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Hardware RMA Policy

Published April 5, 2023 | Last modified October 15, 2026

F5 Hardware RMA Policies and Procedure

Warranty Service

F5 stands behind its products. F5 warrants that the F5 Distributed Cloud Hardware, will for a period of three (3) years from the date of delivery of the F5 Distributed Cloud Hardware to Customer (the “Warranty Period”), be free from defects in material and workmanship under normal use. F5 offers three levels of Warranty Service

Standard Warranty - Standard warranty service level provides hardware diagnostic support and repair. The standard warranty service level covers parts only and does not cover labor nor Onsite support. Standard warranty is available by default with the purchase of F5 Distributed Cloud hardware.

Advanced Warranty - F5 offers an Advanced Warranty service level with the purchase of an Annual Hardware Maintenance service, which enables a customer to receive a replacement unit within five business days of F5 receiving the defective unit.

Premium Warranty - F5 also offers a Premium Warranty service level with the purchase of an Advance Replacement Service that enables a customer to receive a replacement unit within one business day of opening an Advance replacement support ticket. Customers can send the original defective unit to F5 within 30 days of receiving the advance replacement unit.

F5® Distributed Cloud hardware includes the following products.

ProductWarranty Period
Industrial Gateway 5000 Series3 years
Industrial Gateway 5500 Series3 years
Industrial Server 8000 Series3 years

Note: The Warranty Period commences on the date hardware is shipped to the original purchaser as outlined in Section 9 of the F5 TERM OF SERVICE AGREEMENT.

Warranty Returns

If you are experiencing hardware issues, for any product under warranty (as described above), please contact F5 support by opening a Support ticket on F5® Distributed Cloud Console.

Warranty return under Standard warranty service level To request a return materials authorization (RMA) under the standard warranty service level, please specify “Return Materials Authorization (RMA) required” in the support ticket filed on F5® Distributed Cloud Console. If your RMA request is approved, F5 will email you an RMA number. You will be responsible for shipping the defective unit back to us. We will troubleshoot and attempt to fix the defective unit. If the defective unit can be fixed, we will fix it and send you the repaired unit. If we cannot fix the defective unit, we will send you a replacement unit. The standard warranty covers parts only and does not cover Labor nor Onsite support.

Warranty return under Advanced warranty service level To request a return materials authorization (RMA) under the Annual Hardware maintenance service, please specify “Annual HW Maintenance RMA required” in the support ticket filed on F5® Distributed Cloud Console. If your RMA request is approved, F5 will email you an RMA number and a return shipping label free of charge. We will ship replacement units within five business days of receiving your defective units. If no trouble is found, we will contact you before taking further action.

Warranty return under Premium warranty service level If you require advance replacement, please specify “Advance Replacement Required” in the support ticket filed on F5® Distributed Cloud Console. Advance replacement orders will ship within 1 business day. Please ship your original unit back to us within 30 days of receiving the advance replacement order.

Refund Requests

If you are dissatisfied with your F5® Distributed Cloud Console hardware purchase for any reason, please contact:

  • F5 if you purchased from F5 directly.

    Or

  • The authorized F5® Distributed Cloud hardware reseller from who you purchased the F5® Distributed Cloud Console hardware.

Shipment Preparation

  • Please return units in their entirety. That is, include all power supplies, antennas, and other components along with the original product box.

  • Please use the original shipping carton and packaging material. If this is not possible, use another shipping carton with padding to protect the units from damage during shipping, and remove ALL inappropriate and/or inapplicable label(s). DO NOT ship a product without a carton.

  • The customer will be charged for a product that is damaged due to insufficient packaging.

  • If F5 approves your RMA request, you will receive a confirmation email containing an RMA number within two business days. The address to which the product should be sent will also be included in that email.

  • Once you have received your RMA number from F5 via email, write this RMA number in large letters on the exterior of the shipping carton. Shipments to F5 without an RMA approval will not be processed.

  • F5 will provide a pre-paid return shipping label for warranty replacement return shipments.

Hardware Replacement Procedure

Once you receive your replacement hardware, visit Replace Node guide for the steps to replace your node.

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