NSE7 Troubleshooting and Diagnostics Practice Question
A network admin runs 'diagnose sys top' on a FortiGate and sees that the process 'httpsd' is consistently using 95% CPU. Which of the following actions is MOST appropriate to troubleshoot this issue?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse the httpsd process with the firewall engine (fgwbd) and attempt to restart the firewall engine, or assume high CPU is always due to security profiles, when in fact httpsd is a management-plane process that requires a different troubleshooting approach.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Check the number of active admin sessions and consider stopping the web GUI service temporarily
The httpsd process handles the FortiGate web GUI (HTTPS) and API requests. High CPU usage by httpsd typically indicates excessive admin sessions or web GUI activity. Option D is correct because checking active admin sessions and temporarily stopping the web GUI service (e.g., via 'config system global set admin-https-redirect disable' or stopping the service) directly addresses the likely cause without disrupting firewall processing or requiring policy changes.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Restart the FortiGate firewall engine with 'diagnose test application fgwbd 255'
Why it's wrong here
This command restarts the firewall worker daemon, which is unrelated to httpsd.
- ✗
Disable the antivirus profile on all policies to reduce processing load
Why it's wrong here
Antivirus is handled by other processes, not httpsd.
- ✗
Increase the log rate to capture more details about the httpsd process
Why it's wrong here
Increasing log rate would further strain CPU, not help identify the root cause.
- ✓
Check the number of active admin sessions and consider stopping the web GUI service temporarily
Why this is correct
httpsd handles web management; high CPU may be due to many admin sessions or a stuck process.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 940 original NSE7 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This NSE7 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Fortinet certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the NSE7 exam.