How to Install Oxidized on Windows 10

Oxidized is a network device configuration backup tool that supports various network devices such as routers, switches, and firewalls. This tutorial will guide you on how to install Oxidized on Windows 10.

Before we begin, please note that Oxidized is primarily designed for Linux-based systems, and there is no official support for Windows. However, it is still possible to install Oxidized on Windows using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) or a virtual machine.

Prerequisites

Before we proceed with the installation, ensure that you have the following prerequisites:

  • Windows 10 (version 1803 or higher)
  • The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) or a virtual machine
  • A working internet connection

Installation Steps

  1. Install the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

Open the start menu and search for "Turn Windows features on or off". Click on it and tick the "Windows Subsystem for Linux" option. Follow the prompts until the installation completes.

  1. Install Ubuntu on WSL

Open the Microsoft Store and search for "Ubuntu". Choose the Ubuntu distribution you want to install (we recommend Ubuntu 20.04 LTS) and click on "Get". Follow the prompts until the installation completes.

  1. Update Ubuntu

Open Ubuntu from the Start Menu or by typing "ubuntu" in the Command Prompt. Once the console opens, type the following command to update the package list:

sudo apt update

Once the update is complete, run the following command to upgrade the installed packages:

sudo apt upgrade
  1. Install Required Dependencies

Next, we need to install the dependencies required for Oxidized as shown below:

sudo apt install ruby ruby-dev libssl-dev libreadline-dev zlib1g-dev make gcc curl git
  1. Clone Oxidized from Github

Open Ubuntu and navigate to the directory where you want to install Oxidized. For example:

cd ~

Clone the Oxidized repository from Github using the following command:

git clone https://github.com/ytti/oxidized.git
  1. Install Oxidized

Next, navigate to the cloned repository directory:

cd oxidized

Run the following command to install Oxidized:

gem install bundler
bundle install --path./vendor/bundle

Note that the installation may take some time, depending on your internet speed and the performance of your computer.

  1. Configure Oxidized

Navigate to the Oxidized configuration file:

cd ~/.config
mkdir oxidized
cd oxidized
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ytti/oxidized/master/sample.config > config

Edit the configuration file to match your network device details. You can use your preferred text editor (nano, vi, or vim).

  1. Run Oxidized

To start Oxidized, navigate to the Oxidized repository directory, and run the following command:

bundle exec oxidized

Oxidized should start syncing the network device configurations to the defined location specified in the configuration file.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, you have learned how to install Oxidized on Windows 10 using WSL. You can now start using Oxidized to backup your network device configurations.