The Palo Alto Networks Enterprise Firewall PA-7050 represents a groundbreaking advancement in network security technology, specifically engineered to protect high-speed datacenter environments with uncompromising performance and security.
At its core, the PA-7050 delivers exceptional firewall throughput of up to 120 Gbps with App-ID enabled and threat prevention speeds of up to 100 Gbps, setting a new industry standard for enterprise-grade security appliances. The system’s architecture leverages more than 400 processors strategically distributed across networking, security, switch management, and logging functions, enabling seamless processing of complex security operations at datacenter speeds.
Through its revolutionary App-ID technology, the PA-7050 can accurately identify and control applications regardless of port, encryption, or evasive tactics, providing unprecedented visibility and control over network traffic. The platform’s sophisticated design incorporates a single-pass software engine combined with function-specific processing for networking, security, threat prevention, and management, maximizing throughput while maintaining comprehensive security coverage.
Supporting up to 24 million concurrent sessions and capable of processing 720,000 new sessions per second, the PA-7050 is specifically built to handle the demanding requirements of modern enterprise datacenters and high-speed networks.
The system’s modular architecture includes up to six Network Processing Cards (NPCs), each delivering 20 Gbps of firewall performance, connected through a high-speed 1.2 Tbps switch fabric that ensures linear scalability as NPCs are added. Its robust threat prevention capabilities are powered by WildFire technology, which can identify and analyze unknown threats in minutes and automatically generate and deploy protection across the network.
The PA-7050 seamlessly integrates with enterprise user repositories through User-ID technology, enabling granular, user-based policy controls regardless of location or device type. Moreover, the platform’s comprehensive management capabilities, including centralized administration through Panorama, make it an ideal solution for organizations requiring enterprise-scale security without sacrificing performance or ease of management.
With support for up to 225 virtual systems and 40,000 policies, the PA-7050 provides the flexibility and scalability needed to secure the most demanding network environments while maintaining strict performance standards.
Overview
The PA-7050 represents Palo Alto Networks’ enterprise-grade firewall solution, engineered specifically for high-performance datacenter environments and mission-critical network infrastructure. This next-generation firewall delivers:
- Industry-leading throughput of 120 Gbps with App-ID enabled
- Advanced threat prevention at 100 Gbps with DSRI enabled
- Revolutionary processing architecture with 400+ dedicated processors
- Zero-compromise security capabilities at datacenter-grade speeds
- Enterprise-scale capacity handling up to 24 million concurrent sessions
Architecture & System Design
Processing Architecture
- Network Processing Card (NPC)
- Individual throughput: 20 Gbps per card
- Maximum configuration: Up to 6 NPCs
- Interface density per NPC: 24 traffic interfaces
- Dedicated security-optimized multi-core processors
- Switch Management Card (SMC)
- First Packet Processor (FPP) for intelligent traffic distribution
- 1.2 Tbps switch fabric capacity
- Dedicated management subsystem
- ~100 Gbps traffic capacity per NPC
- Log Processing Card (LPC)
- Multi-core processing architecture
- 2TB RAID 1 storage configuration
- Real-time logging and analysis capabilities
- Independent processing for logging activities
Hardware Specifications
Physical Characteristics
- Form Factor: Chassis-based system
- Dimensions: 15.75″H x 19″W x 24″D
- Weight: 184 lbs (standalone)
- Power: 4x2500W AC power supplies
- Power Consumption: 2400W (avg) / 2700W (max)
- BTU/HR: 9,213
- Operating Temperature: 32° to 122° F (0° to 50° C)
Interface Configuration
- Copper Interfaces: 72 x 10/100/1000
- Fiber Interfaces: 48 x Gigabit SFP
- High-Speed Interfaces: 24 x 10 Gigabit SFP+
- Management Ports:
- 2 x 10/100/1000 + 2 x 40Gbps (HA)
- 1 x 10/100/1000 (out-of-band management)
- 1 x RJ45 console port
Storage Configuration
- System Drive: 80GB SSD
- Log Storage: 4 x 1TB HDD on Log Processing Card
- RAID Configuration: 2TB RAID1
Core Technologies & Capabilities
App-ID™ Technology
- Application Recognition Capabilities
- Port-independent application identification
- SSL/SSH decryption and inspection
- Application function control
- Custom application identification
- Real-time application categorization
- Classification Mechanisms
- Protocol/Port Analysis
- Application Signatures
- SSL/SSH Decryption
- Heuristic Analysis
- Behavioral Analysis
User-ID™ Integration
- Authentication Methods
- Active Directory integration
- LDAP-based directory support
- Terminal services monitoring
- Client probing
- Syslog parsing
- Identity Features
- User-to-IP mapping
- Group-based policies
- Directory service synchronization
- Multi-domain support
- Custom repository integration via XML API
Content-ID™ Technologies
