Technical Tip: The license still shows as expired after renewal

Description

This article describes how to force updates on the license registration on FortiGate once a license renewal is completed on the account.

Scope

FortiGate.

Solution

In some cases, after license renewal is completed on the user's account, the license still shows expired on the FortiGate GUI. Note that this solution is only limited to a standalone environment. If the device is in HA, verify that the secondary unit has a valid and active license and that all requirements are met, including that all FortiGate cluster members are registered under the same FortiCare account. See Technical Tip: The HA Cluster license requirements.

Perform the troubleshooting steps below to force the renewal of the FortiGate.

1. Check connectivity to FortiGuard servers:

execute ping update.fortiguard.net
execute ping service.fortiguard.net
execute ping guard.fortiguard.net

The command 'diagnose debug rating' can also be used to troubleshoot FortiGuard connectivity. This will provide information about the status of FortiGuard servers and the FortiGate's ability to communicate with them. 

2. Once it is reachable, proceed to debug and force an update on the FortiGate.

diagnose debug reset
diagnose debug disable
diagnose debug application update -1
diagnose debug enable

Force the update:

execute update-now

Disable debugging (run the commands below after the update has finished, which normally takes a few minutes): 

diagnose debug disable
diagnose debug reset

Workaround:

Try to upload the license file manually from the FortiGate Cloud to FortiGate under System -> FortiGuard.

If a support registration code is available, try entering the code manually to renew the license.

Wait 10 minutes and check the license status on the FortiGate GUI again. If the issue is still present, contact support via support.fortinet.com.

Scenario:

In an HA Cluster's secondary device, the licenses are shown as having expired in June 2026.

Primary device:

diagnose test update info contract 

SerialNumber=FGVMSLTM1111137|Contract=AVDB-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*AVEN-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*NIDS-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*SPRT-1-20-20270528:0:1:1:0*FMWR-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*FRVS-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*FURL-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*SPAM-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*VMLS-1-06-20270528:0:2:2:0*ZHVO-1-06-20270528:0:1:1:0*ENHN-1-20-20270528:0:1:1:0*COMP-1-20-20270528:0:1:1:0|AccountID=support@abc.com|Industry=Autoabc|Company=DBA|UserID=1188881|

Secondary device:

diagnose test update info contract 

SerialNumber=FGVMSLTM11111135|Contract=AVDB-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*AVEN-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*NIDS-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*SPRT-1-20-20260528:0:1:1:0*FMWR-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*FRVS-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*FURL-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*SPAM-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*VMLS-1-06-20260528:0:2:2:0*ZHVO-1-06-20260528:0:1:1:0*ENHN-1-20-20260528:0:1:1:0*COMP-1-20-20260528:0:1:1:0|AccountID=support@abc.com|Industry=Autoabc|Company=DBA|UserID=1188881|

Solution: After shutting down the primary device, issuing 'execute update-now' on the new primary (the previous secondary) twice resolved the issue.

Related articles:

• Technical Tip: Device License is not reflecting in FortiGate dashboard

• Troubleshooting Tip: License not reflected in the GUI

• Troubleshooting Tip: License/Subscription failed to Update

• Technical Tip: The HA Cluster license requirements

• Troubleshooting Tip: Diagnosing FortiGuard problems of Antivirus, Intrusion Prevention, Web Filtering, Spam Filtering

• Troubleshooting Tip: Licenses do not show valid dates in HA