Enabling Cisco FTD Clustering | Benefits and Results

Benefits of Enabling Cisco FTD Clustering

Question

What is a result of enabling Cisco FTD clustering?

Answers

Explanations

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A. B. C. D.

C.

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/security/firepower/640/configuration/guide/fpmc-config-guide-v64/

Enabling Cisco FTD (Firepower Threat Defense) clustering provides a way to group multiple Firepower appliances to work together as a single logical unit, sharing configuration, management, and processing power. The main benefits of clustering are improved availability, scalability, and performance.

Regarding the given options:

A. For the dynamic routing feature, if the master unit fails, the newly elected master unit maintains all existing connections. This statement is true. When a Firepower cluster is formed, one of the devices is elected as the master unit responsible for managing the cluster. The master unit is also responsible for handling dynamic routing protocols such as OSPF, BGP, or RIP. If the master unit fails, another device is elected as the new master, and all existing connections are maintained without interruption.

B. Integrated Routing and Bridging is supported on the master unit. This statement is partially true. Integrated Routing and Bridging (IRB) is a feature that allows a device to perform both layer 2 bridging and layer 3 routing functions simultaneously. In a Firepower cluster, IRB is supported on all devices, not just the master unit.

C. Site-to-site VPN functionality is limited to the master unit, and all VPN connections are dropped if the master unit fails. This statement is false. Site-to-site VPN functionality is distributed among all devices in a Firepower cluster. Each device is capable of handling VPN connections independently, and there is no single point of failure. If one device fails, the other devices continue to handle VPN traffic without interruption.

D. All Firepower appliances support Cisco FTD clustering. This statement is false. Not all Firepower appliances support clustering. Clustering requires specific hardware and software capabilities, and only certain models are supported. Before attempting to set up a Firepower cluster, it's important to check the hardware and software compatibility matrix to ensure that the devices meet the requirements.

In summary, enabling Cisco FTD clustering provides improved availability, scalability, and performance by grouping multiple Firepower appliances to work together as a single logical unit. It's important to note that clustering does not introduce a single point of failure and that certain features such as dynamic routing and site-to-site VPN functionality are distributed among all devices in the cluster.