Snapshots are a massive time saver when you are testing settings and configuration for your test labs. Read on to see how you can take advantage of them while following along with our articles.
The basic idea of a snapshot is that you setup your virtual machine exactly how you want it, take a snapshot, and then you can make any changes you want. You could even install something awful, because it doesn’t matter – all you have to do is roll back the snapshot, and your virtual machine will be exactly how it was before.
It’s the perfect way to do a bunch of testing and figure things out, without breaking your setup. Plus, it’s a virtual machine, so you could always reload it anyway.
Taking a Snapshot
Taking a snapshot in VirtualBox is actually very easy, and when done can save massive amounts of time. To get started open up your Virtual Machine and click on the Machine menu item, then select Take Snapshot…
Since we will be snapshotting a clean install you will need to give your snapshot an intuitive name and description to remember this.
The virtual machine will then dim out periodically while a point in time snapshot is taken.
Reverting To a Snapshot
The purpose of reverting to a snapshot is so that you can go back in time to a particular state, in our case a clean state just after we installed the OS. Since we can only do this when the virtual machine is not on, go ahead and shut it down.
Then select your virtual machine from the list and switch over to the snapshots view. Here you will see a list of the various snapshots you may have taken. To restore to a snapshot simply right click on it and choose Restore Snapshot From the Context Menu.
For most situations you are going to want to uncheck the option to create a snapshot of the virtual machine current state. The reason being is that you will normally want to restore when you have broken something, there’s no point in taking a snapshot of a broken configuration.
You will then see that the “Current State” will become the same as the snapshot you selected to restore to.
Now when you power on the virtual machine you will see the virtual machine quickly reverting itself.
Always remember that without snapshots, recording the Geek School would be nearly impossible, so remember to use them and save yourself countless hours. That’s all there is to it.
MicroNugget: How to Tune GNS3 to Avoid a 100% CPU Utilization?
MicroNugget: Connecting Virtual Box Hosts to GNS3 Networks
MicroNugget: Virtual PC Simulators & GNS3
MicroNugget: Using Wireshark with GNS3
MicroNugget: Connecting GNS3 to the Internet
MicroNugget: The ASA in GNS3
How To Install GNS3 1.0 on Windows 8.1
GNS3 1.0 was released to the world on October 21st, 2014. I have been using previous versions of GNS3 for some time now to simulate networks and to practice for my Cisco certifications. For those of you who aren’t familiar with GNS3, it is an application that allows you to build networks for free. The caveat there is you need to supply the images for your equipment. GNS3 supports Cisco, Juniper, HP, Arista, Citrix, and Brocade (as specified on their site, gns3.com. You build out a virtual lab which means there is no need to purchase physical hardware.
Before getting started, you’ll need to sign up on GNS3‘s website. Once you have an account. You can download GNS3. Click on the Windows download button to begin.
Once you open the installation file, click through the standard setup screen and agreement until you get to the Choose Components section.
Select all the components you will need – almost everything. SolarWinds is a new application packaged with GNS3. If you already have some of the components installed, such as Wireshark, you can uncheck it.
After completing installation, Start GNS3.
Upon opening GNS3, you will be prompted to save your new project locally or in the cloud. For the purposes of setting up GNS3 I will skip this.
Click on Edit and then Preferences.
Expand Dynamips and select IOS routers.
This is where you must supply your IOS image. I cannot supply these images for you. Click on New to add your image.
Enter the name of the Image and its platform.
Set the amount of RAM to be allocated to IOS.
Select the default adapters you want installed for each new instance of this device.
After you finish, the router will be displayed with its settings.
Click on the General tab to view your settings. Make any changes as you see fit.
The Console applications tab is where you can configure what application is to be used to console into your devices within GNS3.
The Packet capture tab displays your settings for capturing traffic on links between your devices within GNS3. Notice the capture analyzer command using SolarWindows Response Time Viewer.
Click OK to close the Preferences window.
The big window in the middle of GNS3 is your topology view. This is wear you drag and drop devices from the left menu item.
To add a device, click on one of the symbols on the left and drag and drop the IOS image you’ve uploaded to GNS3.
The Topology Summary window will display a list of all your devices. A red orb signifies a device that is off. A green orb means the device is on.
Right click on your device and click on Start to turn on your device. Right click again and select Console to bring up Putty to manage your device.
Happy labbing!
GNS3 1.2.1 installation on Ubuntu 14.04
As mentioned in an earlier post GNS3 is moving ahead fast. Currently at version 1.2.1 the GNS3 is looking great. Compared with the version 1.0 Beta 1 which I had installed, the 1.2.1 is not only more stable, but it has the Menu more clean and compact. For example now there is only one Preferences menu where you can adjust all your settings.
