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FortiLink over P2P Wireless Bridges

This article explains how to configure FortiLink over a point-to-point wireless bridge solution.

OuchItBurnsWhenIP · Published · Updated

FortiLink point-to-point mode carries an inter-switch link across a layer-2 bridge. Fortinet documents it from FortiSwitchOS 6.4.0; it changes the LLDP destination to a broadcast address so intermediate devices can forward discovery traffic. Enable it at both ends and keep the TPID identical (default 0x8100). See Fortinet's point-to-point FortiLink guide.

The lab setup:

  • 1x FG-120G (v7.6.3)
  • 1x FSW-108E-FPOE (v7.4.6) – LOCAL SWITCH (assumed already in place)
  • 1x FSW-224E-POE (v7.6.2) – REMOTE SWITCH (assumed factory-reset)
  • 2x Ubiquiti Building Bridge (v3.1.5)

Check the FortiLink release notes and compatibility matrix for the versions being deployed. The bridge must preserve the required VLAN-tagged traffic and broadcast discovery frames; verify management reachability and traffic forwarding before relying on the link.

Test topology:

The network topology used for testing

Instructions

fortilink-p2p-native-vlan sets the native VLAN on the P2P ISL. <MGMT-VLAN-ID> below is the native VLAN used for bridge management in this lab. Configure its addressing, DHCP or static addresses, and controller reachability separately. The default P2P native VLAN is 4094; the remote switch's internal FortiLink management interface also uses 4094 in this example. See the FortiSwitch CLI reference.

  1. Log in to the LOCAL SWITCH via SSH.
  2. Run the following commands on the LOCAL SWITCH:
Terminal window
   config switch physical-port
       edit "<DOWNLINK-PORT>"
           set fortilink-p2p enable
           set lldp-profile "default-auto-isl"
       next
   end

Replace <DOWNLINK-PORT> with the port facing the LOCAL BRIDGE.

Terminal window
config switch global
    set fortilink-p2p-native-vlan <MGMT-VLAN-ID>
end

Replace <MGMT-VLAN-ID> with the VLAN to be used for wireless bridge management.

  1. Log in to the REMOTE SWITCH via console cable (115200 baud in this lab).
  2. Run the following commands on the REMOTE SWITCH:
Terminal window
config switch physical-port
    edit "<UPLINK-PORT>"
        set fortilink-p2p enable
        set lldp-profile "default-auto-isl"
    next
end

Replace <UPLINK-PORT> with the port facing the REMOTE BRIDGE.

Terminal window
config switch interface
    edit "internal"
        set native-vlan 4094
    next
end
Terminal window
config switch global
    set fortilink-p2p-native-vlan <MGMT-VLAN-ID>
end

Replace <MGMT-VLAN-ID> with the VLAN to be used for wireless bridge management.

  1. Connect the LOCAL BRIDGE to the nominated port on the LOCAL SWITCH.
  2. Connect the REMOTE BRIDGE to the nominated port on the REMOTE SWITCH.
  3. The two bridges should establish a link, and the remote FortiSwitch should appear on the FortiGate for authorisation.

Optional: UniFi Network Controller Adoption

For a self-hosted UniFi Network application, first try normal device adoption. If manual layer-3 adoption is needed, SSH using the device credentials. Ubiquiti documents ui / ui for newer unadopted devices and ubnt / ubnt for older ones; adopted devices use the SSH credentials configured in UniFi Network. See Ubiquiti's SSH guidance.

Where supported by the bridge firmware, set the inform address:

Terminal window
set-inform http://<CONTROLLER-IP>:8080/inform

Replace <CONTROLLER-IP> with the UniFi Network host. Allow TCP 8080 from the device to that host and complete adoption in UniFi Network. Ubiquiti notes that set-inform may need to be repeated after discovery. See the official layer-3 adoption procedure.