Skip to main content

Linewize Filter Appliance appears offline in Linewize Filter

Updated
This article is for IT Support. 

This article discusses some troubleshooting steps to follow if you have a Linewize Filter Appliance installed at your school and have networking connectivity issues. Please attempt each of the troubleshooting steps before contacting Linewize Support.

 

Step 1: Physically check the Linewize Filter Appliance

  1. Check that the Linewize Filter Appliance is powered on.
  2. Check that there are at least two network cables plugged in.
  3. Check that the status LEDs are flashing, similar to the image below.

led-lights.gif

  • If cables are missing or disconnected, plug them into the required ports. If you need help determining where they should be connected, proceed to Step 11.
  • If the cables are plugged in and the status LEDs are not flashing, there might be an issue with the cables or the Network Interface Card (NIC). Reseat or replace the cables first and if there is still an issue, proceed to Step 11.
  • If the cables are plugged in and the status LEDs are flashing, proceed to Step 2.

 

Step 2: Check if the Linewize Filter Appliance appears online

  1. Navigate to Configuration > Networking > Interfaces
  2. You should see your interfaces, if you don’t see them, your Linewize Filter Appliance is offline.
    • If the Linewize Filter Appliance is offline, proceed to Step 3.

 

Step 3: Access the Linewize Filter Appliance CLI

  1. Open the Command Prompt.
  2. Enter ssh admin@DEVICE_IP -p 5022 (replace DEVICE_IP with the management IP of your Linewize Filter Appliance) for example, ssh admin@192.168.1.1 -p 5022
  3. Enter Yes to trust the device.
  4. Enter the Device Key, which can be found by going to Linewize Filter > Device Options > Device Key.
  5. You will now have successfully accessed the CLI of Linewize Filter through SSH using Command Prompt. Proceed to Step 4.

 

Step 4: Collect debug logs

Attempt to collect debug logs for Linewize Support while the issue is occurring, this will help Linewize Support diagnose the issue.

  1. Access the Linewize Filter Appliance CLI either via SSH.
  2. Run the command system debug collect while the issue is occurring.
  3. Run the command system debug forcecrash so the appliance reboots and uploads the logs.
  4. Logs will be automatically uploaded to Linewize Filter. Proceed to Step 5.

 

Step 5: Restart the Linewize Filter Appliance

There are two options to restart the Linewize Filter Appliance.

Option 1: Restart via the Linewize Filter Appliance CLI

  1. Connect a monitor and keyboard to the Linewize Filter Appliance or access the appliance via SSH.
  2. Enter the SphireOS command system reboot to reboot the Linewize Filter Appliance.
  3. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 6.

Option 2: Restart manually

  1. Press and hold the power button for a few seconds.
  2. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 6.

 

Step 6: Check the Firewall Allowlist

  1. Confirm that these domains have been added to your school’s firewall, allowing connectivity to all Linewize services.
  2. Ensure there is no upstream SSL inspection through your firewall or another network appliance or server, as it might interfere with the appliance filtering. Follow the instructions from your firewall provider.
  3. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 7.

 

Step 7: Ping from the Linewize Filter Appliance

From your Linewize Filter Appliance, access the bash by using the command system debug exec bash

  1. Check if you can ping the firewall.
  2. Check if you can ping the core switch.
  3. Check the interfaces are up and have the correct IP by using the command:
    1. ip a
  4. Check if there is a default route by using the command:
    1. ip r get 8.8.8.8
    2. If not, add a default route
  5. Check if an upstream firewall is blocking the connection in any way by running the following commands and checking the response:
    1. ping 8.8.8.8
    2. curl https://www.google.com
    3. curl https://google.com -vv
  6. Make a note of your results.
  7. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 8.

 

Step 8: Ping from another device on the network

  1. Use Command Prompt (Windows) or Terminal (macOS) to ping Google and other websites. To see if you have an internet connection.
  2. Next, ping the following devices:
    • Firewall
    • Linewize Filter Appliance
    • Core Switch
    • Access Switch
    • Access Point
  3. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 9.

 

Step 9: Change the Linewize Filter Appliance Management IP

Try changing the Linewize Filter Appliance Management bridge IP via the config wizard

  1. From the SphireOS CLI, enter the command config wizard
  2. Select Network Configuration.
  3. Select the Management Bridge. It is typically br0 or br1, depending on your configuration)
  4. Select Manual, or if you are using DHCP skip to Bounce the bridge interface.
    1. Change the IP address
    2. Confirm the subnet mask
  5. Bounce the bridge interface
    1. Select bring down
    2. Select bring up
  6. Select View to see if the new IP address has taken effect and the interface is up.
  7. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 10.

 

Step 10: Check the IP Object list

Ensure the management IP and/or the bridge IP of your Linewize Filter Appliance bypasses filtering by adding the IPs to an object list and creating a Locked Allow All filtering policy at the top of the filtering policy list so no other policy interferes with it. For more information, read Content Filtering Policy Ordering.

  1. Read Creating New Object Pools and Creating Filtering Policies.
  2. Check if your Linewize Filter Appliance now appears online in Linewize Filter. If the appliance is offline, proceed to Step 11.

 

Step 11: Contact Linewize Support

If you have completed all the troubleshooting steps here and your Linewize Filter Appliance is still not appearing online in Linewize Filter, contact Linewize Support with your findings for more help.

 

Troubleshooting Checklist

Troubleshooting Steps Completed Result
1 Physically check the Linewize Filter Appliance    
2 Check if the Linewize Filter Appliance appears online    
3 Access the Linewize Filter Appliance CLI    
4 Collect debug logs    
5 Restart the Linewize Filter Appliance    
6 Check the Firewall Allowlist    
7 Ping from the Linewize Filter Appliance    
8 Ping from another device on the network    
9 Change the Linewize Filter Appliance Management IP    
10 Check the IP Object list    
11 Contact Linewize Support