> Source: [sk185171](https://support.checkpoint.com/results/sk/sk185171)

# sk185171 - VPN traffic drops after ClusterXL or Maestro failover

| Property | Value |
|----------|-------|
| Solution ID | sk185171 |
| Date Created | 2026-07-22 |
| Last Modified | 2026-08-08 |
| Technical Level | Advanced |
| Products | Security Gateway |
| Versions | R82, R81.20 |

## Symptoms

- * After a ClusterXL, HA, or Maestro failover or synchronization event, VPN traffic stops passing through one or more VPN tunnels.
* The VPN tunnel appears to be established, but traffic is dropped.
* Smart Console logs show:  
  **Failure preparing tunnel creation, internal error**
* Kernel debug or VPN debug shows messages similar to:  
  *vpnk_get_mspi_from_opaque: returned mspi = \[fail\]
  request_to_open_tunnel_if_not_ready: no msa for MSPI \[fail\]*

## Cause

The logs indicate an **MSPI not synced/translated** condition.  
This behavior occurs when a VPN connection is carried over after ClusterXL, HA, or Maestro synchronization or failover, but its MSPI continues to reference a placeholder value (**fail** or **none** ) instead of a valid Security Association (SA).  
As a result, the gateway cannot locate the corresponding Meta-SA, and fails to complete tunnel creation. It reports the following message:  
**Failure preparing tunnel creation, internal error**

## Solution

This solution requires authentication. Please log in to view the full solution.

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