XG 125w rev.3 Home License Registation Problem

Since you are talking about a home license (but on a hardware device) and have changed the harddrive.

Which serial number are you using when trying to register? You should NOT use the hardware serial of the XG125 but instead use the serial that you got when registering for the home use license.

Yes that is exactly what I am trying to do but for whatever reason it is not accepting the home license. A friend has a SG 450 that is running on a home license which I was present when they set it up from a fresh firmware flash with no issues at all. Hence I know what the process is for getting it up and running using the home license that is provided for free by sophos. But it is not working for whatever the reason is. I even took the XG 125W over to their house the other night to see if using a different Internet connection would help but it hasn't made the slightest difference in trying to get it to register the home license. Both of us have tried to get this up and running for god knows how long now but with no luck unfortunately which has left me with basically an expensive door stop as I can't get this up and running and I can't call Sophos support as it is a home license and not a business. I would love to get this working so I can then start using it and secure my network better plus start learning more.

Hello Rod,

I think we have to clarify a bit here: Home licenses does only work with the software image "SFVH", not with a hardware image of SFOS.

The hardware image is coupled to the system hardware serial number, so this would not accept any other license than the correct one for the hardware model you got. Home licenses instead are given out without knowing your "fw model", because this is the way it is meant.

The SSD/HDD drive has a file, where the syste, stores its model, type and serial number, if this is a Sophos piece of hardware. So this may have worked on the old "SG" type of firewall, because this file wasn't in place. On a "new" XGS system, you either have to wipe the drive completely or use a new drive. That's the whole secret.

Hi Philipp 

Thank you for that information. I have tried using both the HW & SW FW files but neither worked I have also tried it using the original drive and 2 different drives. 

I managed to get the FW to flash but it will not accept any of the home registration/ serial numbers which is where this problem is at and hence unfortunately having a non use able firewall.

Yes I have also tried that too. Nothing I seem to do allows me to get past the registration part of the setup.

I still think you are using the wrong image. Could you post the filename of that image, please?

When installing the software version, you will get a firewall model "SFVH", this one will accept a home license for sure. I did this myself and it works.

sorry for the late reply the image file I have tried to use is SW-19.5.3_MR-3-652.iso

Ohh! That one has been drawn back because of installation problems ...

Try to use this one: SW-20.0.0_GA-222.iso

Get it from here: https://download.sophos.com/network/SophosFirewall/installers/index.html

Thanks very much for that. I will try and get to giving it a go soon as I am flat out with work at the moment.

Hi, sorry, I'm very curious to find out if you had the time to test this yet please?

Hello Philipp,

I am facing exactly the same problem. And I also tried to install Sophos from the XG 125w with the SW-20.0.0_GA-222.iso image. Previously I formatted the entire hard disk using GParted and removed all partitions and created a new MSDOS partition. The serial number must be somewhere in the BIOS or elsewhere. The error message reads:

Detected Sophos Physical Device.
Please get proper installation source.
press y to reboot

Hello Philipp,

I am facing exactly the same problem. And I also tried to install Sophos from the XG 125w with the SW-20.0.0_GA-222.iso image. Previously I formatted the entire hard disk using GParted and removed all partitions and created a new MSDOS partition. The serial number must be somewhere in the BIOS or elsewhere. The error message reads:

Detected Sophos Physical Device.
Please get proper installation source.
press y to reboot

The serial number is in a partition on the disk. When you reformatted the disk did you write the entire disk or just the portions? A quick test is to replace the disk.

You need to hard format the disk including all partitions. The formatting is not a quick process.

Ian

I had previously completely formatted the SSD with GParted and created a new partition table (MSDOS). The error message from the installer is the same. It detects the hardware and forces me to abort the installation with the software installer. Also, it is not possible to change the serial number with the hardware installer. So I gave up. The software is a complete mess!

Either Sophos allows home users to use their firewall solution or they don't. Unfortunately, there's no way to activate the hardware for the home licence in Sophos Central. There's no licence key in the email either.

This leads me to conclude that Sophos doesn't care about home users who want to continue using their old hardware.

I have now installed OPNsense on the machine. I'm giving up.

Did you follow the instructions in the KBA?

Did you try replacing the disk?

Ian

rfcat_vk said:

Did you try replacing the disk?

No, and I won't. It's a matter of software-side licence support. Not a question of replacing a fully functional SSD just because "it might work".

I'm becoming more and more of a fan of OPNsense and all the plugins every day. The GUI is amazingly fast on this "old hardware" compared to Sophos OS. For me, as a home user, the best choice so far.

Unfortunately, I'm still looking for the FreeBSD driver for the QCA986x/988x 802.11ac Wireless Network Adapter (Qualcomm Atheros). But the lack of wifi won't change my mind.

Sophos should allow Home users to activate their devices with any installer, otherwise I won't go down the "road of pain".

Thanks so far.

When you formatted the disk, did you remove it from the XG? Formatting the disk in the XG does not overwrite the licence partition.

Sophos home licence is a freebie which you take with the limitations.

Ian

I agree with rfcat_vk that this is a freebie, which you don't even get from other vendors and you should take it as it is. There are some limitations, though, which are completely ok for me.
My homelab uses a repurposed SG115, which got some more RAM and now is running SFOS 20 MR1 quite well.

I did not have any of the problems you describe, but I followed some learnings from others.

We are simply trying to get you on the road here.

Just because it's free doesn't automatically make it good. This applies even to an otherwise overpriced firewall solution whose core functionalities are available for free in pfSense/OPNsense, some with free plugins. This isn't about comparing Sophos with other systems, but rather about the fact that the Sophos Home Edition cannot be installed or activated in a straightforward, intuitive manner without significant issues and investments (e.g., in new hardware).

If Sophos's intention is to prevent small and medium-sized businesses from using their hardware in conjunction with the free software license, I can understand that! But DRM can be implemented differently and better!

I don't want to buy new hardware components or even open the device, scrape glue off the board and components, and swap out parts. All that is needed is a way to enter a license key into the designated field to activate the correct Sophos Home version.

It's obvious this isn't intended. Not even through Sophos Central, where it's possible to activate trial versions.

I have searched extensively in this forum for solutions and found none. Only misleading, unhelpful guidance that doesn't solve the problem but drives Home users crazy.

Thank you so far. I wish you all the best of luck.
But I don't need marketing people who just gloss over the problem.
I need technically skilled people who actually intend to help.

Especially from Sophos itself. Just Sophos can solve this issue in their code base.