Define the GlobalProtect Agent Configurations
Focus
Focus
GlobalProtect

Define the GlobalProtect Agent Configurations

Table of Contents

Define the GlobalProtect Agent Configurations

After a GlobalProtect user connects to the portal and is authenticated by the GlobalProtect portal, the portal sends the agent configuration to the app, based on the settings you define. If you have different roles for users or groups that need specific configurations, you can create a separate agent configuration for each user type or user group. The portal uses the OS of the endpoint and the username or group name to determine which agent configuration to deploy. As with other security rule evaluations, the portal starts to search for a match at the top of the list. When it finds a match, the portal sends the configuration to the app.
The configuration can include the following:
  • A list of gateways to which the endpoint can connect.
  • Among the external gateways, any gateway that the user can manually select for the session.
  • The root CA certificate required to enable the app to establish an SSL connection with the GlobalProtect gateway(s).
  • The root CA certificate for SSL forward proxy decryption.
  • The client certificate that the endpoint should present to the gateway when it connects. This configuration is required only if mutual authentication between the app and the portal or gateway is required.
  • A secure encrypted cookie that the endpoint should present to the portal or gateway when it connects. The cookie is included only if you enable the portal to generate one.
  • The settings the endpoint uses to determine whether it is connected to the local network or to an external network.
  • App behavior settings, such as what the end users can see in their display, whether users can save their GlobalProtect password, and whether users are prompted to upgrade their software.
If the portal is down or unreachable, the app uses the cached version of its agent configuration from its last successful portal connection to obtain settings, including the gateway(s) to which the app can connect, what root CA certificate(s) to use to establish secure communication with the gateway(s), and what connect method to use.
Use the following procedure to create an agent configuration.
  1. Add one or more trusted root CA certificates to the portal agent configuration to enable the GlobalProtect app to verify the identity of the portal and gateways.
    The portal deploys the certificate in a certificate file which is read only by GlobalProtect.
    1. Select
      Network
      GlobalProtect
      Portals
      .
    2. Select the portal configuration to which you are adding the agent configuration, and then select the
      Agent
      tab.
    3. In the
      Trusted Root CA
      field,
      Add
      and select the CA certificate that was used to issue the gateway and/or portal server certificates.
      The web interface presents a list of CA certificates that are imported on the firewall serving as the GlobalProtect portal. The web interface also excludes end-entity certificates, sometimes referred to as leaf certificates, from the list of certificates you can select. You can also
      Import
      a new CA certificate.
      Use the following best practices when creating and adding certificates:
      • Use the same certificate issuer to issue certificates for all of your gateways.
      • Add the entire certificate chain (trusted root CA and intermediate CA certificates) to the portal agent configuration.
    4. (
      Optional
      ) Deploy additional CA certificates for purposes other than GlobalProtect (for example, SSL forward proxy decryption).
      This option enables you to use the portal to deploy certificates to the endpoint and the agent to install them in the local root certificate store. This can be useful if you do not have another method for distributing these server certificates or prefer to use the portal for certificate distribution.
      For SSL forward proxy decryption, you specify the forward trust certificate that the firewall uses (on Windows and macOS endpoints only) to terminate the HTTPS connection, inspect the traffic for policy compliance, and re-establish the HTTPS connection to forward the encrypted traffic.
      1. Add the certificate as described in the previous step.
      2. Enable the option to
        Install in Local Root Certificate Store
        .
        The portal automatically sends the certificate when the user logs in to the portal and installs it in the endpoint's local store, thus eliminating the need for you to install the certificate manually.
  2. Add an agent configuration.
    The agent configuration specifies the GlobalProtect configuration settings to deploy to the connecting apps. You must define at least one agent configuration. You can add up to 512 agent configuration entries for each portal.
    1. From your portal configuration (
      Network
      GlobalProtect
      Portals
      <portal-config>
      ),
      Add
      a new agent configuration.
    2. Enter a
      Name
      to identify the configuration. If you plan on creating multiple configurations, make sure the name you define for each configuration is descriptive enough to distinguish them.
  3. (
    Optional
    ) Configure settings to specify how users with this configuration authenticate with the portal.
    If the gateway authenticates endpoints using a client certificate, you must select the source that distributes the certificate.
