Fortinet NSE7_SDW-7.2 Exam Dumps & Practice Test Questions
Question 1:
When working with CLI scripts in FortiManager to apply bulk changes across devices, how do these scripts behave in different sections of the system? Choose two correct responses.
A. Running a CLI script at the ADOM level or on a policy package results in instant configuration updates on the target FortiGate firewall.
B. Applying a CLI script within the Device Database keeps the changes in FortiManager until manually deployed via the install process.
C. Executing a script for all FortiGate units inside an ADOM applies changes immediately without saving a revision record.
D. Launching a CLI script directly on a remote FortiGate bypasses the option to preview or validate the modifications.
Answer:
B. Applying a CLI script within the Device Database keeps the changes in FortiManager until manually deployed via the install process.
D. Launching a CLI script directly on a remote FortiGate bypasses the option to preview or validate the modifications.
Explanation:
B. Applying a CLI script within the Device Database keeps the changes in FortiManager until manually deployed via the install process:
This is correct. When you run a CLI script in the Device Database section of FortiManager, the changes are stored in FortiManager and are not immediately pushed to the FortiGate devices. These changes must be manually deployed through the "Install" process to take effect on the target devices.D. Launching a CLI script directly on a remote FortiGate bypasses the option to preview or validate the modifications:
This is also correct. Running a CLI script directly on a FortiGate unit bypasses FortiManager's review and validation process (like previewing changes or validation checks), and the script is executed immediately on the FortiGate device.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect:
A. Running a CLI script at the ADOM level or on a policy package results in instant configuration updates on the target FortiGate firewall:
This is incorrect. Running a CLI script at the ADOM level or on a policy package does not instantly apply changes to the FortiGate firewalls. It stores the changes in FortiManager, and the updates are not pushed until the install process is executed.C. Executing a script for all FortiGate units inside an ADOM applies changes immediately without saving a revision record:
This is incorrect. Executing a CLI script in an ADOM applies changes to the FortiManager database, but the changes are not applied immediately to the devices. FortiManager maintains revision records of changes for auditing and rollback purposes, and it is best practice to save and review revisions before installing them on devices.
Question 2:
Which two activities can FortiManager’s Install Wizard perform automatically? Select the correct pair.
A. Allow review of pending changes before pushing them to FortiGate units.
B. Onboard and register brand-new FortiGate devices into the system.
C. Import existing firewall rules from connected FortiGate units into FortiManager.
D. Push updated configurations from FortiManager to connected FortiGates.
E. Automatically gather interface mapping data from managed FortiGates.
Answer:
A. Allow review of pending changes before pushing them to FortiGate units.
D. Push updated configurations from FortiManager to connected FortiGates.
Explanation:
A. Allow review of pending changes before pushing them to FortiGate units:
This is correct. The FortiManager Install Wizard allows you to review any pending changes that have been made to the configurations before pushing them to the connected FortiGate units. This ensures that you can validate changes before they are applied.D. Push updated configurations from FortiManager to connected FortiGates:
This is also correct. The Install Wizard is responsible for pushing updated configurations from FortiManager to the connected FortiGate devices, which is a key function of the deployment process.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect:
B. Onboard and register brand-new FortiGate devices into the system:
The onboarding and registration of new devices is not an automatic function of the Install Wizard. This typically involves manually adding devices to FortiManager or using other configuration wizards or procedures.C. Import existing firewall rules from connected FortiGate units into FortiManager:
The Install Wizard is not primarily designed for importing existing firewall rules from connected FortiGate devices. This process is typically handled by other tools or procedures, like a configuration import.E. Automatically gather interface mapping data from managed FortiGates:
While FortiManager can gather interface mapping data, this is not an automatic action performed specifically by the Install Wizard. Typically, interface mappings would be handled manually or through other parts of the configuration process.
Question 3:
You're troubleshooting IPS functionality on a FortiGate device and use the command:
diagnose test application ipsmonitor 3
The result shows:
ipsengine exit log
pid = 93 (cfg), duration = 5605322 (s) at Wed Apr 19 09:57:26 2017
code = 11, reason: manual
What does this tell you about the IPS engine’s current state?
