FortiOS 5.6 Beta 3 was released. They are steadily improving upon it. There are some glaring bugs (for instance, if you are running in NGFW policy mode and put a deny for certain web categories at the very top…..it kills all traffic below it too, even if there is an allow). That is going to come with the territory though as they adjust how their system approaches a packet.
Either way, progress is being made and I am very excited about where this version of code is going. I think 5.6 will genuinely be able to shut Palo Alto Networks up when it comes to their marketing of how the policies differ.
I just hope once it is release it is very stable going forward. I’m so sick of every new firmware version/revision introducing bugs. The best technology is ones that just work.
Absolutely. They definitely have a LONG ways to go but this code is making some pretty crazy changes in how the device operates. The only time I lose to Palo is when someone wants application policy (NGFW Policy) done the way Palo does it. Fortinet is introducing that with this!
Any news on when GA might be available? I bought a FortiAP Universal FAP-U421EV only to find out it is not compatible with FortiOS 5.4. Supposed to work in 5.6…
They have not given a release date yet for GA. I do know that 5.6 is super buggy currently (it is only in Beta 3 after all). I would expect it to be a few more months away in all honesty.
I have not heard of that AP being limited to 5.6 by the way. The universal series prides itself on being able to integrate with the Cloud, Gate, or the wireless controller…
Yeah the Universal AP was sold on the premise it works with everything.. cloud, wireless controller (Meru), and FortiOS controller (FortiGate). So I order one along with a FortiWiFi 61E and no way to make them work. I open a ticket and am politely told it won’t be supported until 5.6. Meanwhile my complimentary Meraki APs are expiring this month so now I have no WiFi unless I rig up something temporary. Not cool, the universal AP wasn’t cheap even on their “demo” program.
How can I get a hold of 5.6 beta 3? Do you have to be in their developer program or is there a place I could download it? Noticed you too have FortiWiFi 61E… so it is available?
You have to apply for Beta membership. You can do it through their support site.