Technical Tip: Advanced procedure to format a FortiGate hard disk
Description
This article describes formatting a hard disk on the FortiGate unit. Usually, the FortiGate hard disk only needs to be reformatted if:
The disk detected is faulty.
The operating system has been modified.
The disk is full or FortiOS does not recognise the drive.
This procedure can be used if issues are encountered encountered during the standard formatting procedure described in the related article 'Technical Tip: Standard procedure to format a FortiGate Hard Disk'.
Scope
FortiGate (except for firewalls without hard drives).
Solution
Note: If assistance is required to complete these steps, contact the distributor or partner.
Procedure:
Reformatting the FortiGate hard disk involves the following steps:
Download the format image for the proper FortiGate unit.
Reboot the FortiGate unit.
Interrupt the boot sequence.
Load the format image.
Prerequisites:
Plan this operation during downtime as a traffic outage will occur.
If it is require to reload a previously backed-up configuration file, ensure it matches the firmware version that will be installed.
If there is a chance that the configuration file is corrupted, reconfigure the FortiGate from its default settings.
Eventually, make screenshots of the FortiGate configuration in case it is needed to rebuild it from scratch.
The following procedure will format and destroy all data (logs and quarantined files) which may have been previously stored on the hard disk.
Caution: Download the appropriate image below for the operating system version in use.
To download the image, go to Support.
Load the format image. Power off the FortiGate unit and use the following:
Terminal client (Windows HyperTerminal, Linux Minicom...)
Speed 9600 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop for all FortiGates, except for FortiGate 300: 115000-8-n-1.
Speed 115000 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop for all FortiManagers.
ASCII setup: Append line feeds to incoming lines.
Log messages to file.
Null modem serial cable (provided with the FortiGate)
Provide a fixed IP address to the PC: for example, 192.168.1.168.
A TFTP server running on a PC.
A cross-over network cable to connect directly the FortiGate to the PC running the TFTP server.
Connect the PC LAN interface using an Ethernet cable to:
'Interface Internal' on models 200, 300, 500, 800, 800F.
'Interface Internal 4' on models 100A, 200A, 300.
'LAN Interface port1' on models 300A, 400, 400A, 500A, 1000 and higher.
'LAN2' on FortiLog 800.
To load the firmware:
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Power on the FortiGate Unit.
Press any key at when the 'Press Any Key To Download Boot Image' message appears.
Enter the tftp server address (192.168.1.168).
Enter the local address: 192.168.1.188.
Enter the file name (image.out): image name.out.
Press R to run the Harddisk image format process.
Reboot the FortiGate: the log disk should thereafter be available. Confirm this using the CLI command 'get sys stat'.
To format a FortiLog 100 or FortiLog 400 image:
Upload a format image to the FortiLog unit using a TFTP server.
To use the following procedure, a TFTP server that the FortiLog unit can connect to is required. The TFTP server IP address must be 192.168.1.168.
To upload the firmware image to the FortiLog unit:
Make sure the TFTP server is running.
Copy the format image file to the root directory of the TFTP server. Ensure the file name is image.out.
Start the FortiLog unit.
As the FortiLog unit starts, the following message appears on the LCD panel: 'Press any key to begin download'.
Immediately press any key on the FortiLog unit to begin the automatic download.
The FortiLog unit connects to the TFTP server and begins downloading the firmware image. Once downloaded, the FortiLog will load the firmware and proceed with the system startup.
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Note: The firewall or antivirus software on the workstation or server may be blocking TFTP traffic. In such cases, temporarily disabling the firewall or antivirus software during the file transfer is recommended.
After, configure the product. If the problem is not resolved, raise a support ticket: Customer Service Tip: How to create a ticket for Fortinet TAC.
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