Troubleshooting Tip: FortiGate-50G fails to boot after firmware installation

Description

This article describes an issue where a FortiGate-50G remains at 'Initializing firewall…' after installing firmware through TFTP.

Scope

FortiGate-50G with BIOS version 06000202.

Solution

The firmware transfer, programming, and verification complete successfully, but the device remains at 'Initializing firewall…' and does not finish booting.

Although earlier FortiOS release notes list FortiGate-50G as a supported model, units with BIOS version 06000202 require firmware that supports their specific hardware revision. To recover the device, install one of the following versions through the boot-loader TFTP menu, or a later version in the same branch:

• FortiOS 7.4.9.

• FortiOS 7.6.4.

• FortiOS 8.0.1.