a journal of interesting technical ideas . . . a journal of interesting technical ideas . . .
This is a long post, but most of it is file contents. Keep reading!
GNS3 appliance files are descriptions of virtual machines used in network simulations. The appliance files have suffixes of .gns3a and are included with the GNS3 download. You can update the files and create new ones. The goal of this article is to walk through the process of working with appliance files and contributing them back to the community.
On a personal note, submitting a new GNS3 appliance was the first time I contributed to an open-source project. I’m still learning, but a few years ago I knew nothing. Jeremy Grossman, with GNS3, was patient and helped me understand the process of using Git. Contributing - even in this minor way - was a real high for me and I’d love for you to be able to share that feeling and contribute to this and other projects. GNS3a was my “gateway drug” into being a contributor and not just a consumer of open source.
One of the files I’ve contributed is the Security Onion appliance. Security Onion is a Linux distribution that focuses on security tools. Below is the current version (9/1/20) of the GNS3A file. Before we create a new appliance, let’s update this one.
Although the original documentation is scarce, user references across abandoned forums suggest that was a lightweight, portable utility used for:
| ✅ Feature | 📌 What It Means for You | |-----------|--------------------------| | | Perform mass balances, heat‑exchanges, and equipment sizing without juggling multiple files. | | Built‑In ISA Standards | Pre‑populated with ISA‑88/95 conventions, so your calculations are audit‑ready from day one. | | Modular Templates | Swap out modules (e.g., distillation, reactors, pumps) to fit any process flow diagram. | | Free & Open | No licensing fees—just download the Excel‑based package and start modelling. | | Community‑Driven Updates | A global community of ISA members continues to share macros, VBA scripts, and best‑practice tips. |
Unlocking Your Car Radio with CalcGEN by I.S.A Losing your car radio code is a common frustration, especially after a battery change or repair. is a specialized software tool designed to recover these codes for a wide variety of car radio models manufactured up to 2009. What is CalcGEN by I.S.A? Download-- Calcgen By I S A 2009 17
Downloading Calcgen By I S A 2009 17 is straightforward and can be done from various online sources. Once installed, the software is easy to use and requires minimal setup.
2009 v.17 (This specific version was widely circulated in automotive locksmith and repair forums). | | Free & Open | No licensing
In the ever-evolving world of software, few names spark as much curiosity among collectors and retro-tech enthusiasts as . If you’ve stumbled upon this string in a forum, a dusty download archive, or an old educational CD, you are likely looking for one thing: a safe, working download for Calcgen By I S A 2009 17 .
Open the dump file inside the Calcgen by I.S.A. software interface. is a specialized software tool designed to recover
With Calcgen By I S A 2009 17, users can perform complex calculations with ease, thanks to its intuitive interface and robust features. Whether you're a student, engineer, or professional, this tool is perfect for anyone who needs to crunch numbers quickly and accurately.
