17 November 2025
Fakh#gcp_install
How to install PNETLab on GCP
1. Open cloud console in GCP once you are in the CLI, run below command depending on the PNETLab version you want to install.
- PNETLab version 5 (Ubuntu 18.04):
gcloud compute images create nested-ubuntu-bionic --source-image-family=ubuntu-1804-lts --source-image-project=ubuntu-os-cloud --licenses https://www.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/vm-options/global/licenses/enable-vmx
- PNETLab version 6 (Ubuntu 20.04):
gcloud compute images create nested-ubuntu-focal --source-image-family=ubuntu-2004-lts --source-image-project=ubuntu-os-cloud --licenses https://www.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/vm-options/global/licenses/enable-vmx
2. Create a VM instance with the specs you want.
Recommendations:
CPU: Intel CPUs Skylake or Cascade
Disk: SSD for better performance
- For the boot disk, select the nested image that you created in step 1
- Allow HTTP and HTTPS traffic
- "Deploy a container image” must be UNCHECKED
- After the VM is created, ssh to it and switch to the root user:
sudo -i
3. Run the installation script for the corresponding PNETLab version: check the installation instructions for each version by issuing the command /notes in PNETLab's group.
Once installation is completed reboot the VM with this command:
reboot
Wait for few seconds while the VM reboots and ssh to it again.
When the setup wizard screen appears, press ctrl + c and type the below command to switch to the root user:
sudo -i
You'll get setup wizard again. When it asks you to enter your new root password, enter it twice, give a hostname of choice, domain name of choice, and select DHCP (don't use static ip ), and leave NTP blank.
And that's it. Enjoy PNETLab!
FakhERROR: (gcloud.compute.images.create) Could not fetch image resource:
- The resource 'projects/ubuntu-os-cloud/global/images/family/ubuntu-1804-lts' was not found
18.04 & 20.04 are no longer supported, they've already reached the end of life (5 years after the release date)
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You can't use them on gcp anymore
hesham ali osmanDoes Windows 11 support pnetlab on VMware
So virtualization not running
Pnetlab vm can run on win11 with vmware workstation, but you must enable virtualization
M. Aditya HanantoPnetlab vm can run on win11 with vmware workstation, but you must enable virtualization
I enabled it from bios and upgrade vm to v 5 but when I check box on CPU not working
18 November 2025
Mobin Rabieetext not yet in the index
There is excel sheet on labhub named password, u can find username and password for all ios and images
santext not yet in the index
I think viptela is not compatible with pnetlab, i tried several time but faced same issues and finally tried with eve-ng it worked, maybe u try with pnetlab v6 it may work.