What does the term "policy inheritance" refer to in firewall configurations?

The term "policy inheritance" in firewall configurations specifically refers to the ability of sub-networks or child objects to inherit security policies from their parent objects. This hierarchical approach allows network administrators to manage and apply security rules more efficiently, as they can define a set of overarching policies at a higher level and allow the lower levels to automatically adopt those configurations.

This mechanism simplifies administration by reducing redundancy; if a policy change is necessary at the parent level, all child objects automatically receive the updated policy, ensuring consistent security practices across the network. It helps in maintaining a structured and organized configuration, making it easier to manage firewall settings across multiple sub-networks or devices without the need to configure each one individually. This approach not only ensures uniform security policies but also facilitates quicker updates and scalability in larger network environments.