecting APs to pinpoint the approximate location of the adhoc network. This allows you to physically investigate and address the source of the threat, ensuring that unauthorized or rogue networks are quickly identified and mitigated.

In the exhibit, the HPE Aruba Networking Central settings for the 9x00 gateway show that traffic inspection is enabled, and the gateway is set to operate in IDS (Intrusion Detection System) mode with the fail strategy set to "Block". This configuration means that the gateway will drop traffic if it matches a rule in the active ruleset.

1.Active Ruleset: The ruleset version 9861 is active, and the gateway is configured to automatically update the ruleset daily.

2.Traffic Matching Rules: When traffic matches a rule in the active ruleset, it is flagged as suspicious or malicious.

3.Block Mode: Since the fail strategy is set to "Block", any traffic that matches a rule in the active ruleset will be dropped to prevent potential threats.

To fix the issue where authorization fails because the usernames do not exist in the authentication source, you can configure rules in HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Policy Manager (CPPM) to strip the domain name from the username. When certificates are issued by a Windows CA, the username in the certificate often includes the domain (e.g., user@domain.com). ClearPass might not be able to find this format in the authentication source. By stripping the domain name, you ensure that ClearPass searches for just the username (e.g., user) in the authentication source, allowing successful authentication.

Why MD5 Authentication on Lag 1 is Preferred:

Lag 1 is the primary link between Switch-2 and Switch-1, both of which are Layer 3 switches running OSPF.

By enabling MD5 authentication, OSPF routers exchange authenticated packets, preventing unauthorized or rogue OSPF routers from forming adjacencies or injecting routes.

MD5 is a secure authentication method and ensures the integrity and authenticity of OSPF communications.

Other Options Analysis:

A. Configure OSPF authentication on VLANs 10-19 in password mode: While configuring authentication on VLAN interfaces could secure VLAN-specific OSPF traffic, it is less effective because the main threat of rogue OSPF comes from unauthorized L3 devices connected via the backbone (Lag 1).

C. Disable OSPF entirely on VLANs 10-19: Disabling OSPF on these VLANs is not a preferred solution because OSPF is needed to route traffic in this design.

D. Configure passive-interface as the OSPF default and disable OSPF passive on Lag 1: While passive interfaces prevent OSPF from forming adjacencies, it does not directly prevent rogue routers. Passive mode only limits OSPF advertisements on specific interfaces.

The "Detect Valid SSID Misuse" event in Aruba's Wireless Intrusion Detection System (WIDS) indicates that a valid SSID, associated with your network, is being broadcast from an unauthorized source. This scenario often signals a potential rogue access point attempting to deceive clients into connecting to it (e.g., for credential harvesting or man-in-the-middle attacks).

1. Explanation of Each Option

A. Clients are failing to authenticate to corporate SSIDs. You should first check for misconfigured authentication settings and then investigate a possible threat:

Incorrect:

This event is not related to authentication failures by legitimate clients.

Misconfigured authentication settings would lead to events like "authentication failures" or "radius issues," not "valid SSID misuse."

B. Admins have likely misconfigured SSID security settings on some of the company's APs. You should have them check those settings:

Incorrect:

This event refers to an external device broadcasting your SSID, not misconfiguration on the company’s authorized APs.

WIDS differentiates between valid corporate APs and rogue APs.

C. Hackers are likely trying to pose as authorized APs. You should use the detecting radio information and immediately track down the device that triggered the event:

Correct:

This is the most likely cause of the "detect valid SSID misuse" event. A rogue AP broadcasting a corporate SSID could lure clients into connecting to it, exposing sensitive credentials or traffic.

Immediate action includes:

Using the radio information from the event logs to identify the rogue AP's location.

Physically locating and removing the rogue device.

Strengthening WIPS/WIDS policies to prevent further misuse.

D. This event might be a threat but is almost always a false positive. You should wait to see the event over several days before following up on it:

Incorrect:

While false positives are possible, "valid SSID misuse" is a critical security event that should not be ignored.

Delaying action increases the risk of successful attacks against your network.

2. Recommended Steps to Address the Event

Review Event Logs:

Gather details about the rogue AP, such as SSID, MAC address, channel, and signal strength.

Locate the Rogue Device:

Use the detecting AP's radio information and signal strength to triangulate the rogue AP's physical location.

Respond to the Threat:

Remove or disable the rogue device.

Notify the security team for further investigation.

Prevent Future Misuse:

Strengthen security policies, such as enabling client whitelists or enhancing WIPS protection.

References

Aruba WIDS/WIPS Configuration and Best Practices Guide.

Aruba Central Security Event Analysis Documentation.

Wireless Threat Management Using Aruba Networks.