Answer:
D. The IPS service was deliberately shut down by an administrator and is currently disabled.
Explanation:
The key piece of information in the log is:
code = 11, reason: manual
Code = 11 refers to an exit reason that indicates the process was manually terminated.
Reason: manual explicitly indicates that the IPS engine was manually shut down, which implies an administrator intentionally stopped the service, likely through some administrative action, such as disabling or stopping the IPS engine.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect:
A. The IPS process was terminated because it exceeded allowed memory usage limits.
This would likely result in a different error code and reason, such as a "memory error" or "resource exhaustion" message, not a "manual" shutdown.
B. The IPS engine crashed unexpectedly during operation.
If the IPS engine crashed unexpectedly, you would typically see an error message related to a crash, memory failure, or a kernel panic, not a "manual" shutdown.
C. There was a problem with communication between the IPS module and FortiGate’s config system.
A communication issue would not typically cause a "manual" shutdown of the IPS engine. This would instead result in error codes related to configuration or communication failures, not a manual exit.
Question 4:
When troubleshooting VPN issues between two FortiGate devices, which command should you use to correctly capture ESP traffic using the packet sniffer, assuming there's no NAT in the network path?
A. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 500"
B. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 4500"
C. diagnose sniffer packet any "esp"
D. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 500 or udp port 4500"
Answer: C
Explanation:
When diagnosing VPN-related issues, particularly for IPsec (which uses ESP for encryption), it's essential to capture the ESP packets specifically, because the ESP protocol is the foundation of the data encryption process in a VPN tunnel. The correct way to capture these packets using a FortiGate device's packet sniffer is by specifying the ESP protocol directly.
Let's go through each option:
A. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 500"
This command captures traffic on UDP port 500, which is primarily used for the Internet Key Exchange (IKE) protocol, essential for the initial setup of IPsec VPNs. However, this does not capture the actual encrypted data traffic carried over ESP. Therefore, this command isn't suitable for inspecting ESP traffic.B. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 4500"
Similar to the previous option, UDP port 4500 is used for NAT traversal in IPsec VPNs, where the IKE packets are encapsulated in UDP packets to bypass NAT devices. Again, while this is useful for debugging when NAT is involved, it does not directly capture the ESP traffic, which is what you want to inspect in this case.C. diagnose sniffer packet any "esp"
This is the correct option. ESP (Encapsulating Security Payload) is the protocol used to carry the encrypted data in IPsec VPNs. By specifying "esp" in the packet sniffer command, you're explicitly filtering for ESP packets, which is exactly what you need when inspecting VPN traffic between the two FortiGate devices. This allows you to capture the encrypted payloads and check for any issues in the transmission of the data.D. diagnose sniffer packet any "udp port 500 or udp port 4500"
This option combines both UDP port 500 (used for IKE) and UDP port 4500 (used for IPsec NAT traversal), which is useful for capturing the control traffic used to establish the VPN tunnel. However, as mentioned before, this does not capture the actual ESP traffic, which is essential for inspecting the encrypted payloads.
In summary, C is the correct command because it directly captures ESP traffic, which is the protocol used to transmit encrypted data in the IPsec VPN tunnel. This will allow for effective analysis of the data itself, not just the setup or NAT traversal packets.
Question 5:
What are the three essential conditions that must be met for a static route to be considered active in the routing table of a FortiGate firewall? (Choose three correct options.)
A. The specified next-hop address must be reachable.
B. There should be no other route to the same destination with a lower administrative distance.
C. If link monitoring is enabled, the associated link must be reported as healthy.
D. The next-hop IP should fall within the subnet configured on the outgoing interface.
E. The interface associated with the route must be in an operational (up) state.
**Correct Answer: ** A, C, E
Explanation:
For a static route to be considered active and show up in the routing table of a FortiGate device, several conditions must be satisfied. Static routes in FortiGate devices behave similarly to those in other networking environments but also incorporate Fortinet-specific enhancements, such as link health monitoring. Let's examine the relevant conditions and why A, C, and E are the correct choices.
