Greenbone Community Edition ISO: What You Need to Know Before You Download the Free and Open Source

How to Download Greenbone Community Edition ISO

If you are looking for a free and open source solution to scan your IT infrastructure for vulnerabilities, you might want to try Greenbone Community Edition (GCE). GCE is a virtual appliance that provides a web-based interface for managing and running vulnerability scans. In this article, we will show you how to download and install GCE ISO image, how to access and configure the web interface, and how to use the Greenbone Vulnerability Scanner (GVS) to perform scans and generate reports.

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What is Greenbone Community Edition?

Greenbone Community Edition is a free version of Greenbone Vulnerability Management (GVM), which is a software framework that includes several tools to perform vulnerability scans. GVM is the central management service between security scanners and the user clients. It is a fork of the Nessus scanning tool which is now a proprietary software. Greenbone also offers a turn-key appliance called Greenbone Security Manager (GSM) for enterprises and administrations.

Features and benefits of Greenbone Vulnerability Management

The key features provided by GVM include the following:

• Ease of use: GVM is designed to be user-friendly and easy to use, with a web-based user interface that allows users to manage and configure the system, view scan results, and generate reports.

• Risk prioritization: GVM uses a proprietary risk scoring system to prioritize vulnerabilities based on their severity, potential impact on the organization, and other factors.

• Comprehensive coverage: GVM tests IT networks and any connected devices for more than 150,000 vulnerabilities, using the Greenbone Enterprise Feed or the Greenbone Community Feed. The feed contains vulnerability tests that are updated daily by Greenbone's security experts.

• Open source: GVM is based on open source software and standards, such as OpenVAS Scanner, Open Scanner Protocol (OSP), and Common Platform Enumeration (CPE). Users can also contribute to the development of GVM by reporting bugs, suggesting features, or creating custom vulnerability tests.

• GDPR-compliant: GVM respects the privacy and data protection of its users, by encrypting all data in transit and at rest, anonymizing IP addresses, and allowing users to delete their data at any time.

Differences between Greenbone Community Edition and Greenbone Professional Edition

Greenbone Community Edition is a free version of GVM that can be used for personal or non-commercial purposes. It has some limitations compared to the professional version, such as:

• It can only scan up to 50 IP addresses per task.

• It does not support distributed scanning or high availability.

• It does not include technical support or updates from Greenbone.

• It uses the Greenbone Community Feed, which has less vulnerability tests and lower quality than the Greenbone Enterprise Feed.

If you need more features or support from Greenbone, you can upgrade to the professional version by purchasing a GSM appliance or a cloud service. You can also request a free trial of the professional version from .

How to Install Greenbone Community Edition ISO

In order to install GCE ISO image, you will need a virtualization software that supports Oracle VirtualBox format, such as Oracle VirtualBox or VMware Workstation. You will also need a computer with at least 2 CPUs, 5 GB RAM, and 10 GB disk space.

Prerequisites and requirements

Before Before you download and install the GCE ISO image, you should check the following requirements:

• You have a valid email address to register for the Greenbone Community Feed.

• You have a stable internet connection to download the ISO image and the feed updates.

• You have a virtualization software that supports Oracle VirtualBox format, such as Oracle VirtualBox or VMware Workstation.

• You have a computer with at least 2 CPUs, 5 GB RAM, and 10 GB disk space.

Steps to download and install the ISO image

Follow these steps to download and install the GCE ISO image:

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• Go to and select the latest version of GCE ISO image. You will need to provide your email address and agree to the terms and conditions to download the file.

• Extract the ZIP file and you will get a file with the extension .ova, which is the virtual appliance file.

• Open your virtualization software and import the .ova file as a new virtual machine. You can use the default settings or adjust them according to your preferences.

• Start the virtual machine and wait for it to boot up. You will see a login prompt with the username and password for GCE. The default username is admin and the password is admin.

• After logging in, you will see a welcome message and some instructions on how to configure GCE. You can press any key to continue or wait for 10 seconds.

How to access and configure the web interface

To access and configure the web interface of GCE, you need to do the following:

Find out the IP address of your virtual machine by typing ifconfig in the terminal. You will see something like this:

eth0 Link encap:Ethernet HWaddr 08:00:27:9B:0F:9E inet addr:192.168.56.101 Bcast:192.168.56.255 Mask:255.255.255.0 inet6 addr: fe80::a00:27ff:fe9b:f9e/64 Scope:Link UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST MTU:1500 Metric:1 RX packets:100 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0 TX packets:100 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0 collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000 RX bytes:10000 (10.0 KB) TX bytes:10000 (10.0 KB)

• The IP address is the one after inet addr:, which in this example is 192.168.56.101.

• Open your web browser and type https:// followed by the IP address of your virtual machine, such as You will see a warning message about the security certificate, which you can ignore and proceed to the website.

• You will see a login page for GCE web interface. The default username is admin and the password is admin.

• After logging in, you will see a dashboard with some information about GCE and GVM. You will also see a menu bar with different options, such as Scans, Assets, SecInfo, Tasks, Results, Reports, etc.

• The first thing you need to do is to change your password for security reasons. To do that, click on Administration > My Settings > Change Password and enter your old and new passwords.

