HOW TO install backtrack in VMware 6.0

[d3coy]

This is for everyone having problems with install b|t in VMware 6.0:



Backtrack 2 is a live CD linux distribution designed for penetration testers. It is packed with hundreds of ready to use tools for security professionals, and is based on Slax (live CD Slackware).

This mini-tutorial will show you how to get Backtrack 2 up and running inside VMware Workstation, and installed to the HDD. This should work the same in both VMware Workstation 5 and 6.

1. Download the Backtrack 2 iso

2. Open VMware Workstation and create a new virtual machine

File > New > Virtual Machine

Click Next

Select Typical, then click Next.

Select Linux, then select Other 2.6.x Kernel from the pull down menu. Click Next.

Name your virtual machine Backtrack 2, or whatever you wish, then click next.

Choose Use bridged networking if you are on a network where you can acquire an IP address separate from your host operating system. If you’re on a home cable or DSL connection, you may only have one IP address, in which case you should choose Use network address translation (NAT). Read below for information on how this affects Backtrack!

Leave the default 8.0GB unless you think you may need more. You can select Allocate all disk space now if you’d like, but keep in mind it could take several minutes.

Click Finish

3. Edit virtual machine settings

Adjust the RAM depending on how much you want to allocate to the virtual machine. My Backtrack 2 installation seems to do fine with 512MB, and I have 2GB on the host machine.

Select CD-ROM

Select Use ISO Image, then browse to the Backtrack 2 ISO that you downloaded before. You don’t need to burn this ISO to a CD, one of the great features of VMware is that it can map an ISO file as if it were a physical CD-ROM drive. This works with DVD isos too!

Click OK

4. Start the virtual machine

5. Login with username root, password toor

Don’t worry, you can change this once you install Backtrack to the hard drive.

6. Partition and mount the hard drive

The virtual SCSI hard drive in VMware is usually /dev/sda. We need to partition this drive and create a filesystem on which Backtrack 2 can be installed.

We will use fdisk to create 2 partitions - one for the filesystem and one for swap space.

fdisk /dev/sda

Enter each line below into fdisk’s prompt:

n

p

1

<enter>

+7168M

n

p

2

<enter>

<enter>

w

This will create a 7GB partition for the filesystem and a 1GB swap space. If you want more space on the filesystem (or if you made your virtual disk larger than 8GB), you can change +7168M to another number (in megabytes).

Create an ext3 filesystem on the first partition:

mkfs.ext3 /dev/sda1

Create swap space on the other:

mkswap /dev/sda2

Mount the drive:

mkdir /mnt/backtrack

mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/backtrack

7. Run startx to boot up KDE

8. Use the Backtrack installer

Start > System > Backtrack Installer

Leave the source blank

Install backtrack to: /mnt/backtrack

Write MBR to: /dev/sda

Select Real (2700 MB required) for the installation method

Click install. It could take awhile or hang at certain parts (seems to hang for awhile at 81% on my machine).

9. Have fun

Restart the virtual machine, and you’re ready to start using Backtrack 2 in VMWare!

More about running Backtrack in VMware:

I have found that you can do just about anything with Backtrack in VMware that you can running natively, with the exception of wireless. That’s right, wireless isn’t going to work through VMware (that means both 802.11 and Bluetooth). As far as I know, VMware doesn’t attempt to virtualize wireless hardware, and even if it did, most of the wireless pen testing tools require special drivers that would need to be much closer to the hardware.

Keep in mind that to get reliable and accurate results, you will probably want to be running networking in Bridged mode for your virtual machine - assuming you can get a separate IP from the host OS. I have not had good results trying to run things like nmap through VMware’s NAT. The general rule for scanning is you want to be as close to the physical wire as possible. That means anything between a scanning tool and the target could potentially alter the packets that are being sent and received. Routers, firewalls, software NATs, host-based firewalls, etc. can affect the scan results or make them completely inaccurate.

[purehate]

Thanks for making a effort to contribute to the community. There are already some tutorials on how to do this here on the forums but one more can't hurt. One thing though there are usb wireless card that work with backtrack and vmware so wireless is not that hard.

[d347hm4n]

thanks d3coy

[00000008]

Thanks d3coy, the Tutorials/Guide did the trick. Seems Vmware didn't find my /boot partition on startup and so I placed it one main filesystem "/"

Cheers

[Convergence]

6. Partition and mount the hard drive

The virtual SCSI hard drive in VMware is usually /dev/sda. We need to partition this drive and create a filesystem on which Backtrack 2 can be installed.

We will use fdisk to create 2 partitions - one for the filesystem and one for swap space.

fdisk /dev/sda

Enter each line below into fdisk’s prompt:

n

p

1

<enter>

+7168M

n

p

2

<enter>

<enter>

w

This will create a 7GB partition for the filesystem and a 1GB swap space. If you want more space on the filesystem (or if you made your virtual disk larger than 8GB), you can change +7168M to another number (in megabytes).

I'm hitting an odd problem here: fdisk is saying that my max cylindars is 1,044 - it won't let me put any value past that. Any ideas as to why?

[zarraza]

thanks a lot, great guide.

[grikster]

This is gonna be very helpfull on the 14th when BT3 comes out.

This should work with BT3 right ?

[PrairieFire]

This is gonna be very helpfull on the 14th when BT3 comes out.

This should work with BT3 right ?

The process will be no different.

[zarraza]

Works great with BT3 Beta just make sure to uncheck "restore original mbr after lilo"...

[bwana]

trying to instal bt4 and things were going well until step 8
8. Use the Backtrack installer

Start > System > Backtrack Installer


cant seem to find that? clues?

:never mind. i just discovered ubiquity. but do i have to create the partitions for the swap file before i run ubiquity? it seems from the tuts and videos on utube, that step is never done.