A is correct because FortiGate requires that the next-hop address for a static route be reachable. If the device cannot reach the next-hop IP (i.e., there is no valid Layer 2/3 path to that IP via the specified interface), the route will not be installed in the routing table. This ensures that the route leads somewhere viable and prevents blackholing of traffic.
C is also correct. If link monitoring (also known as Dead Gateway Detection or DGD) is enabled on the route, FortiGate actively monitors the link's health by pinging the specified gateway or other IP addresses. If the health checks fail, FortiGate considers the link down—even if the interface is technically up—and will withdraw the static route. Therefore, when link monitoring is enabled, the monitored link must be reported as healthy for the route to stay active.
E is another required condition. The interface associated with the static route must be operational (up). If the interface is down administratively or physically, FortiGate will not consider the route active. This aligns with basic routing principles: a route cannot be used if its associated interface is down.
Now, let’s examine the incorrect
B is incorrect because FortiGate allows multiple routes to the same destination, even if they have different administrative distances. The route with the lowest administrative distance is preferred and placed in the Forwarding Information Base (FIB), but other valid routes still exist in the routing table. The existence of a route with a lower administrative distance does not prevent another route from being active; it just determines preference.
D is incorrect in the context of FortiGate. FortiGate does not require that the next-hop IP be part of the subnet configured on the outgoing interface. This is different from some traditional routing implementations. FortiGate allows configuring a next-hop that is not in the same subnet as long as the system can reach that IP through some valid route. This is particularly useful in scenarios where policy routes or more complex routing strategies are involved.
In summary, for a static route to appear as active in a FortiGate’s routing table:
The next-hop must be reachable (A).
If link monitoring is used, the link must be healthy (C).
The interface must be up (E).
These three conditions ensure both the physical and logical path to the destination is valid and usable.
Question 6:
In a high availability (HA) configuration with two FortiGate devices, an administrator observes that connected switches continue to forward traffic to the previous primary unit after a failover occurs. To address this, the link-failed-signal command is recommended. What is the function of this feature?
A. Briefly disables all non-heartbeat interfaces on the former master unit for a short time.
B. Notifies all adjacent devices of the new active firewall by sending ARP broadcasts.
C. Signals a link failure to connected networking gear during the failover transition.
D. Temporarily disables data ports on both HA peers for two seconds during failover.
**Correct Answer: ** A
Explanation:
In FortiGate High Availability (HA) configurations, seamless failover is essential for ensuring uninterrupted network connectivity. However, even after a successful failover, neighboring network devices such as switches or routers may continue forwarding traffic to the previously active unit (the former master). This happens because these devices might not detect the change in MAC address or the port status, leading to traffic blackholing or network disruption.
The link-failed-signal command in FortiGate is specifically designed to mitigate this issue. Let’s break down what this command does and evaluate why A is the correct answer.
When link-failed-signal is enabled, all non-heartbeat interfaces on the former primary unit are briefly disabled and then re-enabled during a failover event. This temporary shutdown of interfaces forces the connected switches and networking gear to refresh their MAC address tables and reevaluate their forwarding paths. By seeing the interface drop and come back up, switches discard the stale MAC-port associations related to the former master and learn the new associations from the new primary unit.
This process helps mitigate traffic being misdirected to the old primary, which is now in standby mode and no longer actively forwarding traffic. Therefore, the behavior described in A — temporarily disabling all non-heartbeat interfaces on the former master — is precisely what this feature accomplishes.
Let’s review why the other options are incorrect:
B is incorrect because although FortiGate does use Gratuitous ARPs (GARP) to inform adjacent devices of a new MAC-to-IP mapping after failover, this behavior is independent of the link-failed-signal feature. The GARP function is automatic and not specifically tied to the link-failed-signal command.
C is a vague description that could be interpreted in different ways, but it does not accurately represent what link-failed-signal does. While the feature results in what might be interpreted as a “link failure” by external devices, it does so by intentionally disabling interfaces—not by actively sending any failure signal. So this answer lacks the specific mechanism involved.
