Overview
While facing issues with Kerio Control hardware, such as NG100, NG300, NG500, the boxes might show various symptoms of hardware failure or damage. This includes problems with Power Supply unit, physical ethernet LAN/Internet ports, CPU/RAM, disk storage, Wi-Fi antennas (only for NG100W and NG300W).
Physical firewall issues may cause Internet Outages for connected users.
This article provides details on how to properly diagnose such cases onsite.
Information
Based on the hardware component affected, common problems can be divided into such groups:
| Component | Common examples |
| General appearance | Front lights not flashing (NG300/NG500 series), the power button is always red, power supply unit (PSU) issues. |
| RAM | RAM spikes up to 100%, memory leaks |
| CPU | Throttling (the box is hot), exhaustion and peak values (either 0% or 100%), specific burn smell (an indication of a burned processor) |
| Network ports | Ethernet port lights have no color with connected cable, ports are not passing the traffic (Cable disconnected in Webadmin) |
| Disk | The box is not booting the software (all the lights are showing OK), I/O superblocks are corrupted, storage is full |
| Wi-Fi signal | Poor Wi-Fi coverage (small range covered), constant signal drops, non-optimal (slow) Wi-Fi speed |
Best-practises and suggestions
As a general approach for fixing all the above issues, it's recommended to Restore the Kerio Control Box NG series default configuration (including complete system recovery procedure).
The normal working condition of NG100W/NG300W boxes is below.
NG100W with green power light
NG300W with green power light and amber Ethernet (Internet port) lights
For general and CPU-related issues, it is advisable to keep the box in a well-ventilated place. Plus optionally purchase a laptop cooling stand to avoid overheating issues. As the last resort, the hardware can be replaced if the warranty is valid. For more information, please refer to Requesting RMA for hardware box.
For RAM problems, it is possible to replace or upgrade the memory (not applicable for NG100/NG100W).
Network ports and disk issues should be analyzed through diagnostic tool firstly.
Once the logs are gathered, unzip the generated file and analyze the output.
In some cases, it is possible to fix superblock issues by simply typing "Yes" when the diag-tool is executed. The box should be connected via serial console and HDMI cable to the external monitor and keyboard.
For the network port issues, the port may be physically dead. Run ethtool <iface_ID> command to view the real state of the specified interface port (with wire cable connected). To identify which port name is needed, enable the System Name column in Webadmin.
If the port is functioning normally, you will see "Link detected: yes"
Wi-Fi issues may appear due to antennas over usage, incorrect Wi-Fi settings (Country, Band, Frequency), or software incompatibilities. Login via serial console or SSH and gather dmesg output:
- Execute the commands:
mount -o rw,remount /dmesg > dmesg.txtls(to verify dmesg.txt was created)exit - Transfer the file from Kerio Control to the local PC:
scp root@<ip_address>:/tmp/dmesg.txt <local_folder>
- Send the dmesg.txt, Support Information file (located in Webadmin -> System Health), and Wi-Fi settings screenshot to the Kerio Control support for analysis.
Important: GFI/Kerio provides a 3-year warranty for the hardware (max period), when this time passes please consider buying a new hardware box. Reach out to Sales to clarify your options.