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6.5.1. Software Tools and Commands

ToolPurpose
pingTest reachability (ICMP echo). ping -t repeats until stopped on Windows (default is four); Linux ping repeats until stopped unless -c sets a count
traceroute/tracertShow path to destination
mtr / pathpingTraceroute plus repeated pings: per-hop latency and loss (mtr on Linux, pathping on Windows)
nslookup/digQuery DNS
ipconfig/ifconfig/ipView/configure IP settings (ipconfig /all adds DNS servers, DHCP server and MAC; ip addr is the modern Linux command)
netstatShow connections and listening ports (netstat -ano adds the owning process ID on Windows; ss -tulnp is the Linux equivalent)
arpView/manage ARP cache (arp -a lists IP-to-MAC entries)
tcpdump/WiresharkProtocol analyzers: capture and decode packets
nmapPort scanning, network discovery
See how it connects
Alvin Varughese
Written byAlvin Varughese
Founder•20 professional certifications