Netgate Discussion Forum
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Users
    • Search
    • Register
    • Login

    Watchguard Firebox M400/M500

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Hardware
    584 Posts 58 Posters 676.1k Views
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • S
      Scorch95 @stephenw10
      last edited by Scorch95

      @stephenw10

      Here is what I get when doing a reboot from serial:

      pfSense will reboot. This may take a few minutes, depending on your hardware.
      Do you want to proceed?

      Y/y: Reboot normally
      S: Reboot into Single User Mode (requires console access!)
      F: Reboot and run a filesystem check
      

      Enter an option: y

      pfSense is rebooting now.
      Terminated
      Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process vnlru' to stop... done Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process bufdaemon' to stop... done
      Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process `syncer' to stop...
      Syncing disks, vnodes remaining... 0 0 0 done
      All buffers synced.
      Uptime: 4m39s
      uhub3: detached
      uhub4: detached

      and it stays there. Now if I do a system halt it goes through a few different items but in the end it still goes through the above and the only thing after uhub4: detached is "acpi0: powering off system". So I'm not sure if its hanging on uhub4 or if its missing something after that.

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • stephenw10S
        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
        last edited by

        Hmm, I don't see that here. I am running a modified BIOS but I don't recall setting anything that might have changed that.

        Enter an option: 5
        
        
        pfSense will reboot. This may take a few minutes, depending on your hardware.
        Do you want to proceed?
        
            Y/y: Reboot normally
            R/r: Reroot (Stop processes, remount disks, re-run startup sequence)
            S: Reboot into Single User Mode (requires console access!)
            F: Reboot and run a filesystem check
        
        Enter an option: y
        
        pfSense is rebooting now.
         Stopping package Shellcmd...done.
         Stopping package System Patches...done.
         Stopping package Service Watchdog...done.
         Stopping package bind...done.
         Stopping /usr/local/etc/rc.d/named.sh...done.
        Jan 20 13:14:08 ipsec_starter[16515]: charon stopped after 400 ms
        Jan 20 13:14:08 ipsec_starter[16515]: ipsec starter stopped
        Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process `vnlru' to stop... done
        Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process `bufdaemon' to stop... done
        Waiting (max 60 seconds) for system process `syncer' to stop... 
        Syncing disks, vnodes remaining... 2 0 0 0 done
        All buffers synced.
        Uptime: 12m40s
        uslcom0: detached
        uhub3: detached
        uhub4: detached
         
        
        
        Version 2.15.1236. Copyright (C) 2012 American Megatrends, Inc.                 
        MB-WG7585W Ver.WD0_MOD2_SW 20/02/2018                                           
        Press <DEL> or <ESC> to enter setup.                                            
        Tab key on remote keyboard to enter setup menu, and key 'o' for popup menu.     
        

        Steve

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • S
          Scorch95
          last edited by

          So your screen stays like that until it reboots? The only thing I had to do different was force uefi during install compared to the xtm5 which was all auto settings.

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • stephenw10S
            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
            last edited by

            Mmm, hard to believe that would be any different at reboot rather than boot but....

            I am running a full install from CF and hence not booting uefi:

            [2.4.4-RELEASE][admin@m400.stevew.lan]/root: sysctl machdep.bootmethod
            machdep.bootmethod: BIOS
            

            Steve

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • A
              apocalyps3736
              last edited by

              We have a M440 up and running with pfsense but only the first (eth0) and the 2 fiberoptic connections are working. Does someone has any idea how to get the eth1-eth24 working? I studied the WG software and they have some fancy scripts and modules for it to bring up al the eth ports

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • stephenw10S
                stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                last edited by

                There's a separate thread for it: https://forum.netgate.com/topic/136614/watchguard-firebox-m440/

                But the short answer is no.

                The igb driver does not attach to the other 3 ports because the PHY used is not recognised.

                The switch IC is connected to the CPU only via an unknown PCI device. It looks to have a serial console for some kind (the switch) but we never saw any output from it. It looked like there might be a resistor missing.

                Please post in the other thread if you wish to discuss further.

                Steve

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • P
                  pglover19
                  last edited by

                  What is the best CPU to use for the M500 model? Thanks..

                  Z 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • Z
                    zanthos @pglover19
                    last edited by

                    @pglover19
                    I have installed an Intel Xeon E3-1285L v3 3.1GHz in my M400...

                    P 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • P
                      pglover19 @zanthos
                      last edited by

                      @zanthos said in Watchguard Firebox M400:

                      @pglover19
                      I have installed an Intel Xeon E3-1285L v3 3.1GHz in my M400...

                      The prices on Ebay is still high for the Xeon E3-1285L v3 CPU. Any other alternatives?

                      Z 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • P
                        pglover19 @stephenw10
                        last edited by

                        @stephenw10 said in Watchguard Firebox M400:

                        Use WGXepc64. Source. 64bit binary.

                        Read about its development here if you're interested:
                        https://forum.netgate.com/topic/29470/as-good-as-solved-watchguard-firebox-arm-disarm-led

                        Steve

                        I tried using the program on my Firebox M500 and it is not working. See attachment.

