Resolving Connectivity Issues in Bold Reports Due to Hosts File Misconfiguration

Issue Summary

Connectivity issues were encountered while accessing Bold Reports hosted on a Windows Server. The application was failing to connect externally, and users were unable to view sites and user data.

Root Cause

The issue was traced to a misconfiguration in the hosts file on the server. Specifically:

• The secure internet URL was incorrectly mapped to the external IP address.
• The HTTP client attempted to connect using the external IP and a non-standard port (52118).
• The firewall blocked this connection, as it was not configured to allow traffic on that port.

Resolution

To resolve the issue:

1. Edit the hosts file on the server.

2. Change the mapping of the secure URL to point to the local IP address instead of the external IP.

3. Ensure that the firewall allows traffic on port 443, which is the standard HTTPS port.

4. Verify connectivity using the following command (Shell Script):

     telnet <your-report-server-url> 443
   

After making these changes, the Bold Reports server was able to connect externally, and the dashboard, sites, and user data became accessible.

Additional Notes

• The server was hosted on a Verge.io cluster.
• No firewall rules were set on the cluster itself.
• A Fortigate firewall was used with static NAT on port 443 and no inspection.