D is incorrect because the link-failed-signal feature only affects the former primary unit, not both peers. Additionally, it does not indiscriminately disable all data ports for a fixed two-second interval. The time the interfaces are disabled is minimal and implementation-dependent, but the behavior is only observed on the former master to force a MAC relearning on the network.
To summarize, the link-failed-signal command is a purpose-built feature for HA failover scenarios that temporarily brings down the former primary’s interfaces to prompt neighboring switches to relearn MAC address mappings. This ensures correct traffic forwarding to the new primary, avoiding packet loss or communication delays caused by outdated MAC-port associations. This functionality is vital in environments with Layer 2 switches that don’t handle Gratuitous ARP efficiently or don’t support fast MAC address table updates. Thus, A is the most accurate and specific answer.
Question 7:
Given the present routing configuration and the entries in the kernel routing table, which network interface will the FortiGate device utilize to send HTTP and HTTPS traffic from the internal network out to the internet?
A. Both port1 and port2
B. port3
C. port1
D. port2
**Correct Answer: ** C
Explanation:
To accurately determine which interface FortiGate will use to forward web traffic (specifically HTTP and HTTPS) from an internal source to the internet, one must analyze the kernel routing table, also known as the Forwarding Information Base (FIB). This table is the actual set of routes that FortiGate uses to forward traffic. While multiple routes may exist in the general routing table (RIB), only the most preferred ones—those with the best metric and status—are installed into the kernel routing table.
When web traffic (port 80 for HTTP and port 443 for HTTPS) is initiated by devices on an internal network (e.g., connected to lan, internal, or port3), FortiGate looks up the destination IP address in its FIB to determine which egress interface and next-hop should be used. This decision is based on several key route-selection criteria:
Longest Prefix Match: The route with the most specific destination subnet that matches the destination IP is preferred.
Lowest Administrative Distance (AD): Among routes to the same destination, the route with the lowest AD is preferred.
Lowest Metric: If multiple routes have the same AD, the metric is used to decide.
Interface and Gateway Availability: The associated interface must be operational, and the gateway (if specified) must be reachable.
Assuming that the kernel routing table shows a default route (0.0.0.0/0) via port1, and this interface is up and the next-hop gateway is reachable, then FortiGate will forward all internet-bound traffic, including HTTP/HTTPS, through port1. This is because internet-bound traffic matches the 0.0.0.0/0 route, which is the catch-all for any destination not specifically defined in more granular routes.
Now let’s evaluate each answer choice in light of that logic:
A (Both port1 and port2) is incorrect unless FortiGate is using Equal-Cost Multi-Path (ECMP) or SD-WAN, which would allow load-balancing or path selection across multiple interfaces. There is no mention of ECMP or SD-WAN configuration here, so this can be ruled out.
B (port3) is typically used for internal network segments, not for forwarding traffic to the internet. Unless specifically configured to act as a WAN interface, port3 would not be selected for internet-bound web traffic. Thus, this option is also incorrect.
C (port1) is correct if the kernel routing table indicates that the default route (0.0.0.0/0) uses port1 as the egress interface and this route is active. Since the question specifies “based on the current routing configuration and kernel routing table,” we must assume the default route points to port1.
D (port2) would only be correct if the default route or a more specific route to internet destinations were routed via port2. Since the kernel routing table shows that port1 is preferred, this is incorrect.
Therefore, based strictly on the kernel routing table and without evidence of ECMP, SD-WAN, or policy-based routing, FortiGate will forward web traffic from the internal network to the internet using port1, making C the correct answer.
Question 8:
While configuring OSPF between two FortiGate firewalls, which three of the following are necessary to successfully form an OSPF neighbor adjacency? (Select three correct requirements.)