    Configure any of the following
    Authentication
    settings:
    • To enable users to authenticate with the portal using client certificates, select the
      Client Certificate
      source (
      SCEP
      ,
      Local
      , or
      None
      ) that distributes the certificate and its private key to an endpoint. If you use an internal CA to distribute certificates to endpoints, select
      None
      (default). To enable the portal to generate and send a machine certificate to the app for storage in the local certificate store and use the certificate for portal and gateway authentication, select
      SCEP
      and the associated SCEP profile. These certificates are device-specific and can only be used on the endpoint to which it was issued. To use the same certificate for all endpoints, select a certificate that is
      Local
      to the portal. With
      None
      , the portal does not push a certificate to the endpoint, but you can use can other ways to get a certificate to the endpoint.
    • Specify whether to
      Save User Credentials
      . Select
      Yes
      to save the username and password (default),
      Save Username Only
      to save only the username,
      Only with User Fingerprint
      to save the user’s biometric (fingerprint) or, on iOS X endpoints only, face ID credentials, or
      No
      to never save credentials.
      If you configure the portal or gateways to prompt for a dynamic password, such as a one-time password (OTP), the user must enter a new password at each login. In this case, the GlobalProtect app ignores the selection to save both the username and password, if specified, and saves only the username. For more information, see Enable Two-Factor Authentication Using One-Time Passwords (OTPs).
      If you select GlobalProtect to
      Save User Credentials
      Only with User Fingerprint
      , GlobalProtect can leverage the app’s operating system capabilities for validating the user before allowing authentication with GlobalProtect. End users must supply a fingerprint that matches a trusted fingerprint template on the endpoint to use a saved password for authentication to GlobalProtect portal and gateways. On iOS X, GlobalProtect also supports facial recognition with Face ID. GlobalProtect does not store the fingerprint or facial template used for authentication, but relies on the operating system scanning capabilities to determine the validity of a scan match.
  4. If the GlobalProtect endpoint does not require tunnel connections when it is on the internal network, configure internal host detection.
    1. Select
      Internal
      .
    2. Enable
      Internal Host Detection
      (
      IPv4
      or
      IPv6
      ).
    3. Enter the
      IP Address
      of a host that can be reached from the internal network only. The IP address you specify must be compatible with the IP address type (
      IPv4
      or
      IPv6
      ). For example, 172.16.1.0 for IPv4 or 21DA:D3:0:2F3b for IPv6.
    4. Enter the DNS
      Hostname
      for the IP address you enter. Endpoints that try to connect to GlobalProtect attempt to do a reverse DNS lookup on the specified address. If the lookup fails, the endpoint determines that it is on the external network and then initiates a tunnel connection to a gateway on its list of external gateways.
    5. (
      Optional
      ) Enter a source address pool for endpoints. When users connect, GlobalProtect recognizes the source address of the device. Only GlobalProtect apps with IP addresses that are included in the source IP address pool can authenticate with the gateway and send HIP reports.
      IPv4 subnet must be /30 or larger. Otherwise, a specific IP range must be specified. For example, 192.168.1.0/30 or 192.168.2.6-192.168.2.7
  5. Set up access to a third-party mobile endpoint management system.
    This step is required if the mobile endpoints using this configuration will be managed by a third-party mobile endpoint management system. All endpoints initially connect to the portal and, if a third-party mobile endpoint management system is configured on the corresponding portal agent configuration, the endpoint is redirected to it for enrollment.
    1. Enter the IP address or FQDN of the endpoint check-in interface associated with your mobile endpoint management system. The value you enter here must exactly match the value of the server certificate associated with the endpoint check-in interface. You can specify an IPv6 or IPv4 address.
    2. Specify the
      Enrollment Port
      on which the mobile endpoint management system listens for enrollment requests. This value must match the value set on the mobile endpoint management system (default=443).
  6. Specify the selection criteria for your portal agent configuration.
    The portal uses the selection criteria that you specify to determine which configuration to deliver to the GlobalProtect apps that connect. Therefore, if you have multiple configurations, you must make sure to order them properly. As soon as the portal finds a match, it delivers the configuration. Therefore, more specific configurations must precede more general ones. See step 12 for instructions on ordering the list of agent configurations.
    Select
    Config Selection Criteria
    and then configure any of the following options:
    • To specify the user, user group, and/or operating system to which this configuration applies, select
      User/User Group
      and then configure any of the following options:
      • To deliver this configuration to apps running on a specific operating system,
        Add
        and select the
        OS
        (
        Android
        ,
        Chrome
        ,
        iOS
        ,
        Linux
        ,
        Mac
        ,
        Windows
        , or
        WindowsUWP
        ) to which this configuration applies. Set the
        OS
        to
        Any
        to deploy the configuration to all operating systems.
