Fortinet Fortinet NSE 5 - FortiNAC-F 7.6 Administrator NSE5_FNC_AD_7.6 Exam Dumps: Updated Questions & Answers (January 2026)

In a FortiNAC-F deployment, the configuration of theDHCP scopefor isolation networks (Registration, Remediation, etc.) must perfectly align with the underlying network infrastructure to ensure that isolated hosts can communicate with the FortiNAC appliance. In the provided exhibits, there is a clear discrepancy between theDHCP configurationand theNetwork Topology.

As shown in the "Network Topology" exhibit, theRegistration Networkresides on a router interface (or sub-interface) with the IP address192.168.180.1. This address represents the default gateway for any host placed into the Registration VLAN. However, the "DHCP configuration" exhibit shows the scope"REG-ScopeOne"configured with aGateway of 10.0.1.254. This 10.0.1.254 address belongs to the management/service network (port2 of FortiNAC), not the registration subnet. If a host in the Registration VLAN receives this incorrect gateway via DHCP, it will attempt to send all off-link traffic to an unreachable IP, preventing it from loading theCaptive Portalor communicating with the FortiNAC server.

According to theFortiNAC-F Configuration Wizard Reference, when defining a Layer 3 network scope, the "Gateway" field must contain the IP address of the router interface that acts as the gateway for that specific isolation VLAN. The FortiNAC appliance itself usually sits on a different subnet, and traffic is directed to it via the router's DHCP Relay (IP Helper) and DNS redirection.

"When configuring scopes for a Layer 3 network, theGatewayvalue must be the IP address of the router interface for that subnet. This allows the host to reach its local gateway to route traffic. If the gateway is misconfigured, the host will be unable to reach the FortiNAC eth1/port2 interface for registration... Ensure the Gateway matches the network topology for the isolation VLAN." —FortiNAC-F Configuration Wizard Reference Manual: DHCP Scopes.

In FortiNAC-F, theConference Manageris a specialized administrative role designed for delegated administration, often used by receptionists or event organizers to create temporary guest accounts. To maintain security and prevent the over-provisioning of credentials, FortiNAC-F allows for granular restrictions on these accounts.

According to theFortiNAC-F Administration GuideregardingAdministrative Profiles, when an administrator creates a profile for a Conference Manager, they can define specific "Account Limits." Under the profile settings (located inSystem > Settings > Admin Profiles), there is a field specifically for"Max Accounts."By entering "30" into this field, the administrator ensures that any user assigned to this profile cannot exceed 30 active conference accounts at any given time.

This setting is distinct from the Portal configuration or the Guest templates. While templates define thetypeof account (e.g., duration and access level), theAdministrative Profiledefines thecapabilities and limitationsof the person creating those accounts. This ensures that even if a guest template allows for unlimited registrations, the specific administrator is physically restricted by the system from generating more than the allotted 30.

"Administrative Profiles define what an administrator can see and do within the system. For delegated administration roles like the Conference Manager, the'Max Accounts'field in the Administrative Profile is used to specify the maximum number of accounts the user is permitted to create. Once this limit is reached, the user will be unable to generate additional accounts until existing ones expire or are deleted." —FortiNAC-F Administration Guide: Administrative Profiles and Delegated Administration.

The process of moving a host from aRegistration VLANto aProduction VLAN(Access VLAN) is a fundamental part of the FortiNAC-F "VLAN steering" workflow. When a host successfully registers via the captive portal, FortiNAC-F evaluates its Network Access Policies to determine the correct VLAN. If the host remains stuck in the Registration VLAN despite a successful registration, it is typically due to port-level restrictions or the presence of other unregistered devices.

The two most common reasons for this behavior as per the documentation are:

The port default VLAN is the same as the Registration VLAN:If the "Default VLAN" field in the switch port's model configuration is set to the same ID as the Registration VLAN, the port will not change state because FortiNAC-F believes it is already in its "normal" or "forced" state.

There is another unregistered host on the same port:FortiNAC-F maintains the security posture of the physical port. If multiple hosts are connected to a single port (e.g., via a hub or unmanaged switch) and at least one host remains "Rogue" (unregistered), FortiNAC-F will generally keep the entire port in the isolation/registration VLAN to prevent the unregistered host from gaining unauthorized access to the production network.

Issues with agents (A, B) typically prevent a host from completing compliance or registration but do not usually result in a "stuck" statusafterregistration has already been marked as successful in the system.

"If a port is identified as havingMultiple Hosts, and those hosts require different levels of access, FortiNAC remains in the most restrictive state (Registration or Isolation) until all hosts on that port are authorized... Additionally, verify theDefault VLANsetting for the port; if the Default VLAN and Registration VLAN match, the system will not trigger a VLAN change upon registration." —FortiNAC-F Administration Guide: Troubleshooting Host Management.

