The Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Engineer, known as PCNSE, validated the skills needed to design, deploy, configure, maintain, and troubleshoot Palo Alto Networks next generation firewalls. It was aimed at engineers, resellers, pre sales system engineers, integrators, and support staff who work with PAN-OS and Panorama. Palo Alto Networks retired the exam on July 31, 2025, so it can no longer be booked, but existing credentials stay valid for two years from the date earned Take a free NVIDIA certified associate generative AI llms practice exam mock test.
Anyone searching for this exam should know its status first. The PCNSE was one of the last legacy exams in the Palo Alto Networks catalog. The company described the legacy exams as focused on product knowledge, while its newer framework validates job ready skills. If you already hold a PCNSE, the credential stays active until its two year expiry. A retired exam does not shorten that period, but it does mean there is no PCNSE to retake when the credential lapses.
For firewall focused roles, Palo Alto Networks points to the Network Security Generalist (since renamed Network Security Professional), Network Security Analyst, and Next-Generation Firewall Engineer certifications. None of these is a direct one to one replacement. Check the official certification page to see which one fits your role.
The PCNSE existed to show that an engineer could work across the Palo Alto Networks platform, not just configure a single firewall. The questions covered how firewalls, Panorama, subscriptions, and cloud delivered services fit together. Candidates also had to explain why one design choice beats another, such as when to use a virtual wire interface instead of a Layer 3 interface, or when decryption is worth the risk.
The study guide lists recommended training rather than mandatory prerequisites. The recommended courses were Firewall Essentials: Configuration and Management (EDU-210), Panorama: Managing Firewalls at Scale (EDU-220), and Firewall: Troubleshooting (EDU-330). Hands on time with a PAN-OS firewall mattered more than any single course, because many questions were built around scenarios and configuration choices.
Palo Alto Networks documented the format as multiple choice, scenarios with graphics, and matching. The published seat time and item count changed between guide versions. The last study guide I could verify listed 80 minutes and 70 items, while other sources report 75 questions. Because the exam is retired, there is no current official figure to rely on. Passing scores for these exams are scaled, so avoid claims of a fixed percentage.
The official blueprint (dated February 2023) split the exam into six weighted domains.
Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
Core Concepts | 12% |
Deploy and Configure Core Components | 20% |
Deploy and Configure Features and Subscriptions | 17% |
Deploy and Configure Firewalls Using Panorama | 17% |
Manage and Operate | 16% |
Troubleshooting | 18% |
Core Concepts covered interface and zone types, decryption strategy, User-ID, Authentication policy, and multiple virtual systems. Core Components covered security profiles, zone and DoS protection, high availability design, certificates, routing, NAT, site to site tunnels, service routes, and application based QoS. Features and Subscriptions covered App-ID, GlobalProtect, decryption configuration, WildFire, and web proxy.
The Panorama domain focused on templates, template stacks, device groups, commit behavior, and log collectors. Manage and Operate covered log forwarding, upgrades, and HA functions. Troubleshooting was the largest single domain after Core Components and included tunnels, interfaces, decryption, routing, GlobalProtect, policies, and HA failover. Troubleshooting alone was worth 18%, which is why candidates who only memorized menus struggled.
The PCNSE can no longer be scheduled. Palo Alto Networks certification exams are delivered through Pearson VUE, and all of them are in person at test centers from August 1, 2025. For any current exam, create your account through the official Palo Alto Networks certification pages and confirm fees, identification rules, and retake policy there before you book.
Palo Alto firewalls are widely deployed, and the PCNSE signaled hands on depth with PAN-OS rather than general security theory. For existing holders, it still tells employers you can troubleshoot decryption failures, design HA pairs, and manage firewalls at scale through Panorama templates and device groups. For new candidates, the same skills now feed into the role based exams, so the blueprint topics above remain a useful study map for the Next-Generation Firewall Engineer path.
Free practice tests on AllExamQuestions.com can help you check your knowledge of these domains, especially scenario questions on policy, NAT, and troubleshooting. They are independent study material, not official exam content. Use them to find weak areas, then confirm anything doubtful in the PAN-OS Administrator’s Guide.
Last updated on Oct, 26 2026
