For a FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE that is already serving a mature, fully-loaded PoE access layer and is planned to stay in service for five or more years, FC-10-S124F-284-02-60 is the most cost-efficient path to uninterrupted Elite support. At $975.20 for a 60-month term, the effective per-year cost is approximately $195.04, slightly below the 1-year and 3-year rates, and the entire support commitment settles into one registration event with a single expiry date five years out.
What it covers
FortiCare Elite (service code 284) on the FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE for 60 months includes:
- 24×7 TAC access via phone and web portal for the full five-year term
- Firmware and FortiSwitchOS security updates throughout the contract
- Next Business Day advance hardware replacement
- Escalation to Fortinet’s senior support engineers with proactive case handling
- Fortinet Support portal access for the covered asset for the entire 60-month term
The contract registers as a single asset record in the Fortinet Support portal with a fixed end date 60 months from the activation date.
Who needs it
The 5-year term is the right choice for:
- Organizations where the FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE has reached full PoE utilization across all 24 ports and no hardware refresh is planned within five years
- Network architects designing access-layer infrastructure with long replacement cycles, common in education, healthcare, and enterprise branch environments
- Procurement teams that want to lock in a known total support cost over the planning period and minimize the number of annual renewal events on their calendar
- IT operations groups that prefer a single expiry date across a switch’s working life rather than multiple shorter renewals
The 5-year term makes less sense if the deployment is still in a growth phase or if PoE device counts across the 24 ports are not yet stable.
Activation & delivery
FC-10-S124F-284-02-60 is an electronic license. After purchase from DataCenter360.ca, Fortinet delivers the registration key by email. To activate:
- Sign in to support.fortinet.com
- Select Asset Management and enter the registration key
- Bind the contract to the specific FS-124F-FPOE serial number
- Confirm the 60-month contract window in the asset record
No physical shipment occurs. Activation is immediate once the key is registered. The license is valid worldwide; the physical location of the FS-124F-FPOE hardware does not affect the support contract.
One service vs the bundle
FortiCare Elite (svc 284) is a hardware support and TAC contract for the FortiSwitch, not a security feature bundle. Over a 5-year horizon, FortiGuard and FortiGate service renewals that govern security features applied via FortiLink are managed separately at the FortiGate level and run on their own schedules. This 5-year Elite contract ensures the FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE itself has continuous support coverage for the full period, independent of whatever FortiGate service terms you carry alongside it.
Buying from DataCenter360.ca
DataCenter360.ca is an authorized Fortinet Select Partner stocking FortiSwitch support licenses for immediate electronic delivery. For a stable, long-running PoE deployment, FC-10-S124F-284-02-60 at $975.20 covers five years of Elite-tier support under a single purchase, with no renewal required until the contract expires. Order online now, or contact us if you need a formal purchase order quote or want to bundle this with other FortiSwitch or FortiGate renewals on one invoice.
Frequently asked questions
What is the effective per-year cost of the 5-year term compared to the shorter options?
FC-10-S124F-284-02-60 costs $975.20 over five years, approximately $195.04 per year. The 1-year term (FC-10-S124F-284-02-12) and 3-year term (FC-10-S124F-284-02-36) both work out to $199.38 per year. The 5-year term offers the lowest effective annual cost of the three options.
Can this license be transferred to a replacement FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE unit if needed?
License transfers are handled through Fortinet Support. If the original unit is replaced under the Next Business Day advance replacement program, Fortinet manages license continuity as part of the RMA process. A transfer to a different serial number outside of an RMA requires a Fortinet TAC case.
Does FortiCare Elite include proactive notifications about vulnerabilities affecting the FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE?
FortiCare Elite includes access to senior Fortinet support engineers and proactive case handling. Firmware and security updates are available throughout the 5-year term via the Fortinet Support portal. Fortinet’s PSIRT also publishes security advisories at psirt.fortinet.com, accessible regardless of support tier.
What happens if Fortinet announces end-of-support for the FS-124F-FPOE before the 5-year contract expires?
If Fortinet sets an end-of-support date for the FS-124F-FPOE that falls within your 5-year contract window, TAC support coverage ends at the published end-of-support date. Check the Fortinet Product Lifecycle page before committing to a 5-year term if the hardware is approaching end-of-support status.
Can this license be purchased for a FortiSwitch 124F-FPOE located outside Canada?
Yes. FortiCare Elite support licenses are electronic and available worldwide. The FS-124F-FPOE hardware ships to Canada only; the support license has no geographic restriction and can be purchased and activated by organizations in any country.