- Threat Prevention
- Zero-day threat protection
- Known vulnerability protection
- Custom signature support
- Automated signature updates
- Behavioral analysis
- File and Data Filtering
- File type control (60+ types)
- Data pattern matching
- Custom pattern definition
- Password-protected file handling
- Archive file inspection
Security Features & Capabilities
Threat Prevention
- WildFire Integration
- Unknown threat detection
- Automated signature generation
- Global threat intelligence sharing
- Custom analysis environment
- One-hour update cycle
- IPS Capabilities
- Protocol anomaly detection
- Statistical anomaly detection
- Zero-day exploit protection
- Custom signature support
- Virtual patching
- Anti-Malware Features
- Stream-based scanning
- In-line malware prevention
- PDF/JavaScript/HTML protection
- Compressed file scanning
- Command-and-control blocking
Network Security Features
- VPN Capabilities
- Site-to-Site IPSec VPN
- Remote Access VPN
- GlobalProtect support
- SSL VPN options
- VPN monitoring and reporting
- NAT Features
- Static NAT
- Dynamic NAT
- PAT (Port Address Translation)
- NAT64 support
- Source and destination NAT
- High Availability
- Active/Active configuration
- Active/Passive configuration
- Path monitoring
- Interface monitoring
- Configuration synchronization
Performance Metrics & Scalability
Throughout Capabilities
- Base Performance
- Firewall (App-ID): 120 Gbps
- Threat Prevention: 60 Gbps
- Threat Prevention (DSRI): 100 Gbps
- IPSec VPN: 24 Gbps
- Session Handling
- New Sessions/Second: 720,000
- Maximum Sessions: 24,000,000
- SSL Inspection Sessions: Scale with NPCs
- IPSec VPN Tunnels: Unrestricted
System Scalability
- Virtual Systems
- Base Configuration: 25 virtual systems
- Maximum Configuration: 225 virtual systems
- Resource allocation controls
- Independent routing tables
- Separate administrative domains
- Policy Scale
- Maximum Policies: 40,000
- Security Zones: 900
- Virtual Routers: 225
- Address Objects: Unlimited
- Security Rules: Unrestricted
Enterprise Integration & Management
Management Options
- Centralized Management (Panorama)
- Multi-device management
- Template-based configuration
- Shared policies
- Role-based administration
- Centralized logging and reporting
- Local Management
- Web interface
- Command-line interface (CLI)
- REST API
- SNMP v2/v3 support
- Custom scripts and automation
Monitoring & Reporting
- Built-in Analytics
- Real-time traffic monitoring
- Application Command Center (ACC)
- Custom report generation
- Threat correlation analysis
- User activity monitoring
- External Integration
- Syslog support
- SNMP traps
- Email alerts
- REST API integration
- Custom dashboard creation
Industry-Specific Applications
Financial Services
- Trading Environments
- Ultra-low latency requirements
- High-frequency trading protection
- Market data security
- Regulatory compliance (SOX, PCI)
- Transaction security
- Banking Operations
- Core banking system protection
- Online banking security
- Payment processing protection
- Branch connectivity security
- ATM network protection
Healthcare
- Clinical Environments
- Medical device protection
- Patient data security
- HIPAA compliance
- Telemedicine security
- Research network isolation
- Administrative Systems
- EHR system protection
- Insurance processing security
- Billing system protection
- Supply chain security
- Staff access control
Government & Defense
- Classified Networks
- Multi-level security
- Air-gap network protection
- FIPS compliance
- Common Criteria certification
- Cross-domain solutions
- Public Services
- Citizen data protection
- Service delivery security
- Inter-agency communication
- Public access control
- Emergency services protection
Advanced Features
Virtualization Support
- VM-Series Integration
- NSX integration
- AWS support
- Azure deployment
- Google Cloud Platform
- Private cloud deployment
- SDN Integration
- VMware NSX
- Cisco ACI
- OpenStack
- Microsoft SDN
- Custom orchestration
Advanced Threat Protection
- Zero-Day Protection
- Unknown threat detection
- Behavioral analysis
- Machine learning algorithms
- Automated response
- Global threat intelligence
- IoT Security
- Device identification
- Behavior monitoring
- Segmentation
- Policy enforcement
- Threat prevention
Documentation
- Download the Palo Alto Networks Firewall Overview Datasheet
- Download the Palo Alto Networks PA-7050 Specification Datasheet
- Download the Palo Alto Networks PA-7000 Series Datasheet
- Download the Palo Alto Networks PA-7000 Series Firewall Overview
Conclusion
The PA-7050 represents a pinnacle in enterprise firewall technology, delivering:
- Uncompromised Security: Full threat inspection at datacenter speeds
- Scalable Architecture: Linear performance scaling with additional NPCs
- Advanced Threat Protection: Integrated zero-day and unknown threat prevention
- Enterprise Management: Comprehensive management and reporting capabilities
- Future-Ready Platform: Support for emerging technologies and threats
This platform is particularly well-suited for:
- Large enterprise datacenters
- Service provider environments
- Financial institutions
- Healthcare organizations
- Government agencies
- Educational institutions with research networks