During the installation of 1.0 Beta 1 I made some notes in Evernote and it prove to be very useful as the installation was pretty messy. With 1.2.1 I did the same thing, but the installation was very smooth. Still, I said that if I made those notes maybe I should share them for those interested in a quick installation. A more complete guide can be found on GNS3 Community.
1. Download GNS3 1.2.1
Head over to http://www.gns3.com/, create and account and download the bundle archive for Linux.
If you for some reason you don’t want to create an account, you may download each package individually from https://github.com/GNS3
The following lines will assume that you have the bundle archive.
You should see 5 packages in GNS3-1.2.1 folder:
dynamips-0.2.14.zip
gns3-server-1.2.1.zip
gns3-gui-1.2.1.zip
iouyap-0.95.zip
vpcs-0.6.zip
4. Install Dynamips
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$ unzip dynamips-0.2.14.zip
$ cd dynamips-0.2.14
$ mkdir build
$ cd build
$ cmake ..
$ make
$ sudo make install
To check if the correct version is install:
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$ dynamips | grep version
You should see in the output 0.2.14
5. Install GNS3 Server
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$ unzip gns3-server-1.2.1.zip
$ cd gns3-server-1.2.1
$ sudo python3 setup.py install
To check if the GNS3 Server is installed correctly:
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$ gns3server
If you see some output other than an error, than you’re fine.
6. Install GNS3 GUI
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$ unzip gns3-gui-1.2.1.zip
$ cd gns3-gui-1.2.1
$ sudo python3 setup.py install
To test if the installation is working:
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$ gns3
You should see a graphical interface of GNS3 launched.
At this moment you have a working GNS3 environment if you want only want to test Cisco hardware emulators. I strongly recommend to continue and install also the rest of the components. Who knows when you’ll need them
7. Install IOUyap (Optional, if you will use IOU images)
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$ unzip iouyap-0.95.zip
$ cd iouyap-0.95.zip
$ make
$ sudo make install
To test the installation:
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$ iouyap -h
8. Install VPCS (Optional, if you want to use VirtualPC)
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$ unzip vpcs-0.6.zip
$ cd vpcs-0.6/src
$ mk.sh 64
$ cp vpcs /usr/bin/
For the third line, the 64 represent 64bit, as my Ubuntu 14.04 is build on 64bit.
The values can be:
– 32 or i386 for 32bit OS
– 64 or amd64 for 64bit OS
Please be sure to use the correct one for your OS.
To test the VPCS:
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$ vpcs
You should see a Virtual PC being launched. Leave the console with letter q.
9. Install VirtualBox (Optional, if you want to launch VMs)
10. Install Qemu (Optional, if you want to use qemu images)
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$ sudo apt-get install qemu
11. Install IOU (Optional, if you want to use IOU images)
I’m not a legal matter expert, and the usage of IOU is sort of grey area. Because of this, I’m not going to cover this chapter.
You’re ready to go. Start the GNS3 GUI:
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$ gns3
Some things to check before going live:
check in the menu Edit > Preferences to set your desired Paths (in General sections) and to check the paths for the binaries (dynamips, vpcs, iou, virtualbox…)
add the IOS, virtualbox vm, iou images
in case of Cisco hardware emulators don’t forget to find the IdlePC value (when you add the IOS image or later with the start of your first router with a certain image) otherwise your CPUs will cry.
If something does not work as described or you need help please let me know in Comments.
[Update 1]
If you get the following error during installation of iouyap:
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GNS3-1.2.2.source/iouyap-0.95 $ make
gcc -g -DDEBUG -Wall -c -o iouyap.o iouyap.c
iouyap.c:40:23: fatal error: iniparser.h: No such file or directory
How to Connect Cisco IOU to GNS3-1.1 and Emulate Cisco Switch in GNS3-1.1
Well, what’s up? Today I’m going to discuss an interesting GNS3 Cisco simulator tutorial on how to connect Cisco IOU to GNS3-1.1. This is an alternate way of emulating Cisco switches in GNS3.
So I hope this article will answer how to get a working layer 2 switch in GNS3-1.1
By the way what is a Cisco IOU device? Cisco IOS on UNIX (IOU) is a fully working version of IOS that runs as a user mode UNIX/LINUX platform. IOU is built as an image and runs just like any other program. Layer 2 and layer 3 IOU images are available for switching and routing respectively. Cisco IOS on UNIX is aimed for internal uses only (Cisco employees). Distribution of IOU images to customers or external persons is strictly prohibited.
