Kali Linux has released version 2024.1, the first release for 2024, with four new tools, a theme refresh, and desktop.
See also: Kali Linux 2023.4 released with GNOME 45 and 15 new tools
Kali Linux is a distribution created for cybersecurity and ethical hackers to perform penetration testing, security audits, and research against networks.
As usual with the first release of the year, the Kali team has released new visual elements, including wallpapers and updates to the boot menu and login screen.
Four new tools in Kali Linux 2024.1
As with any new release, it wouldn't be as fun without some new tools to play with.
Below are the four new tools added to Kali Linux 2024.1:
- blue-hydra – Bluetooth device discovery service
- opentaxii – TAXII server implementation by EclecticIQ
- readpe – Command line tools for editing Windows PE files
- snort – Flexible Network Intrusion Detection System
In addition to the new tools, Kali states that it has upgraded the kernel version to 6.6.
Annual theme renewal
As part of the first release of the year, the Kali team is adding new visual elements to the Kali Linux 2024.1 distribution.
“This year marks the unveiling of our newest theme, which was carefully designed to improve the user experience from the moment you turn on the system,” Kali’s announcement reads.
“With major updates to the boot menu, login screen, and a variety of exciting desktop wallpapers, for both our regular and Kali Purple releases.“
This version of Kali also includes two new wallpapers suggested by @arszilla.
See also: ANY.RUN Sandbox: Allows SOC and DFIR teams to analyze advanced Linux malware
New desktop changes
In addition to the visual changes, the Kali team also added new features to the Xfce and Gnome.
For Xfce users using Xclip, they can now easily copy the VPN IP address to the clipboard, making it easier to manage their VPN connections.
For Gnome users, the eye-of-gnome (eog) image viewer has been replaced by Loupe , while the latest Nautilus file manager brings speed improvements .
How to get Kali Linux 2024.1
To start using Kali Linux 2024.1, you can upgrade your existing installation, choose a platform, or directly download the ISO images for new installations and live distributions.
For those upgrading from a previous version, you can use the commands below to upgrade to the latest version.
echo "deb https://http.kali.org/kali kali-rolling main contrib non-free non-free-firmware" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list sudo apt update && sudo apt -y full-upgrade cp -vrbi /etc/skel/. ~/ [ -f /var/run/reboot-required ] && sudo reboot -fSee also: Arch Linux Installer: Hyprland WM Support, Limine Bootloader
If you are using Kali on Windows Subsystem for Linux, upgrade to WSL2 for a better experience, including the ability to use graphical applications.
You can check the version of WSL that Kali is using with the command 'wsl -l -v' in a Windows command window.
After the upgrade, you can check if the upgrade was successful using the following command:
grep VERSION /etc/os-release
You can see the full changelog for Kali 2024.1 on the Kali website.
Source: bleepingcomputer
