What does the term “high availability” refer to in the context of Sophos XG Firewall?

The term "high availability" in the context of Sophos XG Firewall refers to the implementation of redundant systems that work together to ensure continuous network service. High availability is crucial for maintaining uptime and reliability in network environments where constant access to resources is necessary. This is achieved through various methods, such as clustering multiple firewalls or utilizing failover configurations, which allow traffic to seamlessly redirect to a standby system in case the primary system fails.

This approach minimizes downtime and enhances the resilience of the network, providing a seamless experience for users. In essence, high availability setups are designed to prevent service interruptions by ensuring that if one system becomes unavailable, another can take over its responsibilities without impacting overall network performance.

The other options, while relevant to different aspects of network management, do not encapsulate the core idea of maintaining service uptime through redundancy as effectively. For instance, maximizing bandwidth usage relates to traffic management rather than ensuring continuous operation, prioritizing traffic focuses on quality of service rather than availability, and performing maintenance without downtime is a related but distinct concept that may not fully address the redundancy aspect inherent in high availability systems.