Open a terminal by right-clicking on your Kali Linux desktop and selecting Open Terminal Here.Ģ.To start the nessusd service, follow the below steps. This service controls and makes available the Nessus application interface and functions, such as scans. Be sure to check your junk mail if you do not see the registration email in your inbox! Start the Nessus Service and Set for Automatic Startupīefore using the Nessus application, the nessusd system service must be started. Now check your email, you should find an activation code that appears like D234-C7CB-04AF-79A6-1555. The Nessus Essentials product registration page showing the result of successful registrationĥ. Fill out the registration form with your First Name, Last Name, and Email Address. Navigate to the Nessus Essentials Product Portal.Ģ.Despite being free, the software does require a valid activation code as outlined below. This tutorial will be using Nessus Essentials.

No ability to use the Nessus virtual appliance.

Compliance checks or live results are not available.

Scanning is limited to 16 IP Addresses per scanner.

A few of the main Nessus Essentials limitations are listed below: Nessus Essentials is free but provides a reduced feature set compared to its paid counterpart, Nessus Professional. Tenable offers a few variations of their Nessus Vulnerability Scanner, two of which are Nessus Essentials and Nessus Professional. Obtaining an Activation Code for Nessus Vulnerability Scanner The next section walks you through obtaining an activation code. Way to go! You’ve just installed the Nessus Vulnerability Scanner on your Kali Linux operating system. Therefore, the Nessus-8.13.1-debian6_amd.deb is the correct installation package:Ĭommand output showing the result of the Nessus application installation. In this article, a 64-bit version of Kali Linux (version 2020.4) is used. Nessus is supported on a wide range of operating systems and architectures. Follow the below steps to download the necessary Nessus installation files.Ģ. First, start the Kali Linux operating system and launch a supported web browser. The following browsers are supported by Nessus, according to Tenable’s software requirements:ĭownloading the Nessus Installation Package on Kali LinuxĪs Nessus is not installed by default on Kali, you will need to download the Nessus software package prior to installation.

Disk Space: 30 GB, not including space used by the host operating systemIn this article, a 64-bit Kali Linux (version 2020.4) Virtual Machine (VM) is used running on VMWare Workstation Player.

Memory: 4 GB RAM (8 GB RAM recommended).

The following are recommended minimum system requirements, according to Tenable’s hardware recommendations:

Administrative, or “root”, access to a Kali Linux installation with internet access.

To follow along with this tutorial, you will need to adhere to the following requirements.

Configuring a Nessus Vulnerability Scan.

Configuring a Nessus Vulnerability Scan Policy.

Enabling the nessusd Service to Start on Boot.

Start the Nessus Service and Set for Automatic Startup.

Obtaining an Activation Code for Nessus Vulnerability Scanner.

Verifying the Nessus Installation Package Integrity.

Downloading the Nessus Installation Package on Kali Linux.

Nessus 4 activation code serial number