Why is SonicWall Captive Portal showing an HSTS error while accessing websites?
10/23/2024 3 People found this article helpful 2,461 Views
Description
Some websites, like Google, Facebook, etc. have started using a security feature called HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security). This feature forces the browser to connect to the website securely using HTTPS.
Because of this, when you try to log in to captive portals for user login, your browser (currently Chrome and Edge) might have trouble loading the login page. This is because the browser is now automatically trying to use a secure connection, which conflicts with how the captive portal works.
As a result, users may be unable to log in and access the Internet through these portals.
As an example, refer to the below screenshot:
Resolution
Resolution for SonicOS 7.X
This release includes significant user interface changes and many new features that are different from the SonicOS 6.5 and earlier firmware. The below resolution is for customers using SonicOS 7.X firmware.
To fix the issue caused by HSTS, you can bypass the automatic redirection to HTTPS and access the SonicWall login page directly. Here’s how:
- Open your browser, type the IP address of the captive portal or SonicWall login page in the address bar, and log in using your User credentials. In the screenshot below, I have used https://192.168.168.168 as an example.
- You will be redirected to a confirmation page, click Continue and you will be authenticated successfully.
- After the successful authentication, you will be able to access HSTS-based websites.
Resolution for SonicOS 6.5
This release includes significant user interface changes and many new features that are different from the SonicOS 6.2 and earlier firmware. The below resolution is for customers using SonicOS 6.5 firmware.
To fix the issue caused by HSTS, you can bypass the automatic redirection to HTTPS and access the SonicWall login page directly. Here’s how:
- Open your browser, type the IP address of the captive portal or SonicWall login page in the address bar, and log in using your User credentials. In the screenshot below, I have used https://192.168.168.168 as an example.
- A user status pop-up window will open and you will be authenticated successfully.
- After the successful authentication, you will be able to access HSTS-based websites as well.
ISSUE ID:
GEN7-50867
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