Kerio Control Web Filter Is Not Activated Categorization Is Disabled Work Link -

Troubleshooting Guide: “Kerio Control Web Filter Is Not Activated – Categorization Is Disabled”

Article ID: KC-WF-001
Product: Kerio Control (formerly WinRoute)
Affected Versions: 9.x, 8.x, and legacy 7.x
Symptoms: Web filtering fails, content rules are ignored, and the administration interface shows a warning that categorization is disabled.

  1. Go to Configuration > Traffic Rules.
  2. Look for rules near the top of the list that might be denying traffic from the Firewall itself (Source: Firewall) to the Internet.
  3. Ensure there is a rule allowing the firewall to communicate with the Kerio Update servers.

Check your license status in the GFI Administration Interface. Troubleshooting Guide: “Kerio Control Web Filter Is Not

  • Go to Configuration > Advanced > Time Settings.
  • Enable "Synchronize with NTP server".
  • Use pool.ntp.org.
  • Click Synchronize Now.
  • Critical: After changing time, you must restart the Kerio Control firewall service for the web filter to re-attempt the SSL handshake.
  • Does it have a green checkmark?
  • Is the status "Active"?
  • Does the license capacity cover the number of users on your network?

Check Subscription Status: In the GFI Accounts Portal , verify your license is not expired. Go to Configuration > Traffic Rules

Option C: Contact GFI/Kerio Support

Before contacting support, gather:

Step-by-Step Resolution

Follow these steps to resolve the "Categorization is Disabled" status. Check your license status in the GFI Administration

Step 2: Verify the Web Filter Service

Kerio Control runs multiple services. One may be dead.