Cisco ASA Series User Manual

CHAPTER
1-1
Cisco ASA Series CLI Configuration Guide
1
Configuring Multiple Context Mode
This chapter describes how to configure multiple security contexts on the ASA and includes the
following sections:
• Information About Security Contexts, page 1-1
• Licensing Requirements for Multiple Context Mode, page 1-13
• Guidelines and Limitations, page 1-14
• Default Settings, page 1-15
• Configuring Multiple Contexts, page 1-15
• Changing Between Contexts and the System Execution Space, page 1-25
• Managing Security Contexts, page 1-26
• Monitoring Security Contexts, page 1-29
• Configuration Examples for Multiple Context Mode, page 1-40
• Feature History for Multiple Context Mode, page 1-41
Information About Security Contexts
You can partition a single ASA into multiple virtual devices, known as security contexts. Each context
acts as an independent device, with its own security policy, interfaces, and administrators. Multiple
contexts are similar to having multiple standalone devices. For unsupported features in multiple context
mode, see the “Guidelines and Limitations” section on page 1-14.
This section provides an overview of security contexts and includes the following topics:
• Common Uses for Security Contexts, page 1-2
• Context Configuration Files, page 1-2
• How the ASA Classifies Packets, page 1-3
• Cascading Security Contexts, page 1-6
• Management Access to Security Contexts, page 1-7
• Information About Resource Management, page 1-8
• Information About MAC Addresses, page 1-11

Cisco ASA Series Specifications

General

Brand	Cisco
Model	ASA Series
Category	Network Hardware
Language	English