Palo Alto Networks Single Pass Parallel Processing (SP3) architecture is designed to handle traffic efficiently and securely. The key aspect of SP3 is:
Single Pass Processing (C): This means that all traffic is processed in a single pass through the firewall, regardless of the number of security features enabled. There is no additional performance impact for each feature because the firewall processes all security functions (such as threat prevention, URL filtering, and application control) simultaneously in a single pass. This architecture ensures high performance and low latency while maintaining robust security.
References:
* Palo Alto Networks, Single Pass Parallel Processing (SP3) Whitepaper.
* Palo Alto Networks, Firewall Performance and Architecture Documentation.