Transcription
Hi, in this video, I will show you how to create an information technology lab using GNS3.
First, go to gns3.com and download the installer. GNS3 supports Windows, Linux, and macOS operating systems. You will be asked to create a free account to be allowed to download the installer. Because I already have an account, I can download the installer. My computer is running the Windows operating system, so I download the installer for Windows.
Here, you select to install GNS3 VM. With the installation of GNS3 with hypervisor, you will get a full lab. GNS3 supports hypervisors such as VMware Workstation, VMware ESXi, VirtualBox, and Hyper-V. GNS3 supports hypervisors such as VMware Workstation, VMware ESXi, VirtualBox, and Hyper-V. But in my opinion, you should use VMware Workstation hypervisor. You can use the free hypervisor VMware Workstation Player to build your own lab.
During the installation, the virtual machine file for the VMware Workstation hypervisor will automatically be downloaded to your computer. During the installation, the virtual machine file for the VMware Workstation hypervisor will automatically be downloaded to your computer. This is the automatically downloaded virtual machine file; it's a compressed file. This file will be used later in the video.
I will continue the unfinished installation steps. During the installation, your computer will be installed with a few other software such as WinPcap, Wireshark, Nmap, and Solar PuTTY. During the installation, your computer will be installed with a few other software such as WinPcap, Wireshark, Nmap, and Solar PuTTY. Here, do not open GNS3 software and install VMware virtualization workstation. In this example, I use VMware Workstation Player; it's free.
There are two different versions for Windows and Linux. Of course, I will download the installer for Windows computers. After a few clicks of Next, you will finish installing the VMware Workstation hypervisor. As mentioned in the previous step, I use the free version.
During the installation of GNS3, a virtual machine file was automatically downloaded to the computer. Time to use it. You unzip the downloaded file. And this is the file you get after extracting. Next, you use this file to create a GNS3 virtual machine. You open the VMware Workstation hypervisor, browse to the unzipped file. Name the virtual machine; I named the virtual machine GNS3. This virtual machine will be used later in the video, so you should keep its name in mind.
So, you have a new GNS3 virtual machine. However, I recommend you customize this virtual machine. You increase the RAM memory because by default, it is only 2GB. Increase the number of CPUs for the virtual machine; here, I choose 4 CPUs. Next, set up the network as a bridge so that the devices connect directly to my local network. I do this because in the next step, I will add a Windows 10 computer to my lab.
So, how to connect GNS3 to the newly created virtual machine? Let's do it together. You open GNS3 and choose to run the application on the virtual machine. GNS3 will automatically detect the VMware hypervisor and the virtual machines that have been created on it. Here, I still have to set the RAM and the number of processors of the virtual machine. Set RAM memory to 8GB. Set vCPU cores to 4. You set up RAM and CPU memory to suit your computer.
Your virtual machine will automatically start up and connect to the GNS3 software. So, I have successfully installed GNS3 with VMware Workstation hypervisor. Next, we create mini labs for you to get used to if you are using it for the first time. I created a new lab and named it test.
Here is a list of the equipment available for you to create your lab. But that is too few devices to create a full lab, so we need to add more devices to GNS3. The first device I will add to GNS3 is a Windows computer. Here is a list of devices you can add to GNS3. It is divided into four groups: Firewalls, Guest, Routers, and Switches.
Are there a lot of devices you can add to GNS3? But not all are free. There are devices you have to pay to add to GNS3. But with Windows computers, it is free. To add a Windows computer, you must import the virtual machine file into GNS3. To do that, you download the Windows virtual machine file. In this example, I download the Windows 10 virtual machine.
Also, you can use Windows 7 or Windows 8 because it will require lower RAM and CPU memory. The virtual machine platform is VMware for the Windows operating system. And this is the compressed file I will get, so I will unzip it. These are the files obtained after unpacking; I will import it into GNS3.
You browse to the file you just obtained and import it into GNS3. It will take a while to upload the file to the GNS3 system. The import is done, and here is the username and password to log in to Windows. You write it down for later use: Passw0rd!
Time to create a little lab. I add a cloud, then a Windows PC. Then I will connect the computer to the cloud. Next, set up the hardware for the Windows computer. Default is only 1GB RAM; I will increase it to 3GB. Set CPUs to 2. Start up and access a Windows computer. You will be asked for a password; it is Passw0rd! as we know in the previous step.
You will be asked for a password; it is Passw0rd! as we know in the previous step. After the Windows 10 computer boots successfully, I check the IP address and check the internet connection. The Windows 10 computer in the lab was given an IP address directly from my router, and it can connect to the internet. It's great, isn't it?
Let's turn off the Windows computer and add other devices to GNS3. A lab can't be without a router, so I'll add a router to GNS3. This is an operating system file of the Cisco router. Next, I will add the Cisco router to GNS3. Because I already have the OS file, I will add it manually.
Dynamics ISO routers run this ISO router on the GNS3 VM. Browse to the prepared router operating system file. You can change the name if you want; I leave it as default. Next, you set up the slots on the router. I will set up a router with 2 Gigabit ports.
So, I have successfully added the Cisco 7200 router to GNS3. We'll add it to the previous lab. Add the router to the lab. Next, add a switch device to the lab. This lab has a Windows computer, a switch, and a router.
Next, connect the devices together. Connect the router to the internet. Connect the router to the switch. Connect a Windows computer to the switch. The icons don't look very good, so I'll change them. Change the icon for the router. Next, change the icon for the switch. Finally, the icon for the Windows computer.
Do you find that the new icons are better than before? Next, you can change the name to suit your lab. In addition, you can display more information about the connection ports of the devices.
So, we've got a little lab. Now you can execute commands on routers and switches like on physical devices. Thank you for watching. Don't forget to like and subscribe to the channel.