Cisco 500 Series, Configuration Manual

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Cisco Security Appliance Command Line Configuration Guide
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Chapter 3 Enabling Multiple Context Mode
Security Context Overview
Unsupported Features
Multiple context mode does not support the following features:
•
Dynamic routing protocols
Security contexts support only static routes. You cannot enable OSPF, RIP, or EIGRP in multiple
context mode.
•
VPN
• Multicast routing. Multicast bridging is supported.
•
Threat Detection
Context Configuration Files
This section describes how the security appliance implements multiple context mode configurations and
includes the following sections:
• Context Configurations, page 3-2
•
System Configuration, page 3-2
• Admin Context Configuration, page 3-2
Context Configurations
The security appliance includes a configuration for each context that identifies the security policy,
interfaces, and almost all the options you can configure on a standalone device. You can store context
configurations on the internal Flash memory or the external Flash memory card, or you can download
them from a TFTP, FTP, or HTTP(S) server.
System Configuration
The system administrator adds and manages contexts by configuring each context configuration location,
allocated interfaces, and other context operating parameters in the system configuration, which, like a
single mode configuration, is the startup configuration. The system configuration identifies basic
settings for the security appliance. The system configuration does not include any network interfaces or
network settings for itself; rather, when the system needs to access network resources (such as
downloading the contexts from the server), it uses one of the contexts that is designated as the
admin
context . The system configuration does include a specialized failover interface for failover traffic only.
Admin Context Configuration
The admin context is just like any other context, except that when a user logs in to the admin context,
then that user has system administrator rights and can access the system and all other contexts. The
admin context is not restricted in any way, and can be used as a regular context. However, because
logging into the admin context grants you administrator privileges over all contexts, you might need to
restrict access to the admin context to appropriate users. The admin context must reside on Flash
memory, and not remotely.