Network Utility is a program on Macs that provides information about a network and performs simple tasks. It has nine core functions, including Info, Netstat, AppleTalk, Ping, Lookup, Traceroute, Whois, Finger, and Port Scan. It can display network information, traffic information, routing tables, and open sockets. It also offers diagnostic functions for AppleTalk and allows for comprehensive host examination. Its Port Scan feature can scan for open ports and help with network security.
Network Utility is a program that comes with modern Macs, as part of OSX, that has a number of different utilities to help provide information about a network and perform simple tasks. In a basic installation, the network utility resides in /Applications/Utilities and has the name Network Utility.app. The Network Utility provides nine core aspects of functionality: Info, Netstat, AppleTalk, Ping, Lookup, Traceroute, Whois, Finger and Port Scan.
The utility’s Info function allows the user to easily find network information accessed through different interfaces, accessed via a drop-down menu. The information includes the hardware address used, IP address assigned, link speed, link status, and vendor information about the network adapter. It also provides traffic information, including incoming and outgoing packets. While it lacks advanced troubleshooting features, it does show errors in both incoming and outgoing packets and provides a collision count.
The Netstat function allows for a greater degree of information about network activity than just Info. This includes information separated into TCP information, including detailed packet statistics, UDP information with datagram information, as well as ICMP, IGMP, IPSec, IP6 information , ICPM6, IPSec, RIP6 and PFKey. Netstat can also provide a routing table, with complete information included. It can also display multicast data and show the current status of any sockets that the computer may have open, closed or pending.
For computers using AppleTalk, Network Utility offers a variety of diagnostic functions, including error statistics and counts, and all zones of a network. The Ping utility used by the program is similar to other ping services, allowing you to enter a destination address and a specific number of pings to send. For each ping, of 64 byte packets, a transit time is provided, which helps troubleshoot network connection.
The search included in the utility allows for a comprehensive examination of hosts. Basic information can be displayed in a block, but more specific queries can also be provided. The lookup utility can return information about Internet address, canonical name, CPU/OS type, mailboxes, mailbox exchange, nameservers, hostnames, start of authority, text information, and services notice. It also provides an option to view all this information in one panel.
The utility’s Traceroute, Whois, and Finger options are all analogous to those found in other operating systems. Traceroute displays the full path from the host computer to the destination, listing the jump times. Whois queries a whois service to return information about a domain name registrant. The Finger utility allows a user to examine a specific user profile on a specific server.
The Network Utility’s Port Scan feature allows you to scan a range for open ports. This can be designated by domain name or IP address and a scan can be set up to search for all open ports or to search only within a certain range. Port scanning is useful for both network mapping and network security. By performing a port scan, a network administrator can find potential weaknesses in the network and fix them before they are exploited by an attacker.
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