Once logged in, navigate to the section. You can select the platform that matches your environment, such as: VMware ESXi Microsoft Hyper-V KVM / Nutanix AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud (GCP) Step 3: Deploy and Register After deploying the VM on your hypervisor:

A: Yes, but only for offline traffic. The trial includes built-in signatures for IPS and AntiVirus, meaning it can detect threats based on the image's static database. However, because it lacks FortiGuard connectivity, it will not receive real-time "outbreak" updates or cloud-based web filtering.

Select as the product and choose your platform (e.g., VMware ESXi, KVM, AWS, or Azure).

Tip: If you don’t want to request a license file manually, many cloud marketplaces (AWS, Azure, GCP) let you spin up a FortiGate VM with a temporary trial included — convenient for testing.

After logging in, your FortiGate VM will automatically contact the FortiCloud licensing servers, retrieve a permanent trial license, and apply it. The VM will then reboot. Upon reboot, the license will show as "Valid," and you will be granted access to the full FortiOS web interface.

Cloud marketplaces: licensing may be handled automatically; check the instance details and System → License page.

The FortiGate VM license trial, now in its "permanent trial" form, is a brilliant initiative by Fortinet for the technical community. It democratizes access to enterprise-class firewall technology, allowing anyone to build a powerful virtual security lab at no cost.

More advanced users can perform the activation directly via the CLI:

First, you must download the appropriate VM image for your platform from the official Fortinet Support portal (support.fortinet.com) and deploy it on your hypervisor (VMware, Hyper-V, KVM, etc.). Once the VM is powered on and you have configured its management IP address, you can proceed.

Maximum of 3 interfaces , 3 firewall policies , and 3 routes .

No access to Fortinet TAC (Technical Assistance Center) support. How to Download and Activate a FortiGate VM Trial

Deploy the OVF or QCOW2 file into your environment. Upon the first boot, the system will prompt you for credentials (default is admin with no password). Step 4: Activation

To address these limitations, Fortinet introduced the . This model does not have an expiration date, meaning the evaluation license itself never "times out." Instead of a built-in license, this model requires you to link your FortiGate VM to a free FortiCloud/FortiCare account to activate the license. This activation is a one-time process, after which the VM is permanently licensed for evaluation use, subject to the platform's resource and feature constraints.

To activate a FortiGate VM trial, you must register the instance with FortiCloud. Follow these steps to secure your free license: Step 1: Create a FortiCloud Account Head to the (fortinet.com). Click Register and create a new account.

execute restore license tftp <license_filename> <tftp_server_ip>

: Typically limited to 1 CPU and 2 GB of RAM .