In a1+1 High Availability (HA)deployment, FortiNAC-F supports two primary methods for management access: individual IP addresses or aShared IP Address(also known as a Virtual IP or VIP). The Shared IP option is part of aLayer 2 HAdesign, which simplifies administration by providing a single URL or IP that always points to whichever appliance is currently in the "Active" or "In Control" state.

For a Shared IP configuration to function correctly, thePrimary and Secondary administrative interfaces (port1) must be on the same subnet. This requirement exists because the Shared IP is a logical address that is dynamically assigned to the physical interface of the active unit. Since only one unit can own the IP at a time, both units must reside on the same broadcast domain (Layer 2) to ensure that ARP requests for the Shared IP are correctly answered and that the gateway remains reachable regardless of which unit is active. If the appliances were on different subnets (a Layer 3 HA design), a shared IP could not be used because it cannot "float" across different network segments; instead, administrators would need to manage each unit via its unique physical IP or use a FortiNAC Manager.

"For L2 HA configurations, click theUse Shared IP Addresscheckbox and enter the Shared IP Address information...If your Primary and Secondary Servers are not in the same subnet, do not use a shared IP address.The shared IP address moves between appliances during a failover and recovery and requires both units to reside on the same network." —FortiNAC-F High Availability Reference Manual: Shared IP Configuration.

TheFortiNAC-F Manager (FortiNAC-M)is designed as a centralized management platform for large-scale distributed environments where multiple FortiNAC-F Control and Application (CA) appliances are deployed across different sites. According to theFortiNAC-F Manager Administration Guide, the deployment of a Manager simplifies administrative overhead in three specific ways:

First, it providesGlobal Version Control (B). The Manager serves as a central repository for firmware and software updates, allowing administrators to push specific versions to all managed CAs simultaneously, ensuring consistency across the entire fabric. Second, it enablesPooled Licenses (D). Instead of purchasing and managing individual licenses for every CA, licenses are centralized on the Manager. The Manager then distributes these licenses to the CAs as needed based on their host counts. This "floating" license model optimizes cost and prevents individual sites from running out of capacity while others have excess. Third, it offersGlobal Visibility (E). The Manager aggregates host and device data from every managed CA into a single console. This "single pane of glass" allows an administrator to search for a specific MAC address or user across the entire global organization without logging into individual servers.

While the Manager can assist with configuration templates, authentication security policies (C) and infrastructure modeling (A) are still predominantly managed at the local CA level to ensure site-specific logic and performance.

"The FortiNAC Manager provides a central management console for multiple FortiNAC-F servers (CAs). Key benefits include: •License Management: Licenses are pooled on the Manager and allocated to managed CAs as needed. •Software Management: Firmware updates can be centrally managed and pushed to all CAs from the Manager. •Centralized Monitoring: Provides a global view of all hosts, adapters, and events across the entire managed environment." —FortiNAC-F Manager Administration Guide: Overview and Benefits.

In FortiNAC-F,Port Groupsare used to apply specific enforcement behaviors to switch ports. When a port is assigned to an enforcement group, such asForced RegistrationorForced Remediation, FortiNAC-F overrides normal policy logic to force all connected adapters into that specific state. The exhibit shows a port (IF#13) with "Multiple Hosts" connected, which is a common scenario in environments using unmanaged switches or hubs downstream from a managed switch port.

According to theFortiNAC-F Administrator Guide, it is possible for a single port to be a member of multiple port groups. However, when those groups have conflicting enforcement actions—such as one group forcing a registration state and another forcing a remediation state—FortiNAC-F utilizes aranking systemto resolve the conflict. In the FortiNAC-F GUI underNetwork > Port Management > Port Groups, each group is assigned a rank. The system evaluates these ranks, andonly the higher ranked enforcement group is appliedto the port. If a port is in both a Forced Registration group and a Forced Remediation group, the group with the numerical priority (rank) will dictate the VLAN and access level assigned to all hosts on that port.

This mechanism ensures consistent behavior across the fabric. If the ranking determines that "Forced Registration" is higher priority, then even a known host that is failing a compliance scan (which would normally trigger Remediation) will be held in the Registration VLAN because the port-level enforcement takes precedence based on its rank.

"A port can be a member of multiple groups. If more than one group has an enforcement assigned, the group with thehighest rank(lowest numerical value) is used to determine the enforcement for the port. When a port is placed in a group with an enforcement, that enforcement is applied toall hostsconnected to that port, regardless of the host's current state." —FortiNAC-F Administration Guide: Port Group Enforcement and Ranking.