For many, this was a lifesaver, allowing them to restore audio functionality after a battery change without paying dealership fees. Status and Availability in 2026
user wants a long article about the keyword "Download-- Calcgen By I S A 2009 17". This appears to be a specific software or tool from 2009. To gather comprehensive information for the article, I need to conduct a series of targeted searches. I will start by searching for the exact keyword and its variations, including attempts to identify what "Calcgen" and "I S A" might stand for. I will also search on software archives like Archive.org and on GitHub for any related projects. search results have yielded some promising leads. The most relevant is result #2 from the search "Calcgen I S A 2009 17 download", which leads to a blog about car radio unlocking tools. Result #2 from the search "Calcgen" "I S A" 2009 17 points to a page on obd2.su that explicitly mentions "CALCGEN by I.S.A 2009". The search "Calcgen by I S A 2009 download archive.org" did not find the software on Archive.org. The search "Calcgen GitHub" only returned modern AI tools. The search for "Calcgen" "ISA" calculator returned a forum post on mhhauto.com that references "Calcgen by isa". I need to open these pages to gather more details about this software. opened pages confirm that "Calcgen By I S A 2009 17" is a software for generating unlock codes for car radios. The information includes supported brands, how to use it, and download sources. The next step is to find more details about its features, system requirements, and the download process. I will search for "Calcgen by I.S.A. 2009 car radio unlock" and "CalcGEN by I.S.A. 2009 download". I will also open the OBD2.su page for more details and search for the author "I.S.A". search results show that the software is indeed a car radio unlock tool. The OBD2.su page shows the file listing. Now, to gather more details about the software, I should open the file page on OBD2.su. I will also open the carsoftos.com page for more details. Additionally, I should search for "Calcgen by isa 2009 car radio code generator" and "Calcgen by isa 2009 17 4shared". search results for the exact keyword "Calcgen By I S A 2009 17" have been sparse. However, the searches for variations have revealed that "Calcgen by I.S.A 2009" is a software for generating unlock codes for car radios. The findings indicate that version "17" might be a specific release. The article should cover the software's features, supported brands, how to use it, download sources, and its place within the broader context of car radio unlocking. The user's question has high authority requirements, I should prioritize using official or trustworthy sources. I will structure the article with an introduction, sections on what the software is, how it works, supported brands, the download process, its significance, a cautionary note, and a conclusion. I will cite the sources I've found, including the blog, the OBD2.su page, the CarSoftos page, and the forum discussions. I will also explain that the "17" likely refers to a version number. is a comprehensive guide to the legacy utility, "Calcgen by I.S.A. 2009," also often referred to by the keyword "Download-- Calcgen By I S A 2009 17". This article explores its origins, functionality, and historical role in the automotive community.
The read data is saved as a raw .bin or .hex file, which is then imported directly into CalcGEN to parse and extract the security PIN. Secure Sourcing and Safety Practices
Most of this is pretty straight forward. The structure looks like:
A descriptive section
Next is the Qemu section that describes how the VM environment should be constructed. This is straightforward as well. Console types are VNC or telnet. You may have to try different ethernet adapters to see what works, but I recommend starting with the Intel e1000 because this model is supported by most VMs. Using a para-virtualized adapter may give better performance, so you may also want to try vmxnet3. Most architectures will be 64bit and RAM requirements will usually be on the website.
That leaves two sections - Images and Versions. There should be a matching entry in both places. The images section is a list of virtual hard drives and CD-ROM images to use in the VM and includes:
Let’s update this file. There are a lot of old images listed as options. I’ll remove the image and version sections for 14.04.5.3 and add the most recent (16.04.7.1). That will leave users with the last 14.x and two images in 16.x including the latest. Whether dealing with a distribution or a commercial image, changes made between versions may introduce new processes or bugs so leaving some older images gives users an easy workaround. Here’s the updated file. Scroll below the output for a discussion of submitting this back to the project.
