Working in the Forcepoint Security Manager

The Forcepoint Security Manager is the central configuration interface used to manage Forcepoint Web, Email, and Data solutions. Use its Web module to customize policies, generate reports, monitor the system, and manage configuration and settings.

At installation, the Security Manager is set up to give full access to all modules to a single administrator account: admin. The password for this account is set during installation.

Until a subscription key has been entered, when a Super Administrator logs on and selects the Web module, an Initial Setup Checklist is displayed. Use the checklist to enter your subscription key and perform basic initial configuration tasks.

Once a key has been entered and validated, administrators connecting to the Web module are taken to the Status > Dashboard page.

  • A quick tutorial is available for new Forcepoint Web Security administrators. Click the Help icon, then Getting Started, and select New Admin Tutorial.
  • On first logon, when an administrator navigates away from the dashboard, the Save and Deploy button activates. This allows initial default dashboard settings to be saved for that administrator account.
  • If you are using an account with permissions to access multiple modules within the Security Manager, use the Security Manager toolbar to switch between them. See Navigating the Forcepoint Security Manager.
  • If you are using delegated administration, and have created administrative roles, you may be prompted to select a role to manage. See Delegated Administration and Reporting.

When you log on to the Security Manager, the Web module connects to the default (base) Policy Server specified during installation. To manage another Policy Server, select its IP address from the Policy Server drop-down list in the Web Security toolbar.

A Security Manager session ends 22 minutes after the last action taken in the user interface (clicking from page to page, entering information, caching changes, or saving changes). A warning message is displayed 2 minutes before the session ends.

  • If there are uncached changes on the page or cached changes pending, the changes are lost when the session ends. Remember to click OK to cache changes, and Save and Deploy to record and implement those changes.
  • If the Security Manager is open in multiple tabs of the same browser window, all instances share the same session. If the session times out in one tab, it times out in all tabs.
  • If the Security Manager is open in multiple browser windows on the same computer, the instances share the same session unless you:
    • Launch multiple Internet Explorer windows independently of one another.
    • Use the File > New Session command to open a new Internet Explorer window.
    • Use Internet Explorer to open one connection to the Security Manager, and then use Firefox or Chrome to open another connection.

If you close the browser without logging off of the Security Manager, or if the remote machine from which you are accessing the Security Manager shuts down unexpectedly, you may be temporarily locked out. The management components typically detect this issue within about 2 minutes and end the interrupted session, allowing you to log on again.