      • To restrict this configuration to a specific user and/or group,
        Add
        and then select the
        User/User Group
        you want to receive this configuration. Repeat this step for each user/group you want to add. To restrict the configuration to users who have not yet logged in to their endpoints, select
        pre-logon
        from the
        User/User Group
        drop-down. To deploy the configuration to any user regardless of login status (both pre-logon and logged in users), select
        any
        from the
        User/User Group
        drop-down.
        Before you can restrict the configuration to specific groups, you must map users to groups as described in Enable Group Mapping.
    • To deliver this configuration to apps based on specific device attributes, select
      Device Checks
      and then configure any of the following options:
      • To deliver this configuration based on the presence of the endpoint serial number in the Active Directory or Azure AD, select an option from the
        Machine account exists with device serial number
        drop-down. If you set this option to
        Yes
        , the agent configuration applies only to endpoints with a serial number that exists (managed endpoints). If you set this option to
        No
        , the agent configuration applies only to endpoints for which a serial number does not exist (unmanaged endpoints). If you set this option to
        None
        , the configuration is not delivered to apps based on the presence of the endpoint serial number.
      • To deliver this configuration based on the endpoint’s machine certificate, select a
        Certificate Profile
        to match against the machine certificate installed on the endpoint.
      Device checks are supported on Windows and Mac operating systems.
    • To deliver this configuration to apps based on custom host information, select
      Custom Checks
      . Enable
      Custom Checks
      and then define any of the following registry and plist data:
      • To verify whether Windows endpoints have a specific registry key, use the following steps:
        1. Add
          a new registry key (
          Custom Checks
          Registry Key
          ).
        2. When prompted, enter the
          Registry Key
          to match.
        3. (
          Optional
          ) To deliver this configuration only if the endpoint does not have the specified registry key or key value, select
          Key does not exist or match the specified value data
          .
        4. (
          Optional
          ) To deliver this configuration based on specific registry values,
          Add
          the
          Registry Value
          and corresponding
          Value Data
          . To deliver this configuration only endpoints that do not have the specified
          Registry Value
          or
          Value Data
          , select
          Negate
          .
      • To verify whether macOS endpoints have a specific entry in the plist, use the following steps:
        1. Add
          a new plist (
          Custom Checks
          Plist
          ).
        2. When prompted, enter the
          Plist
          name.
        3. (
          Optional
          ) To deliver this configuration only if the endpoint does not have the specified plist, select
          Plist does not exist
          .
        4. (
          Optional
          ) To deliver this configuration based on specific key-value pairs within the plist, click
          Add
          and then enter the
          Key
          and corresponding
          Value
          . To match only endpoints that do not have the specified key or value, select
          Negate
          .
  7. Specify the external gateways to which users with this configuration can connect.
    Consider the following best practices when you configure the gateways:
    • If you are adding both internal and external gateways to the same configuration, make sure you enable
      Internal Host Detection
      (step 4).
    • To learn more about how the GlobalProtect app determines the gateway to which it should connect, see Gateway Priority in a Multiple Gateway Configuration.
    1. Select
      External
      .
    2. Add
      the
      External Gateways
      to which users can connect.
    3. Enter a descriptive
      Name
      for the gateway. The name you enter here should match the name you defined when you configured the gateway and should be descriptive enough for users to know the location of the gateway to which they are connected.
    4. Enter the FQDN or IP address of the interface where the gateway is configured in the
      Address
      field. You can configure an IPv4 or IPv6 address. The address you specify must exactly match the Common Name (CN) in the gateway server certificate.
    5. Add
      one or more
      Source Regions
      for the gateway, or select
      Any
      to make the gateway available to all regions. When users connect, GlobalProtect recognizes the region and only allows users to connect to gateways that are configured for that region. For gateway selection, source region is considered first, then gateway priority.
    6. Set the
      Priority
      of the gateway by clicking the field and selecting one of the following values:
      • If you have only one external gateway, you can leave the value set to
        Highest
        (the default).
      • If you have multiple external gateways, you can modify the priority values (ranging from
        Highest
        to
        Lowest
        ) to indicate a preference for the specific user group to which this configuration applies. For example, if you prefer that the user group connects to a local gateway you would set the priority higher than that of more geographically distant gateways. The priority value is then used to weight the agent’s gateway selection algorithm.
      • If you do not want apps to automatically establish connections with the gateway, select
        Manual only
        . This setting is useful in testing environments.
