How to Build a Home Lab for Ethical Hacking

Introduction A home lab is essential for aspiring ethical hackers and cybersecurity professionals. It provides a safe environment to practice penetration testing, analyze vulnerabilities, and develop security skills without legal risks. This guide will help you set up a home lab step by step. 1. Essential Hardware Requirements To set up a fully functional ethical hacking lab, you need the right hardware. Recommended Specifications: CPU: Intel i5/i7 or AMD Ryzen 5/7 (with virtualization support) RAM: Minimum 8GB (16GB recommended) Storage: SSD with at least 500GB Network: A dedicated router or access to a virtualized network 2. Software & Operating Systems Host Operating System Your primary operating system should support virtualization. Recommended options: Windows 11 macOS Linux (Ubuntu, Kali Linux) Virtualization Software VMware Workstation (Paid, feature-rich) VirtualBox (Free, open-source) Virtual Machines to Install Kali Linux – A must-ha...