To determine the VLAN settings for the "APs" role on AOS-CX switches, it is crucial to know whether the APs bridge or tunnel traffic on their SSIDs. If the APs are bridging traffic, the VLAN settings on the switch need to align with the VLANs used by the SSIDs. If the APs are tunneling traffic to a controller or gateway, the VLAN settings might differ as the traffic is encapsulated and forwarded through the tunnel. Understanding this aspect ensures that the VLAN configuration on the switches correctly supports the traffic forwarding method employed by the APs.

Why a Mirror Session Is the Correct Choice

To analyze a wired client’s traffic with Wireshark, you need the traffic mirrored to your management station where Wireshark is installed. The most effective way to achieve this is by configuring a mirror session on the AOS-CX switch, specifying the client port as the source and your management station as the destination.

Analysis of Each Option

A. Access the client's switch's CLI from your management station. Access the switch shell and run a TCP dump on the client port:

Incorrect:

AOS-CX switches do not natively support packet capture (e.g., tcpdump) directly on the switch CLI.

This approach is not feasible for capturing and analyzing live client traffic.

B. Go to the client's switch in HPE Aruba Networking Central. Use the "Security" page to run a packet capture:

Incorrect:

HPE Aruba Networking Central provides security insights but does not directly support initiating packet captures for detailed analysis.

Traffic analysis with tools like Wireshark requires local packet capture at the management station.

C. Set up a policy that implements a captive portal redirect to your management station. Apply that policy to the client's port:

Incorrect:

Captive portals are designed for user authentication and redirection, not traffic analysis.

This would disrupt the client’s network activity without enabling traffic analysis in Wireshark.

D. Set up a mirror session on the client's switch; set the client port as the source and your station IP address as the tunnel destination:

Correct:

Mirroring the client port to your management station is the standard method for analyzing live network traffic with Wireshark.

Steps include:

Configure a mirror session on the client’s AOS-CX switch.

Set the client’s port as the source.

Set your management station as the destination using its IP address (via GRE tunnel or physical interface).

Start capturing traffic with Wireshark on the management station.

Final Recommendation

To analyze the client's traffic, configure a mirror session on the switch, set the client port as the source, and direct the traffic to your management station where Wireshark is running.

References

AOS-CX Switch Port Mirroring Configuration Guide.

HPE Aruba Networking Central Monitoring and Troubleshooting Best Practices.

Wireshark Traffic Analysis and Capture Techniques.

When a switch port connects to a wireless AP that bridges multiple client VLANs, best practice is to:

Keep the VLAN/trunking configuration on the interface (not forced by the role), so that both VLAN 18 (AP management) and VLAN 12 (clients) are supported.

Enable trust of DSCP on the AP uplink so that QoS markings from the AP (voice, real-time traffic) are honored end-to-end, instead of being remarked or reset at the switch. Aruba wired-access and campus deployment guides repeatedly recommend trusting DSCP on AP uplinks so that WMM/802.11e markings are preserved.

Option D (“Access VLAN 18 with no support for VLAN 12”) would break the design because the AP needs to carry client VLAN 12 across its uplink. Option C (auth-mode client-mode) is about how many supplicants per port are authenticated; it is not the key “recommended” setting in this scenario, and Aruba designs typically focus QoS for AP uplinks via trust settings.

Therefore, the recommended role setting here is to trust DSCP on the AP’s authenticated role → Option B.

To apply Virtual Network based Tunneling (VNBT) to a particular group of users and assign them to an overlay network with VNI 3000, you should configure the users' AOS-CX role to set the Access VLAN to the VLAN mapped to VNI 3000. This ensures that when users connect, their traffic is tunneled through the specified VNI, integrating seamlessly with the EVPN VXLAN solution.

1.Access VLAN Configuration: Setting the Access VLAN to the VLAN mapped to VNI 3000 ensures that users' traffic is directed to the correct virtual network.

2.EVPN VXLAN Integration: This setup allows the AOS-CX switch to participate in the EVPN VXLAN solution, ensuring that user traffic is properly encapsulated and tunneled.

3.Role-Based Assignment: Configuring the role with the correct VLAN mapping ensures that users are dynamically assigned to the appropriate virtual network based on their role.

On Aruba Mobility Controllers, dataplane captures can include wireless frames encapsulated inside GRE (for example, ERM / remote mirroring or tunneled 802.11 data). If Wireshark does not have GRE dissection enabled, these packets may appear as generic IP/UDP payloads, and the inner traffic (client frames) will not decode correctly.

MC dataplane is exactly where GRE-encapsulated user traffic is likely to appear. Enabling GRE in Wireshark allows you to see and decode the inner payload (802.11/Ethernet/IP).

MC control plane traffic is generally not GRE encapsulated data traffic.

For gateways, captures exported as ERM over UDP often require different decoding (e.g., ARUBA_ERM, not generic GRE).

Thus, the most appropriate case to ensure GRE is enabled is when the capture came from the MC dataplane → Option D.