• The next thing you need to do is to register for the Greenbone Community Feed and update it regularly. To do that, click on Administration > Feed Status > Register for Feed Updates and enter your email address. You will receive an email with a verification link that you need to click on to complete the registration.

• To update the feed manually, click on Administration > Feed Status > Update Feed Now. You can also schedule automatic updates by clicking on Administration > Feed Status > Schedule Feed Updates and selecting a frequency and time.

How to Use Greenbone Vulnerability Scanner

Now that you have installed and configured GCE, you can start using GVS to scan your IT infrastructure for vulnerabilities. Here are some basic steps on how to create and run a scan task, how to view and download scan reports, and how to manage and remediate vulnerabilities.

How to create and run a scan task

To create and run a scan task To create and run a scan task, you need to do the following:

• Click on Scans > Tasks and then click on the New Task button.

• Enter a name and an optional comment for your scan task.

• Select a scan config from the drop-down menu. A scan config is a set of vulnerability tests that GVS will use to scan your target. You can choose from several predefined scan configs, such as Full and Fast, Discovery, or Host Discovery. You can also create your own custom scan config by clicking on Scans > Scan Configs and then clicking on the New Scan Config button.

• Select a target from the drop-down menu. A target is a group of IP addresses or hostnames that you want to scan. You can choose from existing targets or create a new one by clicking on the New Target button. You can enter a single IP address, a range of IP addresses, or a list of hostnames separated by commas. You can also specify some advanced options, such as excluding some hosts, using credentials, or adding port lists.

• Select an alert from the drop-down menu. An alert is an action that GVS will take when a scan task is completed, such as sending an email, creating a ticket, or executing a script. You can choose from existing alerts or create a new one by clicking on the New Alert button.

• Select a schedule from the drop-down menu. A schedule is a time and frequency for running your scan task automatically. You can choose from existing schedules or create a new one by clicking on the New Schedule button.

• Click on the Create Task button to save your scan task.

• To start your scan task manually, click on the Start button next to your scan task. You can also pause, resume, stop, or delete your scan task by clicking on the corresponding buttons.

How to view and download scan reports

To view and download scan reports, you need to do the following:

• Click on Scans > Reports and you will see a list of reports for your scan tasks. Each report shows the name of the scan task, the date and time of the scan, the number of results, and the severity level of the vulnerabilities found.

• To view the details of a report, click on the report name. You will see a summary of the report, such as the target, the duration, and the progress of the scan. You will also see a table with the results of the scan, showing the severity, name, description, solution, and references for each vulnerability.

• To filter or sort the results by different criteria, such as severity, host, port, or name, use the options above the table.

• To download the report in different formats, such as PDF, HTML, XML, or CSV, use the options below the table.

How to manage and remediate vulnerabilities

To manage and remediate vulnerabilities To manage and remediate vulnerabilities, you need to do the following:

• Click on Scans > Results and you will see a list of all the vulnerabilities found by your scan tasks. You can filter or sort the results by different criteria, such as severity, host, port, or name, using the options above the table.

• To view the details of a vulnerability, click on the vulnerability name. You will see a description of the vulnerability, its impact, its solution, and its references. You will also see a list of hosts that are affected by the vulnerability and their status.

• To change the status of a host or a vulnerability, use the drop-down menu next to it. You can choose from different options, such as New, Open, Fixed, False Positive, or Acknowledged. Changing the status will help you keep track of your remediation progress and avoid duplicate efforts.

• To assign a ticket to a host or a vulnerability, use the drop-down menu next to it and select Create Ticket. You will need to enter some information about the ticket, such as the assignee, the due date, and the priority. Creating a ticket will help you delegate the remediation tasks to other members of your team and monitor their completion.

• To verify that a vulnerability has been fixed, you can run a scan task again on the same target or use the Verify option next to the vulnerability. Verifying a vulnerability will update its status and report accordingly.

Conclusion

In this article, we have shown you how to download and install Greenbone Community Edition ISO, how to access and configure the web interface, and how to use Greenbone Vulnerability Scanner to scan your IT infrastructure for vulnerabilities. We hope that this article has been helpful and informative for you. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to contact us.

FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about Greenbone Community Edition ISO:

• Q: What are the system requirements for running GCE?

• A: You will need a virtualization software that supports Oracle VirtualBox format, such as Oracle VirtualBox or VMware Workstation. You will also need a computer with at least 2 CPUs, 5 GB RAM, and 10 GB disk space.

• Q: How can I update GCE to the latest version?

• A: You can download the latest version of GCE ISO image from and import it as a new virtual machine. You can also export your existing data and settings from your old GCE and import them into your new GCE.

• Q: How can I get technical support for GCE?

• A: GCE does not include technical support from Greenbone. However, you can find some useful resources and documentation on and ask questions or share your experience with other users.

• Q: How can I upgrade from GCE to GPE?

• A: If you need more features or support from Greenbone, you can upgrade to Greenbone Professional Edition (GPE) by purchasing a Greenbone Security Manager (GSM) appliance or a cloud service. You can also request a free trial of GPE from .

• Q: How can I contribute to GCE development?

• A: GCE is based on open source software and standards, and you can contribute to its development by reporting bugs, suggesting features, or creating custom vulnerability tests. You can find more information on how to contribute on .

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