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Supported Platforms

Downloadable packages for Zui are available that run on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Our current platform recommendations on which to run Zui:

  • Windows
    • Windows 10 or newer
    • Windows Server 2019 or newer
  • macOS
    • macOS Monterey 12.6.5 or newer (see below for hardware considerations)
  • Linux
    • Ubuntu 20.04 or newer
    • Debian 11.0.0 or newer
    • Fedora 31 or newer
    • Rocky 9.0 or newer

The sections below provide details regarding these guidelines and how they are established.

Per-Platform Details​

Windows​

Zui's test automation runs on Windows Server 2019 and therefore this is the platform on which we are best able to ensure quality and prevent regressions. Microsoft support statements simultaneously target both Windows 10 and Windows Server, so our quality expectations between Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019 are equivalent. Several Zui developers also run Windows 10 desktops and regularly perform ad hoc testing with it to reproduce reported issues.

As Microsoft has announced end of support for Windows 8.1 we do not recommend attempting to run Zui on Windows 8.1 or older.

macOS​

Software​

Zui's test automation runs on Monterey 12 and therefore this is the macOS version on which we are best able to ensure quality and prevent regressions. Several Zui developers also run macOS Sonoma 14.1 and regularly perform ad hoc testing with it to reproduce reported issues.

Hardware​

The build procedure for Zui's macOS releases creates binaries intended to run on Intel-based Mac hardware. Zui releases are not yet available that are built specifically for M1-based hardware. However, Apple's Rosetta 2 makes it possible to run Intel-targeted binaries on M1-based Macs.

M1-based hardware has only recently become available for our automation where we run tests and create builds for Zui. Therefore our planned work to deliver M1-specific builds (zui/1266) is still ongoing. In the meantime, please open an issue if you experience a problem specific to M1-based Macs.

Linux​

Zui's test automation runs on Ubuntu 20.04 (.deb package) and therefore this is the Linux distribution on which we are best able to ensure quality and prevent regressions.

An .rpm package is also provided that is periodically smoke tested on Rocky 9.0. The Rocky Linux site explains that Rocky seeks to maintain the RHEL-compatibility mission formerly championed by CentOS. Therefore the Rocky versions listed in this article provide the basis of the Zui supportability expectation for the equivalent RHEL version.

Basic smoke testing has also validated the oldest release on which Zui appeared to work for each common distribution, as follows:

  • Ubuntu 20.04
  • Debian 11.0.0
  • Fedora 31
  • Rocky 9.0

Therefore we do not recommend attempting to run Zui on distributions older than those listed above.

Establishing Platform Supportability​

The determination of the specific versions of platforms for which we can set expectations of quality are based on multiple factors. These include:

The following sections provide more detail, along with guidance if you feel strongly about trying to make Zui run on a non-recommended platform.

Development Tools​

There are two primary development tools on which Zui depends: Electron and Go. Their support statements cite older platform releases than the Zui-specific ones cited above. Therefore the recommendations at the top of this page should be followed.

Automated Testing​

The most extensive testing of Zui is provided via automation that is run on GitHub Actions. Specific platform versions of hosted runners are referenced in the automation for Zui's continuous integration tests and release workflow.

Smoke Testing​

Due to the large number of permutations of platforms (especially as relates to Linux distributions), it is currently infeasible to provide the same exhaustive automated coverage on every version of every possible platform. Occasionally, manual "smoke testing" has been performed on a wider number of platforms to confirm basic functionality. Such a smoke test consists of the following:

  • Install the base platform while accepting the defaults on any offered install-time config options
  • Install the Zui app using the standard package install procedure for the platform
  • Import a test pcap into Zui and confirm the bundled Zeek and Suricata both produce records from it
  • Click the Packets button to extract a slice from the pcap into Wireshark

This exercise was most recently performed in November, 2023 with Zui release v1.4.1.

While we welcome you to open an issue about any problem you experience with Zui regardless of platform version, the priority of the core Zui development team is to maintain stability and introduce new features on the modern platforms that are most widely used. Therefore we may be limited in our ability to provide timely fixes (or any fix at all) for platform versions older/different from those recommended above.

We also understand that certain users may have a strong motivation to make Zui work on other platforms. As Zui is open source, community members are welcomed to perform their own research regarding such platforms and contribute advanced guides that may be of use to other users seeking to run on the same platform. Before embarking on such an effort, we recommend opening an issue to check if we're aware of any existing efforts regarding that platform.