Unlock All 8 Network Adapters in VirtualBox | Full Setup Tutorial with pfSense
Need more than 4 network adapters in Oracle VirtualBox? This tutorial shows you exactly how to unlock and configure all 8 network adapters — even the hidden ones — and explains how to use them with virtual machines like pfSense, Linux machines, and more.
Whether you're building a home lab, a cybersecurity sandbox, or a virtualized network for education or production, this video guides you step-by-step through the process of:
Enabling adapters 5–8 in VirtualBox via command line
Verifying all 8 adapters are active
Assigning the adapters in pfSense
Troubleshooting missing interfaces
Command-line tools used:
VBoxManage (VirtualBox CLI)
Tested on:
Oracle VirtualBox 7.1.12
pfSense 2.7.x
Kali Linux 2025.2
Windows Batch File Example
-------------------------------
@echo off
:: Replace 'YourVMNameHere' with the actual name of your VM
set VMNAME="YourVMNameHere"
:: Enable network adapters 5 through 8
VBoxManage modifyvm %VMNAME% --nic5 nat
VBoxManage modifyvm %VMNAME% --nic6 nat
VBoxManage modifyvm %VMNAME% --nic7 nat
VBoxManage modifyvm %VMNAME% --nic8 nat
echo Adapters 5 to 8 are now enabled for %VMNAME%.
Linux/macOS Shell Script Version
------------------------------------
#!/bin/bash
VMNAME="YourVMNameHere"
for i in {5..8}; do
VBoxManage modifyvm "$VMNAME" --nic$i nat
done
echo "Adapters 5–8 enabled for $VMNAME"
Oracle Virtual Box VBoxManage Pages
-------------------------------------------------------------
https://docs.oracle.com/en/virtualiza...
https://docs.oracle.com/en/virtualiza...
#virtualbox #pfSense #HomeLab #LinuxNetworking #TechTutorial #CybersecurityLab #NetworkAdapters #OracleVirtualBox #ITEducation #Virtualization
00:00 Introduction
00:50 The Need for pfSense and Another VM
03:45 Setting Up the New Adapters in Kali
06:11 Marker 11
09:25 Using the VBoxManage Command
10:15 Enabling More Adapters
11:58 Checking Currently Enabled NICs in pfSense VM
13:38 Assigning NIC Numbers
16:09 Creating A Batch File For This Work