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Administration Guide

Meta Fields

Meta Fields

Meta fields allow administrators to add extra information when configuring, adding, or maintaining FortiGate units or adding new administrators. You can make the fields mandatory or optional, and set the length of the field.

With the fields set as mandatory, administrators must supply additional information when they create a new FortiGate object, such as an administrator account or firewall policy. Fields for this new information are added to the FortiGate unit dialog boxes in the locations where you create these objects. You can also provide fields for optional additional information.

The one exception to this is the System Administrators object. This object applies only to administrators on the FortiManager unit. All other objects are related to FortiGate units.

Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields to configure meta fields. Meta fields can be added, edited, and deleted.

Select Expand All or Contract All from the toolbar or right-click menu to view all of or none of the meta fields under each object.

To create a new meta field:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Click Create New in the toolbar. The Create New Meta Field pane opens.

  3. Configure the following settings and then select OK to create the meta field.

    Object

    The object this metadata field applies to: System Administrators, Devices, Device Groups, Chassis, Administrative Domain, Firewall Addresses, Firewall Address Groups, Firewall Services, Firewall Service Groups, or Firewall Policy.

    Name

    Enter the label to use for the field.

    Length

    Select the maximum number of characters allowed for the field from the dropdown list: 20, 50, or 255.

    Importance

    Select Required to make the field compulsory, otherwise select Optional.

    Status

    Select Disabled to disable this field. The default selection is Enabled.

    This field is only available for non-firewall objects.

To edit a meta field:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Double-click on a field, right-click on a field and then select Edit from the menu, or select a field then click Edit in the toolbar. The Edit Meta Fields pane opens.
  3. Edit the settings as required, and then click OK to apply the changes.

The Object and Name fields cannot be edited.

To delete a meta field or fields:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Select the field or fields you need to delete.
  3. Click Delete in the toolbar, or right-click and select Delete.
  4. Click OK in the confirmation box to delete the field or fields.

The default meta fields cannot be deleted.

Meta Fields

Meta fields allow administrators to add extra information when configuring, adding, or maintaining FortiGate units or adding new administrators. You can make the fields mandatory or optional, and set the length of the field.

With the fields set as mandatory, administrators must supply additional information when they create a new FortiGate object, such as an administrator account or firewall policy. Fields for this new information are added to the FortiGate unit dialog boxes in the locations where you create these objects. You can also provide fields for optional additional information.

The one exception to this is the System Administrators object. This object applies only to administrators on the FortiManager unit. All other objects are related to FortiGate units.

Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields to configure meta fields. Meta fields can be added, edited, and deleted.

Select Expand All or Contract All from the toolbar or right-click menu to view all of or none of the meta fields under each object.

To create a new meta field:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Click Create New in the toolbar. The Create New Meta Field pane opens.

  3. Configure the following settings and then select OK to create the meta field.

    Object

    The object this metadata field applies to: System Administrators, Devices, Device Groups, Chassis, Administrative Domain, Firewall Addresses, Firewall Address Groups, Firewall Services, Firewall Service Groups, or Firewall Policy.

    Name

    Enter the label to use for the field.

    Length

    Select the maximum number of characters allowed for the field from the dropdown list: 20, 50, or 255.

    Importance

    Select Required to make the field compulsory, otherwise select Optional.

    Status

    Select Disabled to disable this field. The default selection is Enabled.

    This field is only available for non-firewall objects.

To edit a meta field:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Double-click on a field, right-click on a field and then select Edit from the menu, or select a field then click Edit in the toolbar. The Edit Meta Fields pane opens.
  3. Edit the settings as required, and then click OK to apply the changes.

The Object and Name fields cannot be edited.

To delete a meta field or fields:
  1. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Meta Fields.
  2. Select the field or fields you need to delete.
  3. Click Delete in the toolbar, or right-click and select Delete.
  4. Click OK in the confirmation box to delete the field or fields.

The default meta fields cannot be deleted.