156-587 Check Point Certified Troubleshooting Expert - R81.20 (CCTE) Questions and Answers

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)

To see the list of processes monitored by the WatchDog process (CPWD), you use thecpwd_admin listcommand.

Option A (cpstat fw -f watchdog): Shows firewall status and statistics for the "fw" context, not necessarily the list of monitored processes.

Option B (fw ctl get str watchdog): Not a valid parameter for retrieving the list of monitored processes; “fw ctl” deals with kernel parameters.

Option C (cpwd_admin list): Correct command that lists all processes monitored by CPWD, their status, and how many times they have been restarted.

Option D (ps -ef | grep watchd): This will list any running process that matches the string “watchd” but will not specifically detail which processes are being monitored by CPWD.

Therefore, the best answer iscpwd_admin list.

Check Point Troubleshooting References

sk97638: Explains Check Point WatchDog (CPWD) usage and the cpwd_admin utility.

R81.20 CLI Reference Guide: Describes common troubleshooting commands including cpwd_admin list.

Check Point Gaia Administration Guide: Provides instructions for monitoring system processes and verifying CPWD.

When a user space process crashes unexpectedly, the operating system often creates acore dumpfile. This file is a snapshot of the process's memory at the time of the crash, including information such as:

Program counter:This indicates where the program was executing when it crashed.

Stack pointer:This shows the function call stack, which can help trace the sequence of events leading to the crash.

Memory contents:This includes the values of variables and data structures used by the process.

Register values:This shows the state of the processor registers at the time of the crash.

Core dump files can be analyzed using debuggers like GDB to understand the cause of the crash.

Why other options are incorrect:

B. kernel_memory_dump dbg:This refers to a kernel memory dump, which is generated when the operating system kernel itself crashes.

C. core analyzer:This is a tool used to analyze core dump files, not the file itself.

D. coredebug:This is not a standard term for any type of crash dump file.

Check Point Troubleshooting References:

Check Point's documentation mentions core dumps in the context of troubleshooting various processes, such as fwd (firewall) and cpd (Check Point daemon). You can find information on enabling core dumps and analyzing them in the Check Point administration guides and knowledge base articles.

 The error message “SmartLog is not active or Failed to parse results from server” indicates that there is a problem with the SmartLog server process, which is responsible for indexing and querying the logs. One possible cause of this problem is a corrupted log file or a mismatched IP address in the logging configuration files. Another possible cause is a communication failure between the SmartLog server and the CPM process or the SmartConsole client. To resolve this issue, the first thing to try is to restart the SmartLog server process by running the command smartlog_server restart on the Security Management Server or the Log Server. This command will stop the SmartLog server, clean the buffer, and start it again. This may fix the corrupted log file or the communication issue. If the problem persists, other steps may be needed, such as checking the network connectivity, the firewall rules, the logging configuration files, the CPM process, or the SmartConsole client.

The Resource Application Daemon (RAD) is a critical component in Check Point’s Application Control and URL Filtering blades, responsible for processing and categorizing web traffic. The configuration file $FWDIR/conf/rad_settings.C on the Security Gateway defines settings related to RAD’s operation.

Option A: Incorrect. The rad_settings.C file does not store entitlement information for Application Control or URL Filtering. Entitlements are managed by the Security Management Server and stored in licensing databases, not in this file.

Option B: Incorrect. The rad_settings.C file does not specify how the Security Gateway communicates with the Security Management Server’s RAD service. Communication settings are typically handled by SIC (Secure Internal Communication) and other configuration files, such as $FWDIR/conf/fwopsec.conf.

Option C: Correct. The rad_settings.C file contains proxy settings for the RAD daemon, such as HTTP proxy configurations used for accessing external services (e.g., Check Point’s online URL Filtering database). This is critical when the Gateway requires a proxy to reach external resources for URL categorization.

Option D: Incorrect. Hostname settings for the online application detection engine are not stored in rad_settings.C. These are typically managed by the Application Database (application_db.C) or resolved via DNS.

In Check Point’s Security Management Architecture, SmartConsole is the graphical user interface used to manage the Security Management Server. The communication between SmartConsole and the Security Management Server relies on specific processes and ports, which are critical for troubleshooting connectivity issues.

TheCPM (Check Point Management)process is the primary process on the Security Management Server responsible for handling management operations, including interactionswith SmartConsole. The default port for this communication is18190(TCP), used for the SIC (Secure Internal Communication) and management GUI connections.

Option A: Correct. SmartConsole communicates with the Security Management Server using the CPM process over port 18190. This port is used for GUI client connections to the management server.

Option B: Incorrect. The FWM (Firewall Management) process is an older process used in earlier Check Point versions (pre-R80) for management tasks. In R81.20, CPM has largely replaced FWM for SmartConsole communications. Additionally, port 19009 is used for other purposes, such as the Check Point REST API, not SmartConsole.

Option C: Incorrect. While CPM is the correct process, port 19009 is not used for SmartConsole communication. Port 19009 is associated with the Check Point Management API (e.g., for mgmt_cli or REST API calls).

Option D: Incorrect. While CPM is involved, SmartConsole does not use both ports 19009 and 18191. Port 18191 is typically used for log server communications (e.g., SmartConsole to Log Server), not direct management server communication.

