BIG-IP Advanced Practice Exam

1. Introduction to F5 BIG-IP • Overview of F5 BIG-IP o Introduction to F5 Networks and the BIG-IP product family. o The role of BIG-IP in load balancing, application delivery, and traffic management. o Different BIG-IP product modules: Local Traffic Manager (LTM), Global Traffic Manager (GTM), Access Policy Manager (APM), Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM), and Application Security Manager (ASM). • BIG-IP Architecture and Components o Understanding the hardware and software architecture of BIG-IP. o The role of TMM (Traffic Management Microkernel) in processing traffic. o Key components of BIG-IP: Configuration Utility, iControl REST API, and Traffic Management Operating System (TMOS). o Clustering and redundancy in BIG-IP: Active/Standby and Active/Active configurations. • BIG-IP Licensing and Installation o Understanding BIG-IP license types and activation methods. o Installation steps for BIG-IP software on hardware or virtual appliances. o Initial setup and configuration of BIG-IP for basic functionality. 2. Traffic Management • Load Balancing Concepts o The role of load balancing in application delivery and high availability. o Load balancing algorithms: Round Robin, Least Connections, Least Sessions, Observed, etc. o Advanced load balancing techniques: persistence, connection mirroring, and smart load balancing. • iRules and Traffic Manipulation o Introduction to iRules: syntax, structure, and use cases. o Writing iRules for traffic manipulation: setting headers, cookies, and redirects. o Practical use of iRules for SSL offloading, HTTP redirects, and custom load balancing logic. o Debugging and troubleshooting iRules. • SSL Offloading and SSL Acceleration o SSL offloading concepts: decrypting SSL traffic at the BIG-IP level to improve backend performance. o Managing SSL certificates, keys, and cryptographic settings. o Configuring SSL profiles for client-side and server-side SSL termination. o SSL certificate renewal, import, and management. 3. Advanced Traffic Management and Optimization • Content Switching o Overview of content switching and how it is used to direct traffic to different pools based on content type. o Configuring content switching policies using iRules. o Managing content-based routing: URL, HTTP headers, and cookies. o Troubleshooting content switching issues. • Persistence and Session Management o Understanding persistence concepts and session affinity in BIG-IP. o Configuring persistence profiles: cookie persistence, SSL persistence, and source address persistence. o Session management and handling non-sticky sessions with high availability. o Troubleshooting persistence and session-related issues. • Compression and Caching o Optimizing application delivery with compression techniques. o Configuring HTTP compression profiles to reduce bandwidth usage and accelerate content delivery. o Caching strategies: static content caching, dynamic content caching, and reverse proxy caching. o Troubleshooting cache issues and ensuring cache hits. • Traffic Shaping and QoS o Traffic shaping techniques for bandwidth control and load management. o Quality of Service (QoS) configuration in BIG-IP to prioritize traffic and guarantee application performance. o Managing traffic queues, policies, and class of service (CoS). o Implementing rate-limiting policies for better traffic control. 4. High Availability and Redundancy • BIG-IP High Availability Setup o Implementing high availability (HA) in BIG-IP systems for fault tolerance and service continuity. o Configuring Device Service Clustering (DSC) for BIG-IP appliances. o Setting up and managing active/standby and active/active device groups. o Synchronizing configurations across BIG-IP devices in a cluster. • Failover and Traffic Redirection o Configuring automatic failover using BIG-IP failover features. o Testing and verifying failover configurations. o Managing traffic redirection during device failover and ensuring seamless service continuity. • Link and Pool Monitoring o Configuring health monitoring for servers and application pools. o Implementing advanced health monitors for custom applications. o Handling failover based on health checks: timeouts, retries, and thresholds. o Monitoring link status and ensuring fault tolerance in application delivery. 5. Security Management • BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) o Overview of Access Policy Manager (APM) and its role in secure access management. o Configuring and managing authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) policies. o SSO (Single Sign-On) integration and identity federation with APM. o Integrating APM with external directories (LDAP, Active Directory). • Application Security Manager (ASM) o Introduction to Application Security Manager (ASM) for web application security. o Configuring ASM for application firewall rules and security policies. o Preventing common web application attacks: SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and CSRF. o Managing and updating ASM security signatures and security policy learning. • Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) o Understanding the role of Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) in protecting applications and networks. o Configuring AFM for DDoS protection, packet filtering, and traffic inspection. o Managing policies for rate limiting, access control, and intrusion detection. o Integrating AFM with external security devices and logging systems. • SSL Inspection and TLS Offloading o Configuring SSL inspection for end-to-end encryption in a secure traffic management setup. o Using BIG-IP for SSL/TLS offloading and inspecting SSL traffic for security vulnerabilities. o Managing intermediate certificate chains, SSL profiles, and private key access controls. 6. Monitoring and Troubleshooting • BIG-IP System Monitoring o Overview of system monitoring tools in BIG-IP, including the dashboard, System and Statistics page. o Configuring and interpreting SNMP monitoring for BIG-IP performance metrics. o Using iStats, syslog, and other logging tools for monitoring BIG-IP activity and performance. • Log Management and Debugging o Troubleshooting BIG-IP configurations using the logs: system, event, and error logs. o Using the TMM logs to debug issues related to traffic management. o Implementing real-time monitoring with external log management systems. o Debugging iRules, SSL certificates, and traffic flow issues. • Traffic Flow Debugging o Tracing the path of traffic through BIG-IP using network diagnostics tools (tcpdump, wireshark). o Analyzing traffic patterns and identifying bottlenecks, packet loss, or misrouted packets. o Ensuring correct traffic forwarding and load balancing through test scenarios. • Performance Tuning o Identifying and addressing performance bottlenecks in BIG-IP systems. o Configuring BIG-IP for optimal resource usage and efficient traffic processing. o Implementing performance monitoring with Resource Usage and Server Load indicators. 7. Automation and Advanced Features • iControl REST API o Introduction to the iControl REST API for automating configuration and management tasks. o Developing scripts for traffic management, configuration deployment, and health monitoring. o Leveraging iControl REST API to integrate BIG-IP with other systems and tools. • Custom Automation with BIG-IQ o Using BIG-IQ for centralized management and automation of multiple BIG-IP devices. o Automating system updates, configuration changes, and policy enforcement. o Integration of BIG-IQ with other automation tools and environments (e.g., Ansible, Terraform). • Advanced iRule Features o Advanced iRule capabilities for traffic manipulation and customized configurations. o Handling complex data patterns and traffic routing based on multiple conditions. o Implementing traffic modifications for custom security, logging, and user experience needs. 8. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity • Backup and Restore Procedures o Configuring and performing regular backups of BIG-IP configuration settings and SSL certificates. o Restoring configurations from backups after a failure or system restoration. o Ensuring the integrity and security of backup files. • Disaster Recovery Planning o Developing and implementing a disaster recovery plan for BIG-IP systems. o Replication of BIG-IP configurations across geographically dispersed data centers. o Managing failover processes during disaster recovery scenarios to minimize downtime. • Business Continuity with Multi-Datacenter Deployment o Configuring BIG-IP in multi-datacenter environments for high availability. o Managing global traffic with BIG-IP GTM (Global Traffic Manager) and local traffic with LTM (Local Traffic Manager). o Synchronizing configurations and managing traffic redirection across multiple sites.