You are working with multiple Security Gateways enforcing an extensive number of rules. To simplify security administration, which action would you choose?

Creating a separate Security Policy package for each remote Security Gateway is a strategic approach that enhances your management capabilities in an environment with multiple gateways and extensive rules. By doing this, you can tailor each policy package to fit the specific needs and requirements of individual gateways. This customization means that changes can be implemented without affecting other gateways, allowing for more straightforward security administration and governance.

Moreover, having distinct policy packages minimizes the risk of rule conflicts and simplifies troubleshooting and auditing processes. Each package can contain rules relevant only to its specific Security Gateway, which helps in maintaining clarity and organization within your security architecture. This method also facilitates compliance with varying regulatory requirements that each location may need to adhere to, ensuring that the security policies are appropriate for the unique context of each site.

The other options presented do not provide the same level of simplification for security administration. Elimination of contradictory rules may improve the quality of the ruleset, but it does not actively simplify the management across multiple gateways. Creating network objects might refine rule application but could complicate the overall rule set if not managed carefully. Lastly, using separate SmartConsole instances for each Security Gateway can lead to fragmented visibility and increased complexity, making it more challenging to manage overall security policies cohesively.