FIM failure

If one or more FIMs in the primary FortiGate 7000E fails, the cluster renegotiates and the FortiGate 7000E with the most operating FIMs becomes the primary FortiGate 7000E. An FIM failure can occur if the FIM shuts down due to a software crash or hardware problem, or if the FIM is manually shut down or even removed from the chassis.

After the primary FortiGate 7000E experiences an FIM failure, the FortiGate 7000E with the most operating FIMs becomes the new primary FortiGate 7000E. The new primary FortiGate 7000E sends gratuitous arp packets out all of its connected interfaces to inform attached switches to send traffic to it. Sessions then resume with the new primary FortiGate 7000E.

If the secondary FortiGate 7000E experiences an FIM failure, its status in the cluster does not change. However, in future negotiations the FortiGate 7000E with an FIM failure is less likely to become the primary FortiGate 7000E.