When FortiNAC-F manages VPN clients through a FortiGate, the agent plays a fundamental role in device identification that standard network protocols cannot provide on their own. In a standard VPN connection, the FortiGate establishes a Layer 3 tunnel and assigns a virtual IP address to the client. While the FortiGate sends a syslog message to FortiNAC-F containing the username and this assigned IP address, it typically does not provide the hardware (MAC) address of the remote endpoint's physical or virtual adapter.

FortiNAC-F relies on theMAC addressas the primary unique identifier for all host records in its database. Without the MAC address, FortiNAC-F cannot correlate the incoming VPN session with an existing host record to apply specific policies or track the device's history. By running either a Persistent or Dissolvable Agent, the endpoint retrieves its own MAC address and communicates it directly to the FortiNAC-F service interface. This allows the "IP to MAC" mapping to occur. Once FortiNAC-F has both the IP and the MAC, it can successfully identify the device, verify its status, and send the appropriateFSSO tagsor group information back to the FortiGate to lift network restrictions.

Furthermore, while the agent can also perform compliance checks (Option D), the architectural requirement for the agent in a managed VPN environment is primarily driven by the need for session data correlation—specifically the collection of the IP and MAC address pairing.

"Session Data Components: • User ID (collected via RADIUS, syslog and API from the FortiGate). • Remote IP address for the remote user connection (collected via syslog and API from the FortiGate and from the FortiNAC agent). •Device IP and MAC address (collected via FortiNAC agent).... The Agent is used to provide the MAC address of the connecting VPN user (IP to MAC)." —FortiNAC-F FortiGate VPN Integration Guide: How it Works Section.

The integration between FortiNAC-F and Mobile Device Management (MDM) platforms (such as Microsoft Intune, VMware Workspace ONE, or Jamf) is a critical component for providing visibility into mobile assets that do not connect directly to the managed infrastructure via standard wired or wireless protocols.

According to theFortiNAC-F MDM Integration Guide, the communication between the FortiNAC-F appliance and the MDM server is handled throughREST APIcalls. FortiNAC-F acts as an API client, periodically polling the MDM server to retrieve device metadata, compliance status, and ownership information. If communication is failing, it is most likely because the API credentials (Client ID/Secret) are incorrect, the MDM's API endpoint is unreachable from the FortiNAC-F service port, or the SSL certificate presented by the MDM is not trusted by the FortiNAC-F root store.

While SSH (B) is used for switch CLI management and the Security Fabric (A) uses proprietary protocols for FortiGate synchronization, neither is the primary vehicle for MDM data exchange. SOAP API (D) is an older protocol that has been largely replaced by REST in modern FortiNAC integrations.

"FortiNAC integrates with MDM systems by utilizingREST APIcommunication to query the MDM database for device information. To establish this link, administrators must configure the MDM Service Connector with the appropriateAPI URLand authentication credentials. If the 'Test Connection' fails, verify that the FortiNAC can reach the MDM provider via theREST APIport (usually HTTPS 443)." —FortiNAC-F Administration Guide: MDM Integration and Troubleshooting.

In FortiNAC-F, theRADIUS Attribute Groupsfeature allows administrators to return customized RADIUS attributes (such as specific VLAN IDs, filter IDs, or vendor-specific attributes) in anAccess-Acceptpacket sent back to a network device. This is particularly useful for supporting "Generic RADIUS" devices that are not natively supported but can be managed using standard AVPairs.

According to theFortiNAC-F Generic RADIUS Wired Cookbookand theRADIUS Attribute Groups sectionof the Administration Guide, there is one critical prerequisite for this feature to function: theinbound RADIUS request must contain the Calling-Station-ID attribute. The Calling-Station-ID typically contains theMAC addressof the connecting endpoint. Because FortiNAC-F is a host-centric system, it uses the MAC address as the unique identifier to look up the host record, evaluate the associated Network Access Policy, and determine which Logical Network (and thus which Attribute Group) should be applied. If the incoming request lacks this attribute, FortiNAC-F cannot reliably identify the host and, as a safety mechanism, willnot include any user-defined RADIUS attributesin the response. This ensures that unauthorized or unidentifiable devices do not receive privileged access through misapplied attributes.

"Configure a set of attributes that must be included in the RADIUS Access-Accept packet returned by FortiNAC...Requirement: Inbound RADIUS request must contain Calling-Station-Id. Otherwise, FortiNAC will not include the RADIUS attributes.This attribute is used to identify the host and its current state within the FortiNAC database." —FortiNAC-F 7.6.0 Generic RADIUS Wired Cookbook: Configure RADIUS Attribute Groups.