                        0_1551267726934_48eef350-25c5-42f9-8ad6-2868e09ee10a-image.png

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • stephenw10S
                          stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                          last edited by stephenw10

                          Yeah, it doesn't do the fan control but does it set the led as expected?

                          What's the supplied CPU in the M500?

                          Steve

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • Z
                            zanthos @pglover19
                            last edited by

                            @pglover19 said in Watchguard Firebox M400:

                            The prices on Ebay is still high for the Xeon E3-1285L v3 CPU. Any other alternatives?

                            Check this list:
                            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Intel_Xeon_microprocessors#Haswell-based_Xeons
                            Choose any of the LGA 1150 based CPU's. They should work all... (But I can't guarantee that…)
                            At least you can inject the latest Intel CPU microcodes to the BIOS to support those CPU's.
                            My Intel Xeon E3-1285L v3 3.1GHz did work indeed without any modification.

                            I 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • stephenw10S
                              stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                              last edited by

                              Or indeed almost any Haswell LGA 1150 CPU is likely to work. So a load of i3/i5s you could choose.
                              What are you planning to use it for? What do you need a replacement CPU to do?

                              Steve

                              P 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • P
                                pglover19 @stephenw10
                                last edited by

                                @stephenw10 said in Watchguard Firebox M400:

                                Or indeed almost any Haswell LGA 1150 CPU is likely to work. So a load of i3/i5s you could choose.
                                What are you planning to use it for? What do you need a replacement CPU to do?

                                Steve

                                I am looking for a AES-NI CPU. This unit will only be used in my home lab. I am running pfSense on 2 DELL R320 servers in HA mode in my production environment.

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • P
                                  pglover19
                                  last edited by

                                  The CPU in the M500 is G3420.

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • stephenw10S
                                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                    last edited by stephenw10

                                    Then any relatively cheap i3 like the 4130 will work. That will give you a faster CPU with hyperthreading and AES-NI.

                                    I think someone fitted one earlier in this thread. (edit: several people in fact)

                                    Steve

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • stephenw10S
                                      stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                      last edited by stephenw10

                                      For reference here is the console log of the BIOS update commands I used.

                                      [2.4.4-RELEASE][root@5100.stevew.lan]/root: cu -l /dev/cuaU1 -s 9600
                                      Connected
                                      
                                      Freedos on COM1:
                                      Freedos
                                      Current date is Sun 03-03-2019
                                      Current time is  9:30:01.88 pm
                                      C:\>dir
                                       Volume in drive C is FREEDOS1.0
                                       Volume Serial Number is 4A84-36BD
                                       Directory of C:\
                                      
                                      KERNEL   SYS        44,889  08-20-06  7:08a
                                      COMMAND  COM        66,945  08-29-06  2:40a
                                      BIOS                 <DIR>  03-03-19  8:37p
                                      AUTOEXEC BAT           277  03-03-19  9:28p
                                      MODE     COM        16,254  05-12-05 12:05p
                                               4 file(s)        128,365 bytes
                                               1 dir(s)      23,560,192 bytes free
                                      C:\>cd bios
                                      C:\BIOS>afudos
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                      |                 AMI Firmware Update Utility  v3.07.00                     |
                                      |      Copyright (C)2014 American Megatrends Inc. All Rights Reserved.      |
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                      | Usage: AFUDOS.EXE <ROM File Name> [Option 1] [Option 2]...                |
                                      |           or                                                              |
                                      |        AFUDOS.EXE <Input or Output File Name> <Command>                   |
                                      |           or                                                              |
                                      |        AFUDOS.EXE <Command>                                               |
                                      | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
                                      | Commands:                                                                 |
                                      |         /O - Save current ROM image to file                               |
                                      |         /U - Display ROM File's ROMID                                     |
                                      |         /S - Refer to Options: /S                                         |
                                      |         /D - Verification test of given ROM File without flashing BIOS.   |
                                      |         /A - Refer to Options: /A                                         |
                                      |       /OAD - Refer to Options: /OAD                                       |
                                      | /CLNEVNLOG - Refer to Options: /CLNEVNLOG                                 |
                                      | Options:                                                                  |
                                      |     /MEUL: - Program ME Entire Firmware Block, which supports             |
                                      |              Production.BIN and PreProduction.BIN files.                  |
                                      |         /Q - Silent execution                                             |
                                      |         /X - Don't Check ROM ID                                           |
                                      |       /CAF - Compare ROM file's data with Systems is different or         |
                                      |              not, if not then cancel related update.                      |
                                      |         /S - Display current system's ROMID                               |
                                      |       /JBC - Don't Check AC adapter and battery                           |
                                      |  /HOLEOUT: - Save specific ROM Hole according to RomHole GUID.            |
                                      |              NewRomHole1.BIN /HOLEOUT:GUID                                |
                                      |        /SP - Preserve Setup setting.                                      |
                                      |         /R - Preserve ALL SMBIOS structure during programming             |
                                      |        /Rn - Preserve SMBIOS type N during programming(n=0-255)           |
                                      |         /B - Program Boot Block                                           |
                                      |         /P - Program Main BIOS                                            |
                                      |         /N - Program NVRAM                                                |
                                      |         /K - Program all non-critical blocks.                             |
                                      |        /Kn - Program n'th non-critical block(n=0-15).                     |
                                      |     /HOLE: - Update specific ROM Hole according to RomHole GUID.          |
                                      |              NewRomHole1.BIN /HOLE:GUID                                   |
                                      |         /L - Program all ROM Holes.                                       |
                                      |        /Ln - Program n'th ROM Hole only(n=0-15).                          |
                                      |      /ECUF - Update EC BIOS when newer version is detected.               |
                                      |         /E - Program Embedded Controller Block                            |
                                      |        /ME - Program ME Entire Firmware Block.                            |
                                      |       /FDR - Flash Flash-Descriptor Region.                               |
                                      |       /MER - Flash Entire ME Region.                                      |
                                      |      /MEUF - Program ME Ignition Firmware Block.                          |
                                      |         /A - Oem Activation file                                          |
                                      |       /OAD - Delete Oem Activation key                                    |
                                      | /CLNEVNLOG - Clear Event Log.                                             |
                                      |   /CAPSULE - Override Secure Flash policy to Capsule                      |
                                      |  /RECOVERY - Override Secure Flash policy to Recovery                     |
                                      |        /EC - Program Embedded Controller Block. (Flash Type)              |
                                      |    /REBOOT - Reboot after programming.                                    |
                                      |  /SHUTDOWN - Shutdown after programming.                                  |
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                      C:\BIOS>dir
                                       Volume in drive C is FREEDOS1.0
                                       Volume Serial Number is 4A84-36BD
                                      