    7. Select the
      Manual
      check box to allow users to manually switch to the gateway.
  8. Specify the internal gateways to which users with this configuration can connect.
    Make sure you do not use on-demand as the connect method if your configuration includes internal gateways.
    1. Select
      Internal
      .
    2. Add
      the
      Internal Gateways
      to which users can connect.
    3. Enter a descriptive
      Name
      for the gateway. The name you enter here should match the name you defined when you configured the gateway and should be descriptive enough for users to know the location of the gateway they are connected to.
    4. Enter the FQDN or IP address of the interface where the gateway is configured in the
      Address
      field. You can configure an IPv4 or IPv6 address. The address you specify must exactly match the Common Name (CN) in the gateway server certificate.
    5. (
      Optional
      )
      Add
      one or more
      Source Addresses
      to the gateway configuration. The source address can be an IP subnet, range, or predefined address. GlobalProtect supports both IPv6 and IPv4 addresses. When users connect, GlobalProtect recognizes the source address of the endpoint and only allows users to connect to gateways that are configured for that address.
    6. Click
      OK
      to save your changes.
    7. (
      Optional
      )
      Add
      a
      DHCP Option 43 Code
      to the gateway configuration. You can include one or more sub-option codes associated with the vendor-specific information (Option 43) that the DHCP server has been configured to offer the client. For example, you might have a sub-option code 100 that is associated with an IP address of 192.168.3.1.
      When a user connects, the GlobalProtect portal sends the list of option codes in the portal configuration to the GlobalProtect app, and the app selects gateways indicated by these options.
      When both the source address and DHCP options are configured, the list of available gateways presented to the endpoint is based on the combination (union) of the two configurations.
      DHCP options are supported on Windows and macOS endpoints only. DHCP options cannot be used to select gateways that use IPv6 addressing.
    8. (
      Optional
      ) Select
      Internal Host Detection
      to allow the GlobalProtect app to determine if it is inside the enterprise network. When a user attempts to log in, the app performs a reverse DNS lookup of the internal
      Hostname
      to the specified
      IP Address
      .
      The host serves as a reference point that is reachable if the endpoint is inside the enterprise network. If the app finds the host, the endpoint is inside the network and the app connects to an internal gateway; if the app fails to find the internal host, the endpoint is outside the network and the app connects to one of the external gateways.
      You can configure
      IPv4
      or
      IPv6
      addressing for
      Internal Host Detection
      . The IP address you specify must be compatible with the IP address type. For example, 172.16.1.0 for IPv4 or 21DA:D3:0:2F3b for IPv6.
  9. Customize the GlobalProtect app behavior for users with this configuration.
    Modify the
    App
    settings as desired. For more details about each option, see Customize the GlobalProtect App.
  10. (
    Optional
    ) Define any custom host information profile (HIP) data that you want the app to collect and/or exclude from collection.
    This step applies only if you plan on using the HIP feature, there is information you want to collect that cannot be collected using the standard HIP objects, or if there is HIP information that you are not interested in collecting. See Host Information for details on setting up and using the HIP feature.
    See Collect Application and Process Data From Endpoints for additional information on collecting custom HIP data.
    1. Select
      HIP Data Collection
      .
    2. Enable the GlobalProtect app to
      Collect HIP Data
      .
    3. Specify the
      Max Wait Time (sec)
      that the app should search for HIP data before submitting the available data (range is 10-60 seconds; default is 20 seconds).
    4. Select the
      Certificate Profile
      that the GlobalProtect portal uses to match the machine certificate send by the GlobalProtect app.
    5. Select
      Exclude Categories
      to exclude specific categories and/or vendors, applications, or versions within a category. For more details, see Configure HIP-Based Policy Enforcement.
    6. Select
      Custom Checks
      to define any custom data you want to collect from hosts running this agent configuration.
  11. Save the agent configuration.
    Click
    OK
    to save the agent configuration.
  12. Arrange the agent configurations so that the proper configuration is deployed to each app.
    When an app connects, the portal compares the source information in the packet against the agent configurations you have defined. As with security rule evaluation, the portal looks for a match starting from the top of the list. When it finds a match, it delivers the corresponding configuration to the app.
    • To move an agent configuration up on the list of configurations, select the configuration and click
      Move Up
      .
    • To move an agent configuration down on the list of configurations, select the configuration and click
      Move Down
      .
  13. Save the portal configuration.
    1. Click
      OK
      to save the portal configuration.
    2. Commit
      the changes.

Recommended For You