Fortinet MR8 manual Web-based manager, Command line interface

Secure installation, configuration, and management Introduction

The CLI or the web-based manager can then be used to complete configuration and to perform maintenance and administration.

Web-based manager

Using HTTP or a secure HTTPS connection from any computer running Internet Explorer, you can configure and manage the FortiGate unit. The web-based manager supports multiple languages. You can configure the FortiGate unit for HTTP and HTTPS administration from any FortiGate interface.

You can use the web-based manager to configure most FortiGate settings. You can also use the web-based manager to monitor the status of the FortiGate unit. Configuration changes made using the web-based manager are effective immediately without resetting the firewall or interrupting service. Once you are satisfied with a configuration, you can download and save it. The saved configuration can be restored at any time.

Figure 1: FortiGate web-based manager and setup wizard

Command line interface

You can access the FortiGate command line interface (CLI) by connecting a management computer serial port to the FortiGate RS-232 serial console connector. You can also use Telnet or a secure SSH connection to connect to the CLI from any network that is connected to the FortiGate unit, including the Internet.

The CLI supports the same configuration and monitoring functionality as the web-based manager. In addition, you can use the CLI for advanced configuration options that are not available from the web-based manager.

This Installation Guide contains information about basic and advanced CLI commands. For a more complete description about connecting to and using the FortiGate CLI, see the FortiGate CLI Reference Guide.

6 01-28008-0018-20050128 Fortinet Inc.