Even experienced admins encounter hitches. Here’s how to resolve them.

: One trial instance per unique FortiCloud/FortiCare account.

The FortiGate will automatically recognize it is a trial version and prompt you to "Register" or "Evaluate".

Navigate to the dashboard status page (). Look for the Licenses widget.

If you find FortiGate VM essential for your organization, reach out to a Fortinet partner for a production license. If not, uninstall the VM and explore other virtual firewalls – but chances are, Fortinet’s enterprise-grade features will win you over.

Warning: If you assign 2 vCPUs or 4 GB of RAM, the system will trigger a license violation during initialization, disabling the administrative web UI entirely. Step 5: Initial CLI Configuration

Select your hypervisor or cloud environment. Common options include:

If you need to access the web GUI:

Go to Dashboard -> License Information . It should show "FortiGate-VM Evaluation License". Interface Check: Verify that port1 has connectivity. Troubleshooting Trial Installation

Once you are logged into the GUI, you have two main methods to activate your permanent trial license: using the GUI or the CLI.

Upload the FortiGate KVM .qcow2 file to your Proxmox storage directory via SSH or the web UI. Use the CLI to import the disk into your specific VM ID:

Low-grade encryption for management (no heavy-duty VPN tunnels). No Support:

After the reboot process completes, log back into the Web GUI or CLI to confirm the license state.

Log in using the default username: admin . Leave the password field blank and press .

Check the widget to confirm the hostname reflects your trial status and shows no immediate expiration countdown. Troubleshooting Common Trial Install Issues

If you prefer the command line or are working on a headless server, you can use the FortiGate CLI via the console. These commands will trigger the same process as the GUI method.