Collect Fortinet FortiManager logs

Supported in:

Google secops SIEM

Note: This feature is covered by Pre-GA Offerings Terms of the Google Security Operations Service Specific Terms. Pre-GA features might have limited support, and changes to pre-GA features might not be compatible with other pre-GA versions. For more information, see the Google SecOps Technical Support Service guidelines and the Google SecOps Service Specific Terms.

This guide explains how you can ingest Fortinet FortiManager logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane agent.

Fortinet FortiManager is a centralized network management platform that provides unified management, best practices compliance, and workflow automation for Fortinet security and networking devices. FortiManager enables administrators to centrally manage configurations, policies, firmware updates, and security services across thousands of FortiGate firewalls and other Fortinet devices in the Security Fabric.

Before you begin

Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• Google SecOps instance.
• Windows Server 2016 or later, or Linux host with systemd.
• Network connectivity between Bindplane agent and Fortinet FortiManager.
• If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements.
• Privileged access to the Fortinet FortiManager management console with permissions to modify System Settings.
• FortiManager version 5.0.7 or later.

Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agent.
3. Click Download to download the ingestion authentication file.

4. Save the file securely on the system where Bindplane agent will be installed.

   Note: This JSON file contains credentials for authenticating the Bindplane agent to Google SecOps.

Get Google SecOps customer ID

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.

3. Copy and save the Customer ID from the Organization Details section.

   Note: The customer ID is required for configuring the Bindplane agent exporter.

Install Bindplane agent

Install the Bindplane agent on your Windows or Linux operating system according to the following instructions.

Windows installation

1. Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as an administrator.

2. Run the following command:

   msiexec /i "https://github.com/observIQ/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/observiq-otel-collector.msi" /quiet
   

3. Wait for the installation to complete.

4. Verify the installation by running:

   sc query observiq-otel-collector
   

The service should show as RUNNING.

Linux installation

1. Open a terminal with root or sudo privileges.

2. Run the following command:

   sudo sh -c "$(curl -fsSlL https://github.com/observiq/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/install_unix.sh)" install_unix.sh
   

3. Wait for the installation to complete.

4. Verify the installation by running:

   sudo systemctl status observiq-otel-collector
   

The service should show as active (running).

Additional installation resources

For additional installation options and troubleshooting, see Bindplane agent installation guide.

Configure Bindplane agent to ingest syslog and send to Google SecOps

Locate the configuration file

Linux:

sudo nano /etc/bindplane-agent/config.yaml

Windows:

notepad "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\config.yaml"

Edit the configuration file

Replace the entire contents of config.yaml with the following configuration:

receivers:
    udplog:
    listen_address: "0.0.0.0:514"

exporters:
    chronicle/fortimanager:
    compression: gzip
    creds_file_path: '/etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json'
    customer_id: 'your-customer-id-here'
    endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
    log_type: FORTINET_FORTIMANAGER
    raw_log_field: body
    ingestion_labels:
        env: production
        source: fortimanager

service:
    pipelines:
    logs/fortimanager_to_chronicle:
        receivers:
        - udplog
        exporters:
        - chronicle/fortimanager

Configuration parameters

Replace the following placeholders:

Receiver configuration:

• listen_address: IP address and port to listen on. Use 0.0.0.0:514 to listen on all interfaces on port 51. If port 514 requires root privileges on Linux, use 0.0.0.0:1514 and configure FortiManager to send to port 1514.

Exporter configuration:

• creds_file_path: Full path to ingestion authentication file:
  • Linux: /etc/bindplane-agent/ingestion-auth.json
  • Windows: C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\ingestion-auth.json
• customer_id: Customer ID from the previous step (for example, a1b2c3d4-e5f6-g7h8-i9j0-k1l2m3n4o5p6)
• endpoint: Regional endpoint URL:
  • US: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
  • Europe: europe-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
  • Asia: asia-southeast1-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
  • See Regional Endpoints for complete list
• log_type: Must be exactly FORTINET_FORTIMANAGER
• ingestion_labels: Optional labels for filtering and organization

Save the configuration file

After editing, save the file:

• Linux: Press Ctrl+O, then Enter, then Ctrl+X
• Windows: Click File > Save

Restart Bindplane agent to apply the changes

• Linux

  sudo systemctl restart observiq-otel-collector
  

  1. Verify the service is running:

     sudo systemctl status observiq-otel-collector
     

  2. Check logs for errors:

     sudo journalctl -u observiq-otel-collector -f
     

• Windows

  Choose one of the following options:

  • Using Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator:

    net stop observiq-otel-collector && net start observiq-otel-collector
    

  • Using Services console:

    1. Press Win+R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
    2. Locate observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector.

    3. Right-click and select Restart.

    4. Verify the service is running:

       sc query observiq-otel-collector
       

    5. Check logs for errors:

       type "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\log\collector.log"
       

Configure Fortinet FortiManager syslog forwarding

FortiManager syslog configuration is a two-step process: first, define the syslog server in the GUI, then enable local log forwarding via CLI.

