To use Juniper vMX in EVE-NG for free, you can obtain trial images directly from Juniper and integrate them into your virtual environment. While EVE-NG does not provide vendor images itself due to copyright, it offers a specific technical process to prepare and run them. 1. Download Juniper vMX Images
Juniper provides a 60-day free trial for vMX that includes unlimited bandwidth.
Registration: You must create a Juniper account and select "Evaluation user access" if you do not already have one.
Software Selection: Download the vMX Software bundle (typically a .tgz file). For EVE-NG, look for the KVM/QEMU version.
Evaluation Licenses: Retrieve the 60-day license key from the vMX Trial page during the download process.
vJunos Alternatives: For longer-term lab use, Juniper now offers vJunos-router and vJunos-switch images for free with no time limit for non-production environments. 2. Prepare vMX for EVE-NG juniper vmx download for eveng free
The vMX consists of two main components: the Virtual Control Plane (VCP) and the Virtual Forwarding Plane (VFP).
Extract the Bundle: Unzip the downloaded .tgz file to access the .qcow2 and metadata images.
Create Directories: Use SSH to access your EVE-NG server and create separate folders for both the VCP and VFP under /opt/unetlab/addons/qemu/. Example VCP folder: vmxvcp-17.1R1.8-domestic-VCP Example VFP folder: vmxvfp-17.1R1.8-domestic-VFP
Upload and Rename: Transfer the extracted files to these directories using an FTP client like FileZilla. Rename the images according to EVE-NG naming conventions, such as renaming the main Junos file to virtioa.qcow2.
Fix Permissions: Run the following command on the EVE-NG CLI to ensure the system can access the new files: /opt/unetlab/wrappers/unl_wrapper -a fixpermissions Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard 3. Running vMX in EVE-NG To use Juniper vMX in EVE-NG for free,
Once the images are added, you can insert them into your lab through the EVE-NG web interface. vMX Trial Download | HPE Juniper Networking US
If you are running the free EVE-NG on a laptop with only 16GB or 32GB of RAM, multiple vMX nodes will crash. Here is how to optimize:
set system services extension-service request-response-grpc disable
set system no-ping-response
junos-vmx-x86-64 version 18.2: This version uses significantly less CPU than vMX 3.0+.Important assumptions: you want to use vMX legally for lab/testing on the free EVE‑NG Community Edition. Below are concise, prescriptive steps and required notes.
Go to the Juniper website and create a free account. You need a valid email (Gmail works).
Since you are looking for free options for lab purposes, you may find evaluation images hosted on various educational repositories or mirror sites. Ensure the file format you download is a disk image (commonly named vmmx-<version>-domestic.qcow2 or simply junos-vmdisk.qcow2). Part 6: Optimization for Free EVE-NG (Low RAM)
Important: For lab stability, we recommend downloading versions like 17.3R1.10 or 18.x series. These tend to be stable in EVE-NG and have manageable resource requirements.
When searching for vMX for EVE-NG, you will encounter three distinct variations. It is crucial to understand the differences to ensure compatibility with your lab goals.
| Version | Description | EVE-NG Support | Use Case | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | vMX (Legacy) | The original virtual router. Uses a dual-VM architecture (VCP for control, VFP for forwarding). Heavy on resources. | Native Support | Older labs, JNCIE study material. | | vJunos-router | The modern replacement. Single VM architecture (no separate VCP/VFP). Lighter and faster. | Supported (Newer templates) | Modern routing labs, JNCIP/JNCIE. | | vJunos-EVO | Junos Evolved (Linux-based kernel). Highly advanced. | Supported (Requires specific templates) | Advanced Data Center, EVPN-VXLAN. |
Recommendation: If you are starting fresh, use vJunos-router. It is significantly easier to deploy in EVE-NG than the legacy vMX.