Duplicate address objects with the same value
At a glance
Base severity
Area
Platform
Evidence level
Benchmark reference
Reads the export, not the device
ConfigProof reads a configuration export. This control is evaluated against the objects in that file, and it reports what the file says. It does not connect to the device and sees no traffic, so a finding here describes the configuration, not what the firewall is doing right now.
Why it matters
Two or more address objects hold the same value under different names. A change applied to one of them silently leaves the others behind, so rules that look equivalent can drift apart.
How to fix it
Web interface
The steps below are written for the web interface. A finding raised on your own export carries the same steps with your object names filled in.
- Pick the canonical object name.
- Repoint every rule and group that references the duplicates.
- Delete the duplicates once no references remain.
Command line
PAN-OS CLI, standalone firewall, vsys1
set vsys vsys1 address <name-to-keep> description "<merged-description>"delete vsys vsys1 address <duplicate-name>
An example. Values in angle brackets are yours to supply; a finding on your own export fills in the names it read. Nothing here commits. Review the candidate configuration, then commit it yourself.
Read it back
show vsys vsys1 address <name-to-keep>Values to fill in3
- <name-to-keep>
- The name you are keeping
- <duplicate-name>
- The name you are removing
- <merged-description>
- A description of what this object is for
Before you type it1
- Move every reference to the name you are keeping before removing the other one.
How to confirm the fix
- Confirm no rule depends on the duplicate name before repointing it.
- Re-run the analysis after the cleanup and confirm the finding clears.
Limits
- Objects in different scopes, such as shared versus a device group, may be duplicated on purpose during a migration.
Compliance references
No benchmark recommendation is mapped to this control in this version.
More in Objects
- PAN-SEC-016Object is defined but never referenced
- PAN-SEC-017Address group is dangerously broad
- PAN-SEC-018Allow rule uses an object that resolves to the whole internet
- PAN-SEC-034Configuration references an object that does not exist
- PAN-SEC-035Group has no members
- PAN-SEC-036Group contains itself through a chain of nested groups
- PAN-SEC-037One object name is defined at more than one scope
- PAN-SEC-038Policy field holds a literal address instead of a named object
See it on your own firewall
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