We are incredibly excited to announce the rollout of Evanole VM version 20260603! This release is packed with powerful new analysis tools, system optimizations, and a brand-new, built-in version manager that will completely change the way you maintain your toolset between major OVA releases.

Let’s dive into what’s new!

Evanole VM Environment Version Manager (EVM)

The biggest addition in this release is EVM, our brand new in-house environment version manager.

Historically, updating your Python-based tools and scripts meant waiting for our next Evanole VM OVA drop or manually wrestling with dependencies. Not anymore! EVM leverages uv and Git under the hood to let you easily update, switch, and auto-install tool versions seamlessly directly from your desktop.

Just click the new EVM desktop icon to view available commands, or jump right into the terminal. Here is what EVM can do for you:

Update Tools on the Fly

Use ‘evm tool update [tool]’ to instantly check for new tagged releases of tracked tools. Whether you want the newest commit of the currently pinned tag or the bleeding-edge latest commit from main, EVM handles it seamlessly.

Note that this won’t upgrade the release version of a tool between versions (i.e. v0.10.0 to v0.11.0), it will update only to the latest commit with the currently pinned tag. You’ll need to use ‘evm tool switch’ to change this.

Seamlessly Switch Versions

Need to roll back to a stable release or test a nightly build? The ‘evm tool switch <tool>’ command allows you to pin to specific tagged versions (like v2.5.0), nightly builds, or even switch directly to a branch like main if you don't mind potential instability. This is also how you’ll update any tools to newer releases, all you do is change the pinned tag to the newer release, as shown below.

Manage Your Tool Roster

Keep track of exactly what is installed and running in your environment. You can use ‘evm tool list’ to view everything currently tracked by EVM, and easily add your own cloned repos to the manager using ‘evm tool add <tool name> <repo path>’, optionally specifying a Python version to pin to. More tools in the VM will be tracked by EVM by default in the future.

Check for System Updates

Curious if a new Evanole VM OVA has dropped? Just run ‘evm system update’ to ping for new major releases of the OS itself (Note: this simply checks for new releases; it does not install the OVA).

New Tools & Additions

We are always expanding the arsenal. In v20260603, we’ve added some fantastic new utilities:

LAVA: Added to the default toolset! To keep the OVA size optimized, the LAVA shortcut is configured to automatically reach out and install the latest version upon its first launch.
Lumyx Path Builder: We’ve integrated this powerful web app into Evanole VM as a shortcut for quick access.
crush-forensics: Now pre-installed and ready to go for your forensic processing needs.

Updates & Optimizations

A lighter, smarter, and more compatible VM experience:

XML Tree Editor: We’ve swapped out XML Notepad in favor of XML Tree Editor. Not only is it a fantastic tool, but it runs natively and doesn’t require a separate WINE prefix. This saves considerable space and boosts reliability.
Wireshark Enhancements: We've added a dedicated Wireshark shortcut configured specifically for compatibility with nRF Bluetooth dongles, saving you setup time for your Bluetooth packet sniffing sessions.
LEAPPs: All LEAPPs have been updated to their latest stable releases to ensure maximum parser coverage, and they’re tracked with EVM.

We can't wait for you to get your hands on what’s new in this latest build.

Checking out Evanole VM v20260603: Introducing EVM!