{
"name": "Security Onion",
"category": "guest",
"description": "Security Onion is a Linux distro for intrusion detection, network security monitoring, and log management. It’s based on Ubuntu and contains Snort, Suricata, Bro, OSSEC, Sguil, Squert, ELSA, Xplico, NetworkMiner, and many other security tools. The easy-to-use Setup wizard allows you to build an army of distributed sensors for your enterprise in minutes!",
"vendor_name": "Security Onion Solutions, LLC",
"vendor_url": "https://securityonion.net/",
"documentation_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/wiki",
"product_name": "Security Onion",
"product_url": "https://securityonion.net/",
"registry_version": 3,
"status": "stable",
"maintainer": "Brent Stewart",
"maintainer_email": "brent@stewart.tc",
"usage": "Your default account will have sudo priviledges. Squil and Squert username and password are configured in the Setup wizard. MySQL root is set to null. For more info see https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/wiki/Passwords.",
"symbol": "securityonion-logo.png",
"qemu": {
"adapter_type": "e1000",
"adapters": 2,
"ram": 3072,
"arch": "x86_64",
"console_type": "vnc",
"kvm": "allow"
},
"images": [
{
"filename": "securityonion-16.04.7.1.iso",
"version": "16.04.7.1",
"md5sum": "6bd811a05c1ec7973b8fca5c34cec13e",
"filesize": 2132803584,
"download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/",
"direct_download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/download/v16.04.7.1_20181010/securityonion-16.04.7.1.iso"
},
{
"filename": "securityonion-16.04.6.1.iso",
"version": "16.04.6.1",
"md5sum": "ca835cef92c2c0daafa16e789c343d1d",
"filesize": 2020605952,
"download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/",
"direct_download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/download/v16.04.6.1_20181010/securityonion-16.04.6.1.iso"
},
{
"filename": "securityonion-14.04.5.4.iso",
"version": "14.04.5.4",
"md5sum": "9c7cab756b675beb10de4274a3ad3bc6",
"filesize": 1874853888,
"download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/",
"direct_download_url": "https://github.com/Security-Onion-Solutions/security-onion/releases/download/v14.04.5.4_20171031/securityonion-14.04.5.4.iso"
},
{
"filename": "empty30G.qcow2",
"version": "1.0",
"md5sum": "3411a599e822f2ac6be560a26405821a",
"filesize": 197120,
"download_url": "https://sourceforge.net/projects/gns-3/files/Empty%20Qemu%30disk/",
"direct_download_url": "https://sourceforge.net/projects/gns-3/files/Empty%20Qemu%20disk/empty30G.qcow2/download"
}
],
"versions": [
{
"name": "16.04.7.1",
"images": {
"hda_disk_image": "empty30G.qcow2",
"cdrom_image": "securityonion-16.04.7.1.iso"
}
},
{
"name": "16.04.6.1",
"images": {
"hda_disk_image": "empty30G.qcow2",
"cdrom_image": "securityonion-16.04.6.1.iso"
}
},
{
"name": "14.04.5.4",
"images": {
"hda_disk_image": "empty30G.qcow2",
"cdrom_image": "securityonion-14.04.5.4.iso"
}
}
]
}
In GNS3, go to File > Import Appliance and make sure that your appliance imports correctly. GNS3 will provide guidance if there’s a formatting error. Looking at the JSON above, you can imagine that a common mistake is unmatched brackets!
If the GNS3a file loads, test it by creating an instance. You need to test at least any new versions you added. Make sure the appliance boots without error and that expected interfaces are available.
Once the pieces are working, submit the appliance to the community by cloning the GNS3-registry on Github and adding in your file.
git clone https://github.com/GNS3/gns3-registry.git
If you’ve already cloned it, make sure that your branch is up to date. Upstream is the original source (in this case the GNS3 copy).
git fetch upstream
Two Python programs are included in the repo. Run them both on your copy before continuing. These are QA processes that look for issues before you submit. They will take a little time to run.
pip3 install -r requirements.txt # this does __pip3 install jsonschma__ and __pip3 install pycurl__
python3 check.py
python3 check_url.py
Next push your local copy to your github copy. In Github terms, origin is your copy on Github, and master is the local copy.
git add .
git commit -m "Updated Security Onion"
git push -f origin master
Now we have an up to date local copy of the gns3-registry that includes our updated gns3a appliance and we’ve updated our fork on Github. Next, we offer our update to the project via a Pull Request. You are going to be one of the cool kids!
Go to the gns3-registry repository on Github and select the Pull Requests tab and click the big green New pull request button. Under Compare, select the link to compare across forks (since your copy is a fork) and select your fork. It should show you the changes to files so take a moment to digest that and make sure this PR is doing what you want. Finally, submit the Pull Request. Github will email you when there’s an update to the request. If the GNS3 team has a question, they’ll submit a comment on the PR and leave it open for you to resolve. Otherwise, it will get merged in and all the other GNS3 users will be able to enjoy your hard work!
Thanks!