NSE7 Troubleshooting and Diagnostics Practice Question
An HA cluster (active-passive) is configured. The administrator wants to perform a failover test without causing service disruption. Which command should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse 'execute ha failover' with 'execute shutdown' or 'diagnose ha reset-uptime', mistakenly thinking that any HA-related command will trigger a failover, or that a physical shutdown is the only way to test failover behavior.
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
✓
execute ha failover
The 'execute ha failover' command triggers a controlled failover in an active-passive HA cluster, forcing the standby unit to become active without physically shutting down or rebooting the primary unit. This allows the administrator to test failover behavior while minimizing service disruption, as the cluster transitions gracefully and sessions are synchronized if session-pickup is enabled.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
diagnose ha reset-uptime
Why it's wrong here
This resets the HA uptime counter, not failover.
- ✗
execute shutdown on the primary
Why it's wrong here
This would cause failover but also disrupt any ongoing connections abruptly.
- ✗
execute ha synchronize
Why it's wrong here
This command forces configuration synchronization, not failover.
- ✓
execute ha failover
Why this is correct
This command triggers a graceful failover, making the primary become secondary.
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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.