GNS3 On Mac Silicon M1/ M2 / M3

To install GNS3 On Mac Silicon M1/ M2 / M3, you’ll need to follow these steps. The process involves using OrbStack to manage installations and may require some additional configuration due to compatibility considerations.

Steps

Download OrbStack and open it.

An OrbStack Linux machine with seamless Rosetta integration is the magic sauce for hosting our GNS3 server and components.

Open your favorite terminal emulator.

We will be working from the command line for the majority of the following steps.

Change to the Downloads directory.

cd ~/Downloads

2. Clone the gns3-server-orbstack repo from GitHub.

git clone https://github.com/mweisel/gns3-server-orbstack.git

3. Change to the gns3-server-orbstack directory.

cd gns3-server-orbstack

4. Create a Python virtual environment for Ansible.

source init_venv.sh

5. Verify Ansible is installed.

ansible –version

6. Start OrbStack (if not already started).

orb status || orb start

7. Create the gns3 Linux machine.

orb create –arch amd64 ubuntu:noble gns3

This process should take less than a minute depending on your internet connection speed.

8. Verify the gns3 Linux machine is listed and running.

orb list

output:

NAME STATE    DISTRO VERSION ARCH
—- —–    —— ——- —-
gns3 running ubuntu noble    amd64

Test Ansible connectivity to the gns3 Linux machine.

ansible all -m ping

output:

gns3@orb | SUCCESS => {
    “ansible_facts”: {
        “discovered_interpreter_python”: “/usr/bin/python3.12”
    },
    “changed”: false,
    “ping”: “pong”
}

9. Deploy the latest stable release of GNS3 server and components.

ansible-playbook server.yml

Sit back and relax. The automated process should take less than 10 minutes.

10. Check availability after the Ansible playbook completes.

Verify the GNS3 server is up and ready with a HTTP GET request.

curl -s http://gns3.orb.local:3080/v2/version

11. Open the GNS3 WebUI with your default web browser.

open http://gns3.orb.local:3080

12. Deactivate the Python virtual environment.

deactivate

Final Step to install GNS3 On Mac Silicon M1/ M2 / M3

Attach your GNS3 client to the GNS3 server.

Open the GNS3 client application.
Click the Settings button.
Select Server on the left side menu.
Select the Main server tab.
Enter the following values for the Remote main server section:

- Protocol: HTTP
- Host: gns3.orb.local
- Port: 3080 TCP
- Click the OK button to save.

Workflow

Start OrbStack from the command line or open the OrbStack GUI.

orb status || orb start

2. Start the gns3 Linux machine from the command line or the OrbStack GUI.

orb start gns3

Open the GNS3 client application or WebUI.

open http://gns3.orb.local:3080

Start the devices within GNS3.
Happy Labbing!
Save the configuration at the device-level (e.g., copy run start, wr mem, etc.).
Stop the devices within GNS3.
Close the GNS3 client application.
Stop the gns3 Linux machine from the command line or the OrbStack GUI.

orb stop gns3