A. Both devices must have IP addresses on the same subnet for their OSPF-enabled interfaces.
B. Hello and Dead interval settings must match on each side.
C. The MTU values configured for OSPF interfaces must be identical.
D. The router IDs for each FortiGate must be exactly the same.
E. The OSPF interface cost settings must match exactly.
**Correct Answer: ** A, B, C
Explanation:
To successfully establish an OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) neighbor relationship between two FortiGate firewalls—or any OSPF-speaking routers—certain fundamental requirements must be met. OSPF is a dynamic interior gateway routing protocol that uses link-state advertisements (LSAs) and neighbor relationships to build a comprehensive network topology. If specific parameters between two OSPF devices do not align, they will fail to form a neighbor adjacency, preventing the exchange of routing information.
Let’s explore the correct answers in detail:
A is correct. For two OSPF-enabled FortiGate interfaces to establish neighbor relationships, they must be in the same subnet. This is essential because OSPF treats directly connected neighbors as being on a shared network segment, and it uses multicast Hello packets to discover neighbors. If the IP addresses of the OSPF interfaces are not within the same subnet, these Hello packets will not be successfully exchanged or responded to, and adjacency cannot be formed.
B is also correct. The Hello and Dead intervals must match between OSPF neighbors. The Hello interval is the frequency at which OSPF routers send Hello packets, and the Dead interval defines how long to wait before declaring a neighbor down if no Hellos are received. If these values differ between routers, they will not recognize each other as valid OSPF neighbors and will fail to establish adjacency. On FortiGate, these settings can be adjusted per interface, and mismatches are a common source of OSPF troubleshooting.
C is correct as well. Matching MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) values is another requirement for OSPF adjacency, particularly after the initial exchange of Hello packets. If the MTU values on the OSPF interfaces differ, the OSPF neighbor relationship will typically reach the "EXSTART" state but then fail to progress to "FULL" due to OSPF packet size mismatches. FortiGate checks MTU consistency during the Database Description (DBD) packet exchange stage, and if the MTUs don't match, adjacency stalls.
Now, examining the incorrect
D is incorrect. Router IDs must be unique, not identical. OSPF uses router IDs to identify peers in the OSPF domain. If two routers have the same router ID, it causes conflicts and prevents neighbor relationships from forming correctly. FortiGate assigns router IDs based on configuration or interface IPs, and duplication should always be avoided.
E is also incorrect. Interface cost values do not need to match for adjacency to form. The OSPF cost (or metric) influences path selection, not neighbor relationships. Each router calculates its own path costs based on local interface metrics. Therefore, differing cost values between peers are perfectly acceptable and expected, especially when routing decisions vary across the network.
Summary of Requirements for OSPF Neighbor Adjacency:
The two devices must be on the same subnet (Option A).
Hello and Dead intervals must match (Option B).
MTU settings must be the same (Option C).
These settings ensure that OSPF routers can discover each other, exchange Hello packets, and progress through the neighbor states all the way to "FULL," where route exchange occurs. In contrast, having matching router IDs (Option D) would actually break OSPF, and matching interface costs (Option E) is unnecessary for adjacency and only affects routing decisions after adjacencies are formed. Thus, the correct selections are A, B, and C.
Question 9:
What is the primary role of an ADOM (Administrative Domain) in FortiManager?
A. It groups multiple devices under a single firmware version.
B. It enables policy-based routing configurations.
C. It allows administrators to manage devices separately under isolated management domains.
D. It acts as a container for storing historical logs and event data.
**Correct Answer: ** C
Explanation:
In FortiManager, an Administrative Domain (ADOM) is a key feature designed to support multi-tenant and segmented device management within a single FortiManager instance. This feature is especially valuable in environments where centralized management of multiple Fortinet devices (such as FortiGates, FortiAPs, or FortiSwitches) needs to be logically separated based on function, geography, client, department, or security domain.
ADOMs enable logical separation of management tasks, ensuring that devices grouped within one ADOM can be managed independently from those in other ADOMs. This is particularly critical in scenarios such as Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs), large enterprises with distributed IT teams, or government organizations with compartmentalized operations.
Let’s explore why C is the correct answer and why the other choices are not appropriate:
C is correct. ADOMs allow administrators to manage devices separately under isolated management domains. Each ADOM contains its own set of policies, objects, scripts, and configuration revisions. This means that administrators can apply different sets of policies and configurations to different device groups without affecting others. ADOMs provide a way to delegate control to different administrators or teams, allowing each to manage only the devices relevant to their domain.
