System

The System module provides the tools necessary to configure and govern the FortiADC’s administrative framework and operational environment. While traffic-processing modules manage data plane activity, the System menu allows you to control the control plane, hardware abstraction, and underlying OS settings. Use this menu to establish the appliance’s identity, enforce management security, and define the resource boundaries required before deploying functional services.

By configuring these core System modules, you ensure the appliance is correctly integrated into your network fabric and provide the telemetry required for proactive monitoring and lifecycle management.

Virtual Domain

Partition a single FortiADC appliance into multiple independent logical instances to support multi-tenant environments. Each VDOM maintains its own configuration objects, logs, and reports, and can operate in either Independent Network mode or Share Network (ADOM) mode.

Administrator

Manage administrative access by creating local or REST API users, enforcing granular password policies, and defining access profiles. These profiles utilize Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) to limit administrator permissions to specific functional areas or VDOMs.

Global Resources

Monitor real-time and maximum utilization statistics for system-wide configuration objects. This module provides visibility into resource allocation across all VDOMs to prevent system-wide resource exhaustion.

Firmware

Manage the FortiADC operating system through a dual-partition environment. This module allows you to perform system upgrades, apply maintenance patches, or switch between active and alternate boot partitions to ensure system stability and security.

Settings

Configure fundamental system parameters, including the hostname, system time (NTP), and DNS resolution. This module also facilitates configuration lifecycle management through push/pull synchronization, manual backups, and restoration procedures.

High Availability

Deploy FortiADC in redundant cluster configurations (Active-Passive, Active-Active, or Active-Active-VRRP) to ensure service continuity. This module manages heartbeat mechanisms, data synchronization, and stateful session failover.

SNMP

Implement Simple Network Management Protocol (v1, v2c, or v3) to export system telemetry to external Network Management Systems (NMS). This includes configuring communities, users, and traps, as well as downloading Fortinet-proprietary MIB files.

Replacement Messages

Customize and manage the library of system-generated notifications, such as pre-login security banners and disclaimer messages, that are presented to users during administrative or traffic-handling events.

FortiGuard

Manage the connection to the FortiGuard Distribution Network (FDN) to validate service licenses and receive real-time security updates. This includes updates for WAF signatures, IP Reputation, and GeoIP databases.

Feature Visibility

Optimize the administrative interface by enabling or hiding specific GUI modules. This allows you to streamline the management console based on the features actually required for your specific deployment.

Cloud Auto Scaling

Integrate with AWS or Azure connectors to facilitate dynamic resource scaling. This module allows FortiADC to automatically adjust its traffic-handling capacity based on real-time performance metrics and cloud environment demands.

Azure LB Backend

Configure independent backend IP addresses for FortiADC nodes deployed in Azure High Availability (HA) clusters. This ensures that the Azure Load Balancer can accurately perform health probes and route traffic to the correct active or standby appliance without requiring IP migrations during a failover.

Certificates

Centralize the management of your Public Key Infrastructure (PKI). This module allows you to generate CSRs, import local and CA certificates, and configure Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) settings for real-time validation.

Debug

Access advanced diagnostic tools to troubleshoot system-level issues. Use this module to generate system debug files and crash logs, which can be downloaded for analysis or provided to Fortinet Technical Support.

WCCP

Configure the Web Cache Communication Protocol (v2) to integrate FortiADC with external cache engine clusters. This enables transparent traffic redirection to optimize web performance and reduce bandwidth consumption.