FortiClient VPN Error on Windows 11

[niketh]

Hi,
I need help troubleshooting a FortiClient VPN issue on my Windows 11 laptop.

Problem Summary

1. When I click Connect in FortiClient VPN (v7.4.3.1790), the Connect button immediately changes to Disconnect, but the VPN never actually connects.
2. No “Connecting…” animation, no delay, no status messages.
3. Even if I enter a wrong password, the behavior is the same — Connect → Disconnect button appears immediately, but no error is shown.
4. The same VPN credentials work on my colleague’s laptop, so the issue is specific to my system.
   

[aberrantinfinite]

I experienced a similar issue with FortiClient VPN on Windows 11, and what helped me was checking whether the FortiClient services were actually running in the background. Opening the Services panel and restarting the FortiClient Scheduler service made a difference. Another common cause is the network adapter driver not installing correctly, so it is worth opening Device Manager to confirm that the Fortinet virtual adapter is present.

https://community.fortinet.com/t5/Support-Geometry Dash-Forum/bd-p/fortinet-discussion?pageNum=2

[niketh]

It displays as running but i dont have option for start or stop

 

[ezhupa]

In addition to what the other user said, I would suggest also uninstalling and reinstalling the Forticlient version. If there was any issue in the first install of the client, this could resolve it.

Hope this helps!

[niketh]

@ezhupa , I have uninstalled and installed more than 5 times

[RHHSupport]

Please be aware that Forticlient version 7.4.3 and Forticlient VPN Only 7.4.3 have a vulnerability: CVE-2025-46373 with a high Severity! There is no VPN 7.4.4 Client available. Fortinet is distributing the older vulnerable version trough the fortinet.com website!

[niketh]

HI @RHHSupport , can u send me the link for the older version as i could not find in fortinet.com

[RHHSupport]

If you have an account for the support portal you can download previous versions. Not trough the fortinet.com website.
All 7.4 versions need to be upgraded to 7.4.4 because of the vulnerability.

[niketh]

There is no 7.4.4 in the website 
I can see only 7.4.3 version

[RHHSupport]

Correct. They never created the VPN only version of 7.4.4 as mentioned in the release notes:

FortiClient (Windows) 7.4.4 does not include a new version of the free VPN-only agent as no feature updates were made to the free VPN-only agent between 7.4.3 and 7.4.4. Users can continue to use the FortiClient (Windows) 7.4.3 free VPN-only agent.

That is why you get the older version when you download it from their website. And as the VPN only version is free they don't give support.