The new version of GNS3 (1.1) supportsIOS on UNIX, thereby providing fantastic Cisco switch simulator to the users. Usually people who are preparing for CCIE Routing and Switching will be using IOS on UNIX facility.
The process to connect Cisco IOU to GNS3-1.1 is a little bit hassle though, but I’m gonna give you simple explanation with step by step procedures.
GNS3 IOU VM.ova: Is the Virtual Unix platform to run IOU image. It is a virtual box OVA file: Download from here
IOU image: IOU image is intended to use only for Cisco employees, distribution of IOU is strictly prohibited. Please don’t ask me! Google is your friend always.
iourc.txt file: Is the license of Cisco IOU image. I have no privilege to provide it publicly, but I found adiscussion related to it. It may help you.
Now we are ready to go…
Step 1: GNS3 IOU VM.ova Setup
Double click ‘GNS3 IOU VM.ova’ , it will open up in VirtualBox (if you have installed VMware please right click on the GNS3 IOU VM.ova file and change the ‘open with’ to Oracle VM VirtualBox).
Click Import button, it will be imported to VirtualBox VM list.
Go to Settings → Network → Adapter 1
Make sure it is attached to Host-only Adapter with name VirtualBox Host-Only Ethernet Adapter. Then click OK.
Start the GNS3 IOU VM, then login with following credentials.
User name: root Password: cisco
Step 2: Upload IOU Image to Unix (GNS3 IOU VM)
Check the IP address of the GNS3 IOU VM by ifconfig command and note down the IP (my case 192.168.56.102).
Now come to the host machine and open any browser (I’m a Chrome fan). Enter the following link in the address bar http://192.168.56.102:8000/upload.
Choose your IOU image and click Upload button. [Note: the location of the file being copied (/home/gns3/GNS3/images/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX)]
Now our IOU device is ready to run….!
[Troubleshoot: Please allow 192.168.56.XX network in the firewall, Disable proxy if you are using. In local PC (host machine) be sure that your VirtualBox Host-Only Ethernet Adapter is set to accept DHCP]
Step 3: GNS3 Server Configuration
By default GNS3 host binding is 127.0.0.0:8000 (local host loopback) address, we have to change the server to 192.168.56.XX:8000.
Go to Edit → Preferences → GNS3 Server → Local Server
Drop down the Host Binding section and choose 192.168.56.XX, local VirtualBox Host-Only Adapter IP (mine 192.168.56.101) and click Apply.
Again Edit → Preferences → GNS3 Server → Remote Server
Add a host by entering UNIX GNS3 IOU VM IP address that we noted in Step 2 (mine 192.168.56.101) and 8000 as port.
Step 4: Connect Cisco IOU to GNS3-1.1
Go to Edit → Preferences → IOS on UNIX → General Settings
The set the path of iourc.txt (iourc.txt can be stored on any directory of your local PC, eg: Desktop), browse and select it.
Now go to IOU Devices, click New button and select server type as Remote. Your remote server will be listed there → Next
You will receive a message “You have chosen to use a remote server, please provide the path to IOU image located on the server!”, just click OK.
Now type a Name for the IOU image and set IOU image path that you noted already in Step 2.
Type should be L2 for switch IOU.
Click Finish button. That’s that!
You have success fully configured Layer 2 Switch in GNS3-1.1…! Go to GNS3 GUI and drag the switch in to work space.
Now explore your new GNS3 Switch!
Hope I explained each steps to get a working IOU in GNS3-1.1
To do this is Windows (I haven’t tested it but it should work), open cmd.exe (Start > Run, enter: cmd.exe), navigate to “C:\Program Files\innotek VirtualBox” (using the “cd” command), then run this (after placing the .img file inside the “C:\Program Files\innotek VirtualBox” folder):
VBoxManage.exe convertdd file.img file.vdi
Please let us know if you have tried this in Windows and rather or not it worked.
To use it in VirtualBox, create a new Virtual Machine, select “Use existing hard disk” and browse for the recetly converted .vdi file:
Here’s the most expected tutorial from Learn2Crack, and today we are going to show how to install Android KitKat 4.4 on your PC. To install the latest Android Kitkat on Pc Visit this link.
Features of Android 4.4:
1) Support for Restricted Profiles
2) OpenGL ES 3.0 for High-Performance Graphics
3) Bluetooth Smart Ready support
4) Notification Access
1.Install VirtualBox on your PC
2.Open VirtualBox and select New. In the dialog box enter the name as your wish and
select i)Type : Linux
ii)Version : Other Linux
and select Next
3.In the next dialog box enter the memory size as your wish
Note : Minimum 1 GB required for KitKat
and select Next.