                                       Directory of C:\BIOS
                                      
                                      .                    <DIR>  03-03-19  8:37p
                                      ..                   <DIR>  03-03-19  8:37p
                                      M400     ROM     8,388,608  01-14-19 10:57a
                                      AFUDOS   EXE       168,944  11-10-14  3:14p
                                      AFUEFI   EXE       159,392  04-24-14  3:59p
                                               3 file(s)      8,716,944 bytes
                                               2 dir(s)      23,560,192 bytes free
                                      C:\BIOS>afudos backup.rom /O
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                      |                 AMI Firmware Update Utility  v3.07.00                     |
                                      |      Copyright (C)2014 American Megatrends Inc. All Rights Reserved.      |
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                       Saving current BIOS into file: backup.rom
                                       Reading flash ............... done                
                                      C:\BIOS>dir
                                       Volume in drive C is FREEDOS1.0
                                       Volume Serial Number is 4A84-36BD
                                      
                                       Directory of C:\BIOS
                                      
                                      .                    <DIR>  03-03-19  8:37p
                                      ..                   <DIR>  03-03-19  8:37p
                                      M400     ROM     8,388,608  01-14-19 10:57a
                                      AFUDOS   EXE       168,944  11-10-14  3:14p
                                      AFUEFI   EXE       159,392  04-24-14  3:59p
                                      BACKUP   ROM     4,194,304  03-03-19  9:52p
                                               4 file(s)     12,911,248 bytes
                                               2 dir(s)      19,365,888 bytes free
                                      C:\BIOS>afudos m400.rom /B /P /N
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                      |                 AMI Firmware Update Utility  v3.07.00                     |
                                      |      Copyright (C)2014 American Megatrends Inc. All Rights Reserved.      |
                                      +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                       Reading flash ............... done                
                                       - ME Data Size checking . ok
                                       - FFS checksums ......... ok
                                       Erasing Boot Block .......... done                
                                       Updating Boot Block ......... done                
                                       Verifying Boot Block ........ done                
                                       Erasing Main Block .......... done                
                                       Updating Main Block ......... done                
                                       Verifying Main Block ........ done                
                                       Erasing NVRAM Block ......... done                
                                       Updating NVRAM Block ........ done                
                                       Verifying NVRAM Block ....... done                
                                      C:\BIOS>
                                      

                                      After running that the box reboots twice and beeps a few times. Alarming if you're not ready for it!

                                      I leave creating a FreeDOS bootable USB stick as an exercise for the user.

                                      The BIOS file Zanthos linked here has everything unlocked. I'm sure you could prevent it booting using some of the options there so if you do this choose wisely.

                                      Also BIOS flashing is inherently dangerous etc etc! 😉

                                      Steve

                                      Z 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                      • Z
                                        zanthos @stephenw10
                                        last edited by

                                        @stephenw10
                                        Do I understand that correctly: You tried to flash that BIOS file, the box rebooted twice and beeped a few times. But after it worked?

                                        Because when I tried the first time, I messed with the afudos parameters and bricked my box. So I had to use a SPI programmer to revive it...

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • stephenw10S
                                          stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                          last edited by

                                          Yes, sorry, that worked fine after going through it initialization routine because the cmos was cleared.

                                          Steve

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • Z
                                            zanthos @zanthos
                                            last edited by

                                            @zanthos
                                            I just upgraded the RAM in my M400 with this one:
                                            Kingston Value RAM KVR16N11K2/16 (2x8GB).
                                            It works!

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                            • First post
                                              Last post
                                            Copyright 2025 Rubicon Communications LLC (Netgate). All rights reserved.