EVE-NG does provide proprietary firmware (e.g., Cisco IOS, Arista vEOS, Juniper vJunos-switch). You must legally own these images, typically via a valid support contract with the vendor, or use free/open-source alternatives (like Linux or VyOS).
For images that are not available in a pre-packaged format, you can create custom images directly from ISO files. For example, to create a custom Linux image, start by creating a new image directory: mkdir /opt/unetlab/addons/qemu/linux-ubuntu-desktop-16.04.02/ . Copy the distribution ISO file into this newly created directory, and rename it to cdrom.iso . This naming convention is important because EVE-NG expects this specific filename for the installation media.
cd /opt/unetlab/addons/qemu/csr1000vng-16.12.05/ mv target-file-name.qcow2 virtioa.qcow2 Use code with caution. Download-- Eve-ng Images
There is an unofficial but widely trusted repository maintained by EVE-NG users on the official forums. You must search for EVE-NG Community Cookbook or the EVE-NG Images Repository link inside the EVE-NG Community Slack channel.
# Create a temporary directory mkdir abc EVE-NG does provide proprietary firmware (e
Downloading network images can be tricky due to intellectual property rights. Always prioritize official and legal channels to avoid security risks like malware-infected files. Official Vendor Portals (Recommended)
Double-check your spelling against the official naming cookbook and rerun the fixpermissions script via SSH. The Node Starts But Quickly Shuts Down / Disappears For example, to create a custom Linux image,
: Folders must follow specific naming conventions (e.g., fortinet-FGT-v6-build1010 ) to be recognized by the GUI.
Check the official EVE-NG Forum "Image Request" section or join the EVE-NG Discord where users share verified MD5 checksums for community images.
Building a virtual lab with EVE‑NG is a game‑changer for network professionals. But the first big hurdle is getting your hands on the right device images. This guide cuts through the confusion, showing you exactly where to find images, how to prepare them, and the detailed steps to import them into your EVE‑NG environment.
EVE-NG is picky about naming. For a named virtioa.qcow2 :