How to Upload the Image to EVE-NG

🚀 How to Upload an Image to EVE-NG (Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide)

Whether you’re a network engineer, a student preparing for certifications, or an IT professional building labs, EVE-NG (Emulated Virtual Environment - Next Generation) is one of the best platforms out there.

But one common challenge many users face is:

In this blog, we’ll walk through how to upload an image to EVE-NG, the tools needed, and best practices to ensure the lab runs smoothly.

📦 What Is an Image in EVE-NG?

An “image” refers to a virtual machine disk file (such as .qcow2, .vmdk, etc.) used to emulate network devices like Cisco routers, Palo Alto firewalls, Fortinet devices, and more.

✅ Prerequisites

Before uploading an image to EVE-NG, make sure the following are ready:

📁 1. The Image File

• Format: Typically .qcow2 (for KVM), sometimes .vmdk, .iso, etc.
• Source: Downloaded from vendor (e.g., Cisco, Palo Alto, Fortinet) or converted from another format.

🖥️ 2. EVE-NG Community or Pro Installed

• Either in a VM (VMware/VirtualBox) or on a dedicated server.
• Make sure EVE-NG is up and running.

🔧 3. Tools Required

Here are the main tools used to upload and configure images:

Tool	Purpose	OS
WinSCP	Upload files via SCP	Windows
FileZilla	Alternative SCP tool	Windows/Linux/Mac
Putty / Terminal	SSH into EVE-NG	Windows / macOS / Linux
EVE-NG Convert Tool	Convert .vmdk to .qcow2 if needed	Optional
QEMU-img	Image conversion	Optional

🛠️ How to Upload an Image to EVE-NG (Step-by-Step)

Here’s a detailed guide to upload the image.

🔹 Step 1: Connect to EVE-NG Using WinSCP

1. Download and install WinSCP
2. Connect to the EVE-NG VM using:
   • Host: Your EVE-NG IP
   • Protocol: SCP
   • Username: root
   • Password: eve (default)

🔐 Change the default credentials for security.

🔹 Step 2: Navigate to the Right Directory

EVE-NG stores images in specific directories. Navigate to:

/opt/unetlab/addons/qemu/

Each image must go in a folder named after the device type, like:

/opt/unetlab/addons/qemu/cisco-asav-921/

📁 The folder must follow the correct naming convention, usually like:

vendor-platform-version
e.g., cisco-asav-921

🔹 Step 3: Upload the Image File

• Upload the .qcow2 file to the folder created.
• Rename the file to match EVE-NG naming conventions:

virtioa.qcow2

📌 Some images need multiple files. Always check vendor documentation.

🔹 Step 4: Fix Permissions

After uploading, set the correct permissions. Use SSH (PuTTY or Terminal) to run:

/opt/unetlab/wrappers/unl_wrapper -a fixpermissions

This step is critical. Without it, images might not boot properly.

🔹 Step 5: Refresh EVE-NG and Start Building

• Go back to the EVE-NG web interface.
• Create a new lab or open an existing one.
• Add a new node → The image should now be listed.

🎉 That’s it — the image is now ready to use!

💡 Pro Tips

• Convert VMDK to QCOW2 using qemu-img:

qemu-img convert -f vmdk -O qcow2 input.vmdk output.qcow2

• Always check EVE-NG’s Image Naming Guide for specific device formats.
• Test connectivity after uploading by pinging the image node or starting a simple topology.

🧰 Recommended Tools List

Tool	Description	Link
WinSCP	Secure file transfer client	https://winscp.net/
PuTTY	SSH client for Windows	https://www.putty.org/
FileZilla	GUI SCP/SFTP client	https://filezilla-project.org/
qemu-img	Image converter (CLI)	https://wiki.qemu.org/Documentation/Tools/qemu-img

🔚 Conclusion

Uploading an image to EVE-NG is straightforward once the structure is understood. By following the steps above, it’s possible to add any device—Cisco, Juniper, Palo Alto, Fortinet, and more—to build powerful network labs.

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