4.In the next dialog box select create a virtual hard drive now. Then select VDI and select fixed or dynamically allocated as your wish and create the virtual drive
Note : Mininimum 1 GB required for installation
5.Select Virtual device and select settings, a dialog box appears. In the dialog box select
i)Storage->Storage Tree->Empty
ii)In the attributes section select the Android 4.4 iso file you downloaded and check Live Cd/Dvd, then click Ok
6.Then start the virtual device. In the screen select Install Android-x86 to hard disk.
7.In the next screen select Create/Modify Partition.
8.Then create a new primary bootable partition and select write. After finishing writing select quit.
9.Then install android in sda1 and select type as ext3 , choose yes for installing grub.
10.After installing remove live iso from VirtualBox and reboot. Now you can boot into Android 4.4 .
A while back, Canonical released an experimental Ubuntu Touch emulator running Unity 8 and Mir. Back then, there were a few bugs, including a nasty one on 64bit that could break the system and since they were fixed, I though I’d write an article on how to properly install and use the Ubuntu Touch Emulator in Ubuntu 14.04, 13.10 and 12.04.
The initial Ubuntu Touch Emulator installation instructions changed so if you’ve installed the first experimental release, use the instructions below to create new instances.
Below you can watch two quick Ubuntu Touch Emulator test videos I’ve recoded in Ubuntu 14.04:
Ubuntu Touch Emulator is available in the official Ubuntu 14.04 repositories but it’s an old version and futhermore, it doesn’t support x86 instances, so I recommend using the Phablet Tools PPA, which has packages for Ubuntu 14.04, 13.10 and 12.04.
Add the Phablet Tools PPA and install the emulator using the following commands:
If you’ve installed an older version of Ubuntu Emulator, also run an upgrade:
sudo apt-get upgrade
The Ubuntu Emulator package is also available in the Ubuntu SDK PPA, but it’s an older version at the time I’m writing this article (about one month older than the one from the Phablet Tools PPA).
Note that I’ve only tested it in Ubuntu 14.04 and 12.04, but it should also work in Ubuntu 13.10 since the PPA above has packages for it.
Creating and running instances
1. The first thing you need to do is create a new instance – we’ll call it “UbuntuTouch” in the commands below:
The current “stable” image doesn’t seem to work, that’s why I’ve added the Utopic proposed channel for the image in the commands above.
On Ubuntu 12.04, you may get the following error:
Error while converting ~/.local/share/ubuntu-emulator/UbuntuTouch/system.img: Unknown option 'compat'
qemu-img: Invalid options for file format 'qcow2'.
I’m not sure why this error is displayed, but the emulator runs just fine so ignore it.
2. Then, run the new instance by using the following command:
ubuntu-emulator run UbuntuTouch
The first time you run the emulator, the boot process will take quite a while. When it finishes booting, a shell with Ubuntu Touch will start, asking you to enter the username and password:
If you want to interact with the emulator via an interactive ADB session, log in here using “phablet” (without the quotes) for both the username and password. It’s not required to log in here if you only want to use the Ubuntu Touch Emulator GUI.
After this, it might take another few minutes and Unity 8 with Mir should be loaded in the Ubuntu Touch Emulator.
In theory, Ubuntu Touch emulator should support some parameters, such as setting the memory (“–memory”), which by default is set to 512mb of RAM, but for some reason the instance doesn’t start when using this, or at least it didn’t in my test.
3. Optional: change the Ubuntu Touch Emulator size:
Ubuntu Touch Emulator with a 0.7 scale on my 1920×1080 monitor.
If the default Ubuntu Touch Emulator size is too big for your screen, you can scale it down. To do this, run it with the “–scale” option. For instance, to scale the emulator to half its original size, use:
ubuntu-emulator run --scale 0.5 UbuntuTouch
Notes:
the downloaded images are stored under ~/.cache/ubuntuimages
the images are stored under ~/.local/share/ubuntu-emulator
Deleting instances
To delete an Ubuntu Touch Emulator instance, use the following command:
sudo ubuntu-emulator destroy UbuntuTouch
Where “UbuntuTouch” is the name of the instance you’ve created. If you can’t remember the name, you can run the command below to list your Ubuntu Touch Emulator instances:
ubuntu-emulator list
Creating / restoring snapshots
Ubuntu Touch Emulator supports disk snapshots – to take a snapshot, use the following command:
