HP Aruba Certified Network Security Professional Exam HPE7-A02 Exam Dumps: Updated Questions & Answers (October 2025)

MAC Spoofing Detection with Endpoint Conflict:

When two devices attempt to use the same MAC address, ClearPass identifies a Conflict state in the Endpoints Repository.

This condition can be used to detect and quarantine clients that spoof legitimate devices.

Option D: Correct. The Conflict EQUALS true condition identifies devices with duplicate MAC addresses.

Option A: Incorrect. Endpoint compliance checks posture, not MAC spoofing.

Option B: Incorrect. Device Insight Tags are used for profiling but do not identify conflicts.

Option C: Incorrect. Compromised devices relate to security incidents, not MAC address conflicts.

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.

Integration of CPDI and CPPM for Zero Trust:

CPDI (ClearPass Device Insight) identifies and profiles devices and applications on the network.

CPDI can tag devices based on their behavior or detected applications.

CPPM uses these tags to enforce policies, such as quarantining clients that violate security rules (e.g., using prohibited applications).

Option Analysis:

Option A: Incorrect. CPPM does not inform CPDI about role assignments; CPDI provides device context to CPPM.

Option B: Correct. CPDI tags clients, and CPPM uses those tags to enforce quarantine or other Zero Trust actions.

Option C: Incorrect. Custom fingerprint definitions are not part of this integration.

Option D: Incorrect. CPDI provides information about devices, not user identities.

When configuring 802.1X authentication on edge ports of an AOS-CX switch and assigning VoIP phones to a "voice" role, the correct approach is to configure VLAN 12 as the allowed trunk VLAN in the "voice" role. This setup ensures that traffic tagged for VLAN 12 is appropriately managed by the role applied to the VoIP phones. In AOS-CX switches, the role-based VLAN configuration allows for more granular control and ensures that the VoIP phones' traffic is handled correctly without altering the edge port settings, which typically operate with default settings for authentication.

In HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Device Insight (CPDI), a device with a Risk Score of 90 indicates that the posture is unhealthy, and CPDI has detected at least one vulnerability on the device. The risk score is a reflection of the device's security posture and detected vulnerabilities. A high risk score, such as 90, typically signifies significant security concerns, including the presence of vulnerabilities that could be exploited, thereby categorizing the device as a high-risk asset within the network.

Policy Analysis:

Rule Evaluation Order: Rules are applied in sequential order until a match is found.

Key Points:

DHCP traffic (UDP 67) is permitted.

DNS traffic (UDP 53) is permitted.

Traffic to 10.5.5.0/24 is explicitly denied.

HTTP traffic (TCP 80) is allowed only to 10.5.0.0/16.

HTTPS traffic (TCP 443) is allowed only to 10.5.0.0/16.

All other traffic to 10.5.0.0/16 is denied.

Any other traffic not matching the above rules is permitted.

Scenario Analysis:

The client IP 10.2.2.2 does not fall within the 10.5.0.0/16 subnet.

Rule 3 denies traffic to 10.5.5.5, regardless of the source IP.

Option A: Correct. HTTPS traffic to 10.5.5.5 is explicitly denied by Rule 3.

Option B: Incorrect. Traffic to 203.0.113.12 is permitted due to the final "permit any" rule.

Option C: Incorrect. The client (10.2.2.2) does not belong to the subnet 10.5.0.0/16, so traffic to 10.5.3.3 is not permitted by Rule 5.

Option D: Incorrect. HTTP traffic to 198.51.100.12 is allowed by the last "permit any" rule.

Implementing user-based tunneling (UBT) on AOS-CX switches is beneficial for applying enhanced security features such as deep packet inspection (DPI) to wired traffic. UBT allows the traffic from specific users or devices to be tunneled to a central controller or security appliance where advanced security policies, including DPI, can be applied. This approach ensures that even wired traffic benefits from the same level of security and inspection typically available for wireless traffic, thus enhancing overall network security.

1. IDPS Mode Configuration Overview

The exhibit shows the HPE Aruba Networking Central settings for the Gateway IDS/IPS configuration:

Mode: Configured for Intrusion Prevention System (IPS), meaning that the gateway actively blocks traffic identified as threats.

Fail Strategy: Configured to Block, meaning that if the gateway cannot determine the traffic's nature due to a system issue, it will block the traffic.

Ruleset: The gateway uses a predefined set of intrusion detection/prevention rules (ruleset version 9861), which is updated automatically every day.

2. Traffic Evaluation in IPS Mode

In IPS mode, the gateway analyzes traffic against the active ruleset:

If traffic matches a rule in the ruleset and is deemed malicious, the gateway will drop the traffic as part of its prevention mechanism.

The ruleset defines specific conditions (e.g., signatures of known attacks, protocol anomalies) under which traffic should be blocked.

3. Explanation of Each Option

A. Its site-to-site VPN connections failing:

Incorrect:

Site-to-site VPN connection issues do not directly trigger traffic drops under IDPS settings.

IDPS is focused on detecting and preventing malicious activity, not general connectivity issues.

B. Traffic matching a rule in the active ruleset:

Correct:

In IPS mode, the gateway drops traffic that matches any predefined rules in the active ruleset.

For example, if traffic matches the signature of a known exploit or attack, it is immediately blocked.

C. Its IDPS engine failing:

Incorrect:

The fail strategy determines how the gateway behaves in the event of an IDPS engine failure.

In this case, the fail strategy is set to Block, but this applies only if the engine itself fails, not as a proactive traffic drop mechanism.

D. Traffic showing anomalous behavior:

Incorrect:

While anomalous behavior may be logged or flagged, it does not necessarily lead to traffic drops unless it matches a specific rule in the active ruleset.

Anomaly detection alone is not sufficient for IPS action without explicit rule matches.

Final Outcome:

Traffic is dropped only when it matches a rule in the active ruleset, ensuring targeted prevention of malicious activity.

References

Aruba Gateway IDS/IPS Configuration Guide.

Aruba Central Ruleset Management Documentation.

Best Practices for Configuring Fail Strategies in IPS Mode.

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.

Comprehensive Detailed Explanation

The configuration includes the command aaa authentication allow-fail-through, which specifies that if the TACACS+ server fails to respond (e.g., times out), the switch will proceed to the next authentication method in the sequence, which is local. In this scenario:

The switch first attempts to authenticate the user against the TACACS+ server.

When the TACACS+ server fails to respond, the switch falls back to local authentication.

The user netadmin is a local account configured on the switch and belongs to the operators group.

As a result, the user is successfully authenticated locally and is granted operator level access.

References

Aruba AOS-CX User Guide: Authentication fallback mechanisms.

TACACS+ fallback behavior for HPE Aruba switches.