Whitelisting one site

[Sisma]

Hi, I need to access a website, but even though I have listed it as "Exempt" in the web filter profile, the stations still time out. How can I fix this? I have an outbound policy that allows all traffic with specific countries permitted. The website I need to reach is "scopus.com." How can I ensure access without creating a dedicated policy?


Kind Regards,
Sisma

[ozkanaltas · Accepted solution]

Hi @Sisma ,

Firstly, we need to determine whether this website is blocked by a web filter or geo policy. 

If this website is blocked by a web filter, you can override the website category on the web filter profile.

https://community.fortinet.com/t5/FortiGate/Technical-Tip-How-to-configure-web-rating-override-for-s...

If this website is blocked by a geo rule, you should create a special rule for this website. There is no other option for a solution.

[ezhupa]

Hello, 

Please check first if the traffic is indeed matching the policy where you have applied the WebFilter profile with the static URL. 
In theory if the traffic is matching that policy where you have that URL exempted, it should work without any issues. Please note that the webfilter will check the CN value of the certificate of the website, if for some reason in the CN value there is some other domain name or IP, exempting scopus.com won't work.

You can check the Forward Traffic logs on the FGT and see if maybe another policy is matching or another security profile is blocking it.

Hope this helps!
Enea