The Partner Shared Secret field is only available in LoadMasters running firmware versions LTSF 7.2.54.10 (or above) or GA 7.2.59.4 (or above). If you are upgrading from a version below LTSF 7.2.54.10 or GA 7.2.59.4 to a version above and High Availability (HA), clustering, and/or GEO partners is/are configured, you must set the Partner Shared Secret on each LoadMaster after performing the software upgrade.

If you update the LoadMaster software from a version prior to 7.2.54.10 (LTSF) or 7.2.59.4 (GA) and High Availability (HA), clustering, and/or GEO partners are configured, you will see a warning on the LoadMaster homepage that says: Please set the Partner Shared Secret used to verify communications between High Availability, Clusters, and GEO partners. Click on Certificates & Security > Remote Access in the main menu. This secret must be set to the same string on all partners.
Note: The Partner Shared Secret is in Certificates & Security > Remote Access in the regular/shared Web User Interface (WUI). However, it is in Local Administration > Remote Access in the local WUI of a configured HA or cluster unit.
The Partner Shared Secret is required to secure communications between partner devices and must be enabled on all High Availability (HA) partners, all LoadMasters in a cluster, and all GEO partners. The Partner Shared Secret must be the same on:
  • Both units in a HA setup
  • All units in a LoadMaster cluster
  • All GEO partners
  • All remote GEO machines that retrieve Virtual Services from this device

When an incoming shared secret does not match the local Partner Shared Secret (including if only one side is providing a shared secret), a warn-level log message is recorded that says Unauthorized Remote Machine connection from <ClientIPAddress> and the connection fails.

This secret must have a minimum of 8 and a maximum of 127 characters. The following characters are supported:
  • Numeric: 0-9
  • Uppercase alphabetic: A-Z
  • Lowercase alphabetic: a-z
  • Special characters: !"#$%&()*+,-./:;<=>?[\~]^_@`{|}