 The CpmiHostCkp table in the Postgres database contains the data for CPMI objects, such as gateways, clusters, and servers. The table column that should be selected to query for the object instance is the objid column, which is the primary key of the table and uniquely identifies each object. The objid column can be used to join with other tables that reference CPMI objects, such as CpmiClusterMember, CpmiCluster, and CpmiServer. The objid column can also be used to retrieve the object name, IP address, type, and other attributes from the CpmiHostCkp table itself. References:

Check Point Database Tool (GuiDBedit Tool) - Section: How to use the Check Point Database Tool (GuiDBedit Tool) - Subsection: How to view the data in the database

Check Point Certified Troubleshooting Expert (CCTE) - Exam Topics - Module 6: Advanced Management Server Troubleshooting

[Check Point R81 Database Schema] - Section: CPMI Tables - Subsection: CpmiHostCkp Table

 Identity Awareness is a feature that enables the Security Gateway to identify users and groups behind IP addresses, and apply security policies based on their identity12. Identity Awareness uses different methods to acquire identities, such as AD Query, Identity Collector, and Browser-Based Authentication12. To debug Identity Awareness issues, you need to use the command pdp debug on the gateway, where pdp stands for Policy Decision Point, the component that handles the identity acquisition and enforcement13. The command pdp debug has different flags for different identity sources, such as adlog for AD Query, ic for Identity Collector, and nac for Browser-Based Authentication13. The flag extended enables more detailed debug output13. Therefore, the correct command to debug the problem of users not being able to browse internet sites with Identity Awareness using AD Query, Identity Collector, and Browser-Based Authentication is pdp debug nac extended on the gateway13. The other options are incorrect because they either use the wrong command (ad debug instead of pdp debug), the wrong flag (ad query instead of nac), or the wrong location (on the management instead of on the gateway). References:

1: CCTE Courseware, Module 9: Advanced Identity Awareness Troubleshooting, Slide 4

2: Check Point R81 Identity Awareness Administration Guide, Chapter 1: Introduction to Identity Awareness, Page 7

3: Check Point R81 Identity Awareness Administration Guide, Chapter 5: Troubleshooting Identity Awareness, Page 49

 The four main database domains are System, User, Global, and Log. Each domain contains different types of data and serves different purposes123. The System domain contains the configuration data of the Security Management Server (SMS), such as the SMS name, IP address, licensing, and installed products. The User domain contains the configuration data of the security policy, such as the objects, rules, services, and VPN communities. The Global domain contains the configuration data of the global policy, such as the global objects, rules, and services. The Log domain contains the log data of the security events, such as the source, destination, action, and time of each event123. References:

1: CCTE Courseware, Module 3: Management Database and Processes, Slide 4

2: Check Point R81 Security Management Administration Guide, Chapter 2: Security Management Server, Page 14

3: Check Point R81 Security Management Administration Guide, Chapter 2: Security Management Server, Page 15

 = The RFL process is the Remote File Log process that is responsible for transferring logs from the Security Gateway to the Security Management Server1. If the RFL process is with status T, it means that it is terminated and not running2. This could explain why the logs are not seen in the SMS. To resolve this issue, one possible command to run is smartlog_server stop and smartlog_server restart3. This command will stop and restart the SmartLog server, which is the process that indexes and displays the logs in the SmartConsole. By restarting the SmartLog server, it may also restart the RFL process and resume the log transfer. Alternatively, one can also try to restart the RFL process directly by running cpwd_admin stop -name RFL and cpwd_admin start -name RFL. References: Check Point Processes and Daemons, sk97638 - Check Point Processes and Daemons, sk144192 - How to restart SmartLog server, [sk98348 - SmartLog / SmartView server functionality], [sk97638 - Check Point Processes and Daemons]

The cpca process is responsible for the generation of certificates on the Security Management Server or the Multi-Domain Security Management Server. It is the Check Point Internal Certificate Authority (ICA) that issues certificates for internal use, such as for VPN, HTTPS Inspection, SmartConsole, and Secure Internal Communication (SIC). The cpca process runs on the Security Management Server or the Multi-Domain Security Management Server as part of the Management High Availability module.

 The CPD process controls logging on the Security Management Server or the Log Server. It is responsible for receiving logs from the Security Gateways, storing them in the log files, and forwarding them to the SmartLog and SmartEvent servers. It also handles the communication with the SmartConsole clients and the CPM process. The CPD process runs on the Security Management Server or the Log Server as part of the Management High Availability module.

The correct statement explaining the differences between the two procedures for debugging in the firewall kernel is D. (i) is used for general debugging, has a small buffer and is a quick way to set kernel debug flags to get an output via command line whereas (ii) is useful when there is a need for detailed debugging and requires additional steps to set the buffer and get an output via command line.

The command fw ctl zdebug is a shortcut command that sets the kernel debug flags to a predefined value and prints the debug output to the standard output. It is useful for general debugging of common issues, such as traffic drops, NAT, VPN, or clustering. It has a small buffer size and does not require additional steps to start or stop the debugging. However, it has some limitations, such as it cannot be used with SecureXL, it cannot filter the output by chain modules, and it cannot save the output to a file12.

The command fw ctl debug is a command that allows the administrator to set the kernel debug flags to a custom value and specify the chain modules to debug. It is useful for detailed debugging of specific issues, such as policy installation, CoreXL, or Identity Awareness. It has a larger buffer size and can save the output to a file. However, it requires additional steps to start and stop thedebugging, such as setting the buffer size, clearing the buffer, dumping the buffer, and resetting the debug flags12.

The command fw ctl kdebug is a command that is used in conjunction with fw ctl debug to dump the kernel debug buffer to the standard output or to a file. It is part of the procedure (ii) for detailed debugging in the firewall kernel12.

The other statements are not correct or relevant for explaining the differences between the two procedures for debugging in the firewall kernel. The command fw ctl zdebug can be used to debug more than just the access control policy, and the command fw ctl debug/kdebug can be used to debug more than just the unified policy. Both commands can be used on both the Security Gateway and the Security Management Server, depending on the issue to be debugged12.