Step 1: Add syslog server in FortiManager GUI

1. Sign in to the Fortinet FortiManager web interface.
2. Go to System Settings > Advanced > Syslog Server.
3. Click Create New in the toolbar.
4. The Create New Syslog Server Settings pane opens.
5. Configure the following settings:
   • Name: Enter a descriptive name (for example, Chronicle-Bindplane).
   • IP address (or FQDN): Enter the IP address of the Bindplane agent host (for example, 192.168.1.100).
   • Syslog Server Port: Enter 514 (or 1514 if you configured Bindplane to listen on a non-privileged port).
   • Reliable Connection: Leave disabled for UDP (default), or enable for TCP.
   • Secure Connection: Leave disabled unless you have configured TLS certificates.
6. Click OK to save the syslog server configuration.

Step 2: Enable local log forwarding via CLI

After adding the syslog server in the GUI, you must enable FortiManager to send local logs to the syslog server using the CLI.

1. Connect to the FortiManager CLI via SSH or console.

2. Run the following commands:

   For FortiManager 5.0.7 and later:

   config system locallog syslogd setting
       set syslog-name Chronicle-Bindplane
       set severity information
       set status enable
   end
   

   Configuration parameters:

   • syslog-name: Must match the Name you configured in the GUI (for example, Chronicle-Bindplane).
   • severity: Set to information to capture all local logs. The default is notification, which captures fewer events. Options are: emergency, alert, critical, error, warning, notification, information, debug.
   • status: Set to enable to start forwarding logs.

3. Verify the configuration:

   config system locallog syslogd setting
       show
   end
   

4. Verify logs are being sent by checking the Bindplane agent logs or using packet capture on the Bindplane agent host:

Linux:

sudo tcpdump -i any port 514 -A

Windows:

Use Wireshark or Microsoft Message Analyzer to capture traffic on port 514.

Notes on FortiManager syslog behavior

• FortiManager sends its own local event logs (system, configuration changes, administrative actions) to the configured syslog server, not logs from managed FortiGate devices.
• By default, Reliable Connection is disabled, which means logs are sent via UDP on port 51. If you enable Reliable Connection, logs are sent via TCP on port 514.
• FortiManager syslog messages use a Fortinet-specific format that is not strictly RFC 3164 or RFC 5424 compliant. The Google SecOps FORTINET_FORTIMANAGER parser is designed to handle this format.
• Ensure the FortiManager system time is synchronized with NTP and configured to UTC for accurate log timestamps. To configure system time, go to Dashboard, then in the System Information widget, click the edit system time button next to the System Time field.

UDM mapping table

Log field	UDM mapping	Logic
type, subtype, pri, operation, performed_on, lograte, msgrate, logratelimit, logratepeak, action, cpuusage, memusage, diskusage, disk2usage, userfrom	about.resource.attribute.labels	Labels associated with the resource.
clearpass-spt, allow-routing, color, comment, fabric-object, name, node-ip-only, obj-type, sdn-addr-type, sub-type, adom, pkgname, _signal-lte-rsrq, _signal-lte-rssi, performed_on_dev, changetype	event.idm.read_only_udm.additional.fields	Additional fields not covered by the standard UDM schema.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.about	Information about the event.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.extensions	Extensions to the event.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.metadata	Metadata about the event.
cache_ttl_label	event.idm.read_only_udm.network	Network-related information.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.principal	Information about the principal entity.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.security_result	Results of security analysis.
	event.idm.read_only_udm.target	Information about the target entity.
	extensions.auth.type	The type of authentication.
changes	metadata.description	A description of the event.
event_type	metadata.event_type	The type of event.
log_id	metadata.product_log_id	The product-specific identifier for the log entry.
cache_ttl_label	network.dns.answers	DNS answers.
session_id	network.session_id	The session ID of the network connection.
adminprof	principal.administrative_domain	The administrative domain of the principal.
devname	principal.asset.hostname	The hostname of the asset associated with the principal.
src_ip	principal.asset.ip	The IP address of the asset associated with the principal.
devname	principal.hostname	The hostname of the principal.
src_ip	principal.ip	The IP address of the principal.
device_id	principal.resource.product_object_id	The product-specific identifier for the resource.
	principal.resource.resource_type	The type of resource.
uuid	principal.user.userid	The user ID of the principal user.
action_details	security_result.action	The action taken as a result of the security event.
wildcard, subnet, end-ip, start-ip	security_result.detection_fields	Fields used for detection in security results.
msg	security_result.summary	A summary of the security result.
target_ip, tar_ip, remote_ip	target.asset.ip	The IP address of the asset associated with the target.
target_ip, tar_ip, remote_ip	target.ip	The IP address of the target.
tar_port, remote_port	target.port	The port number of the target.
user	target.user.userid	The user ID of the target user.
	metadata.vendor_name	The vendor name.
	metadata.product_name	The product name.

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