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Install CBL-Mariner on VMWare

If you think Microsoft is planning to enter the Linux landscape with the release of CBL-Mariner. You might not be right. Microsoft has released CBL-Mariner for its cloud infrastructure as part of an open-source initiative. Well, this is not the first initiative project by Microsoft. It has contributed its investments in developing various Linux-based technologies, such as SONiCAzure Sphere OS, and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). Well, if you want to dirt your hands on this Linux, you can. We are going to show you how to install the CBL-Mariner on the VMWare workstation in this post. For your info, Microsoft didn’t release either ISO or VM images for users. However, we have shared the procedure to build a CBL-Mariner ISO Image and shared the created ISO image for download.

What Is CBL-Mariner?

Let’s clear the concept, CBL-Mariner is an open-source internal Linux distribution developed for Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure and edge products and services. It is not the OS developed for end-users like Ubuntu, Debian, and Mint Linux distributions. It is designed to provide a consistent platform for cloud services. Visit this git page to read more about CBL-Mariner.

How To Build CBL-Mariner ISO image?

As we said earlier, Microsoft didn’t release installable images like its ISO, VHDX, or VMDK for CBL-Mariner users. The reason could be because Microsoft wants developers to build their own custom images according to their needs. However, we have shared the pre-built standard ISO file to save your time and also show you how to build ISO images on your own in a separate post. Please read this if you want to know how to build a CBL-Mariner ISO image on your own.

Step by Step Procedure to Build a CBL-Mariner ISO Image!

Download CBL-Mariner ISO file:

How To Install CBL-Mariner On VMWare?

Now, let’s see how to install CBL-Mariner on VMWare in this post.

Time needed: 10 minutes.

how to install CBL-Mariner on VMWare?

  1. Create a New Virtual Machine on VMWare Workstation

    Go to File -> New Virtual Machine.
    Select Custom installation wizard then click Next.

    New Virtual Machine

  2. Select Hardware Compatibility

    Select Workstation 16x, click Next.

    Select Hardware Compatibility

  3. Select the CBL-Mariner ISO image

    Browse the CBL-Mariner ISO image. Click Next.

    Select the CBL-Mariner ISO image

  4. Select Operating System Version

    Select Linux 64 and Other Linux 64 bit as shone here. Click Next.

    Select Operating System Version

  5. Name and Location of the VM

    Name your VM and select the location to store the VM. Click Next.

    Name and Location of the VM

  6. Assign the processer for the VM


    Assign the processer for the VM

  7. Assign the memory



    Assign the memory

  8. Select the Network adopter settings for the VM

    Select the desired net work adopter settings. Click Next. We have selected Bridged Networking for demonstration.

    Select the Network adopter settings for the VM

  9. Select IO Controller Type



    Select IO Controller Type

  10. Select Disk Type



    Select Disk Type

  11. Create Virtual Disk for CBL-Mariner



    Create Virtual Disk for CBL-Mariner

  12. Allocate Disk Size for CBL-Mariner



    Allocate Disk Size for CBL-Mariner

  13. Finish the VM configuration

    Click Finish to complete the VM configurations.

    Finish the VM configuration

  14. Power on CBL-Mariner



    Power on CBL-Mariner

  15. Booting CBL-Mariner for the first time

    You will see three option to install CBL-Mariner. Chose the one you want to install. We recommend to select Graphical Installer if you are new to the Linux.

    Booting CBL-Mariner

  16. GUI Installation Welcome Window

    You will be greeted with this Welcome window when you boot for the first time. You will have two installation type out there. Full and Core. Chose the one which you think better. Click Next.

    GUI Install Welcome Window

  17. Partition Configuration of CBL-Mariner

    You can decide how you want to partition the installation disk. First option will erase complete disk and system will partition the file system for you. Second option will allow you to allocate the space for each partition based on your need.

    Partition Configuration of CBL-Mariner

  18. Enter Hostname, Username, and Password in the System Configuration window

    Click Install.

    System Configuration Window

  19. Install CBL-Mariner on VMWare

    Click Install Now.

    Install CBL-Mariner on VMWare

  20. Installation in Progress



    Install CBL-Mariner on VMWare

  21. Completion of CBL-Mariner Installation

    Click Done.

    Completion of Installation

  22. First Log in

    System will reboot the OS and ask to log in. Use the account credentials used in System Configuration.

    Login to CBL-Marnier

  23. Working on CBL-Mariner

    Run this command to update the system:
    $ sudo tdnf update

    Command to upgrade CBL-Mariner
    $ sudo tdnf upgrade

    Command to install package:
    $ sudo tdnf install <package name>


    Working on CBL-Mariner

See Also  Step-By-Step Procedure To Install OpenSSL On The Windows Platform

This is how you should install the CBL-Mariner on VMWare workstation. You can download the ISO image and install it on VM Horizon, Virtual Box, or any virtual platform.

Thanks for reading the tutorial. Please visit our site to see more such interesting tutorials.

About the author

Arun KL

Hi All, I am Arun KL, an IT Security Professional. Founder of “thesecmaster.com”. Enthusiast, Security Blogger, Technical Writer, Editor, Author at TheSecMaster. To know more about me. Follow me on LinkedIn

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  1. I found your blog post when I searched for "how to update CBL-Mariner"

    In "23. Working on CBL-Mariner" the advise is given to "$ sudo tdnf update" but on an out-of-box Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) tdnf is not included. So I tried to build tdnf using some hints from "Step by Step Procedure to Build a CBL-Mariner ISO Image!" but at the end I failed.

    Maybe you'd have a hint how to fix this or would consider this as a topic for a new blog post?

    what I tried:
    sudo apt -y install make cmake tar wget curl rpm qemu-utils python-minimal bison gawk git
    git clone https://github.com/vmware/tdnf
    git checkout v3.1.5
    mkdir build && cd build
    cmake ..

    Error:
    — Checking for module 'rpm'
    — No package 'rpm' found
    CMake Error at /usr/share/cmake-3.13/Modules/FindPkgConfig.cmake:452 (message):
    A required package was not found
    Call Stack (most recent call first):
    /usr/share/cmake-3.13/Modules/FindPkgConfig.cmake:622 (_pkg_check_modules_internal)
    CMakeLists.txt:62 (pkg_check_modules)

    1. Yes, Greg. This could be because the OS is developed for cloud development, not for desktop users. And, it is one of the heavily customizable OS. Let’s find any GUI packages in its repo.

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