docker

As of the date of this post, additional steps are required to successfully boot the latest Juniper vJunos-switch version on a system with an AMD CPU for Containerlab . I use Arch as my Linux distribution, but most of the content applies to any distribution. Modify where needed (e.g., package management for tools). Prerequisite Install and configure a lab server with Arch Linux Steps Point your web browser to the Juniper vJunos-switch Downloads page. ...

A lab server is a cornerstone of learning and experimentation. Whether you’re spinning up a simple virtual networking lab or deploying a complex, multi-cluster Kubernetes topology via Vagrant, a dedicated server provides the power and flexibility that local environments often lack. You might wonder why we’re choosing Arch for this build. Arch Linux is prized for its minimal footprint, ensuring that your computing resources are dedicated to your workloads rather than the operating system. Furthermore, it offers the distinct advantage of streamlined access to the latest software, keeping your lab on the cutting edge without the bloat found in other distributions. ...

Arista recently released an ARM64-based cEOS container image. This guide walks through downloading and importing it into Containerlab on macOS. Prerequisite Containerlab with macOS on Apple Silicon macOS Point your web browser to the Arista Software Download page. Log in with your Arista credentials. Click the cEOSarm-lab-4.36.2F.tar.xz file link to download. Save the cEOSarm-lab-4.36.2F.tar.xz file to your Downloads folder. Open your favorite terminal emulator, and change to the Downloads directory. ...

The content in this post is intended for educational and informational purposes only. All software rights belong to their respective owners. Cisco includes the IOS on Linux (IOL) images available with the Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) Free Tier . Because IOL runs modern Cisco IOS-XE as a native Linux binary, it offers a lightweight, resource-friendly alternative for network emulation. This post will guide you through the process of creating Cisco IOL container images using Containerlab on macOS. ...

Containerlab is gaining traction on macOS, driven by the growing availability of ARM64-based NOS container images. The following Containerlab kinds work excellent with macOS on Apple Silicon: Nokia SR Linux Arista cEOS Cisco IOL with Rosetta Prerequisites Mac computer with Apple silicon macOS 14.0 or later Git uv Steps Download OrbStack and open it. Open your favorite terminal emulator. We will work from the command line for the following steps. ...

Most GNS3 users are familiar with VPCS . It’s the go-to device for simulating a simple endpoint node in our network labs. VPCS is suitable for the basics, but Docker supplies a selection of more feature-rich endpoint types. This post provides an example using Alpine Linux . Prerequisites GNS3 with macOS on Apple Silicon GNS3 client Steps Open your favorite terminal emulator. Download the latest alpine Docker image from Docker Hub . ...

Hosting a local GNS3 server inside an OrbStack Linux machine on Apple Silicon offers a flexible networking lab environment, though it introduces a few key constraints: No x86_64 KVM virtualization: Hardware acceleration is unavailable for nested x86_64 VMs. Emulation overhead: Running x86_64 Linux binaries relies on Rosetta emulation, introducing a slight performance penalty. Network limitation: OrbStack uses a custom-built virtual network stack that does not support bridged networking . The Cloud and NAT nodes will not function. Note: QEMU and libvirt are disabled due to these constraints. ...