Now, evaluating the incorrect
A is incorrect because while ADOMs might happen to group devices with similar characteristics (including firmware version), firmware versioning is not the primary purpose of an ADOM. FortiManager has separate mechanisms for handling firmware updates and version compliance, and grouping by firmware alone would not provide the isolation or policy management benefits that ADOMs are designed to support.
B is incorrect. Policy-based routing (PBR) is a network-level configuration that determines how traffic is forwarded based on policies rather than destination IP addresses. This feature is configured directly on FortiGate devices and is unrelated to the administrative structure provided by ADOMs in FortiManager. ADOMs do not enable or disable PBR; they merely structure how devices are managed.
D is incorrect. While FortiManager can store logs and event data (usually through integration with FortiAnalyzer or its own limited local logging capability), ADOMs are not containers for logs or historical event data. Instead, logging and analysis functionalities are handled separately from the management isolation provided by ADOMs. Logs may be segmented by ADOM in systems like FortiAnalyzer, but this is not the core purpose of ADOMs themselves within FortiManager.
In summary, ADOMs in FortiManager provide administrative separation and are fundamental for organizations that require delegated or segmented device management. They enable independent configuration, monitoring, and policy deployment to grouped devices without cross-contamination between domains. As such, the most accurate description of an ADOM's function is given in C.
Question 10:
If an administrator updates a policy package in FortiManager but does not install it on the corresponding FortiGate device, what is the outcome?
A. The changes are applied instantly to the FortiGate with a background sync.
B. The FortiGate firewall will automatically poll and apply the changes every 10 minutes.
C. The updated policies remain only in FortiManager and are not enforced on the FortiGate.
D. The FortiGate device sends a rejection notification to FortiManager.
**Correct Answer: ** C
Explanation:
FortiManager operates as a centralized configuration and policy management platform for Fortinet devices, including FortiGate firewalls. Its role is to help network administrators manage security policies, objects, and firmware updates across multiple FortiGate units from a single console. One of its core functionalities is allowing administrators to create and modify policy packages and then install those packages to selected devices.
When an administrator edits or modifies a policy package in FortiManager, those changes are stored locally within FortiManager’s configuration database. However, until the administrator explicitly installs the policy package onto the FortiGate device, the firewall remains unaware of any changes. This design ensures that administrators can review, validate, or schedule policy updates before pushing them live, which is especially critical in production environments where unintentional changes could lead to security risks or service disruptions.
Therefore, C is correct: the updated policies stay within FortiManager and are not applied or enforced by the FortiGate firewall until a manual installation is performed.
Let’s break down why the other options are incorrect:
A is incorrect. There is no automatic or background synchronization mechanism in FortiManager that applies policy changes to FortiGate devices instantly. Unlike some configuration tools that offer real-time push, FortiManager intentionally requires manual intervention (the Install Wizard) to install configurations. This design ensures accountability and precision, giving administrators the chance to review and approve changes before deployment.
B is incorrect. FortiGate devices do not poll FortiManager for policy updates on a schedule. The relationship between FortiManager and FortiGate is push-based, meaning FortiManager must initiate the installation. FortiGate is a passive recipient in this process; it does not actively request or apply updates from FortiManager at regular intervals.
D is incorrect. If a policy package is modified but not installed, there is no rejection message from the FortiGate device. The FortiGate is not even aware that changes have occurred in FortiManager until a manual installation is initiated. A rejection notification typically occurs when an installation attempt is made but fails due to validation errors, connectivity problems, or configuration conflicts—not when changes are simply left unapplied.
In summary, FortiManager provides a staging area where policy configurations can be safely edited and stored without affecting live devices. This separation gives administrators the ability to manage changes deliberately and test them if needed before pushing them to production. If the administrator forgets to perform the installation step, the FortiGate firewall continues operating with the last successfully installed configuration, and the newly modified policies remain idle within FortiManager’s system. This makes C the correct and most accurate answer.
