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Foreword
Wireshark is a powerful tool that many network managers aspire to utilize effectively; however, they frequently encounter challenges due to insufficient documentation This article aims to enhance the usability of Wireshark, as part of the ongoing efforts by the Wireshark team to provide better resources and support for users.
We hope that you find it useful, and look forward to your comments.
Who should read this document?
The intended audience of this book is anyone using Wireshark.
This book offers a comprehensive overview of Wireshark, covering both fundamental concepts and advanced features Given the program's evolution into a complex tool over the years, it may not encompass every single feature of Wireshark.
This book does not aim to cover network sniffing or specific network protocols in detail For comprehensive information on these subjects, please refer to the Wireshark Wiki at [http://wiki.wireshark.org](http://wiki.wireshark.org).
This book provides essential guidance on installing Wireshark and navigating its graphical user interface, including the menu and advanced features that may not be immediately apparent It aims to help both new and experienced users troubleshoot common issues encountered while using Wireshark.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the whole Wireshark team for their assistance In particular, the authors would like to thank:
• Gerald Combs, for initiating the Wireshark project and funding to do this documentation.
• Guy Harris, for many helpful hints and a great deal of patience in reviewing this document.
• Gilbert Ramirez, for general encouragement and helpful hints along the way.
The authors would also like to thank the following people for their helpful feedback on this document:
• Pat Eyler, for his suggestions on improving the example on generating a backtrace.
• Martin Regner, for his various suggestions and corrections.
• Graeme Hewson, for a lot of grammatical corrections.
The authors would like to acknowledge those man page and README authors for the Wireshark project from who sections of this document borrow heavily:
• Scott Renfro from whose mergecap man page Section D.8, “mergecap: Merging multiple capture files into one ” is derived.
• Ashok Narayanan from whose text2pcap man page Section D.9, “text2pcap: Converting ASCII hexdumps to network captures ” is derived.
• Frank Singleton from whose README.idl2wrs Section D.10, “idl2wrs: Creating dissectors fromCORBA IDL files ” is derived.
About this document
This book, initially created by Richard Sharpe with support from the Wireshark Fund, has undergone updates by Ed Warnicke and has been recently redesigned and enhanced by Ulf Lamping.
It is written in DocBook/XML.
You will find some specially marked parts in this book:
You should pay attention to a warning, as otherwise data loss might occur.
A note will point you to common mistakes and things that might not be obvious.
Tips will be helpful for your everyday work using Wireshark.
Where to get the latest copy of this document?
The latest copy of this documentation can always be found at: http://www.wireshark.org/docs/.
Providing feedback about this document
Should you have any feedback about this document, please send it to the authors through wireshark- dev[AT]wireshark.org.
Introduction
What is Wireshark?
Wireshark is a network packet analyzer A network packet analyzer will try to capture network packets and tries to display that packet data as detailed as possible.
A network packet analyzer functions similarly to a voltmeter for electricians, serving as a tool to scrutinize the data flowing through network cables This device allows users to gain insights into network activity, providing a higher-level understanding of the information being transmitted.
In the past, such tools were either very expensive, proprietary, or both However, with the advent of Wireshark, all that has changed.
Wireshark is perhaps one of the best open source packet analyzers available today.
Here are some examples people use Wireshark for:
• network administrators use it to troubleshoot network problems
• network security engineers use it to examine security problems
• developers use it to debug protocol implementations
• people use it to learn network protocol internals
Beside these examples, Wireshark can be helpful in many other situations too.
The following are some of the many features Wireshark provides:
• Available for UNIX and Windows.
• Capture live packet data from a network interface.
• Display packets with very detailed protocol information.
• Open and Save packet data captured.
• Import and Export packet data from and to a lot of other capture programs.
• Filter packets on many criteria.
• Search for packets on many criteria.
• Colorize packet display based on filters.
However, to really appreciate its power, you have to start using it.
Figure 1.1, “ Wireshark captures packets and allows you to examine their content ” shows Wireshark having captured some packets and waiting for you to examine them.
Figure 1.1 Wireshark captures packets and allows you to examine their content
1.1.3 Live capture from many different network media
Wireshark is capable of capturing traffic from various network media types, including wireless LAN, regardless of its name The supported media types vary based on factors such as the operating system in use For a comprehensive overview of the supported media types, please visit [Wireshark's official wiki](http://wiki.wireshark.org/CaptureSetup/NetworkMedia).
1.1.4 Import files from many other capture programs
Wireshark can open packets captured from a large number of other capture programs For a list of input formats see Section 5.2.2, “Input File Formats”.
1.1.5 Export files for many other capture programs
Wireshark can save packets captured in a large number of formats of other capture programs For a list of output formats see Section 5.3.2, “Output File Formats”.
There are protocol decoders (or dissectors, as they are known in Wireshark) for a great many protocols:see Appendix B, Protocols and Protocol Fields.
Wireshark is a free and open-source software project released under the GNU General Public License (GPL), allowing users to install it on multiple computers without concerns about license fees or keys Its source code is openly available, enabling easy addition of new protocols through plugins or direct integration, fostering a collaborative environment for enhancements.
Here are some things Wireshark does not provide:
Wireshark is not an intrusion detection system and will not alert you to unauthorized activities on your network However, if unusual events occur, Wireshark can assist in diagnosing and understanding the underlying issues.
Wireshark is a passive network analysis tool that solely measures network traffic without manipulating it It does not send packets or engage in active network operations, with the exception of optional name resolutions that can be disabled.
System Requirements
What you'll need to get Wireshark up and running
• The values below are the minimum requirements and only "rules of thumb" for use on a moderately used network
Managing a busy network can lead to significant memory and disk space consumption For instance, capturing data on a saturated 100MBit/s Ethernet connection can generate approximately 750MBytes per minute Therefore, equipping your system with a powerful processor, ample memory, and sufficient disk space is essential for efficient performance.
• If Wireshark is running out of memory it crashes, see: http://wiki.wireshark.org/KnownBugs/ OutOfMemory for details and workarounds
Wireshark's performance on multiprocessor or hyperthread systems is limited, as its time-consuming tasks, such as packet filtering, are primarily single-threaded However, there is an exception during real-time packet capture, where the traffic capturing occurs in one process while packet dissection and display run in another process, allowing for potential benefits from dual processors.
• Windows XP Home, XP Pro, XP Tablet PC, XP Media Center, Server 2003, Vista, 2008, 7, or 2008 R2
• Any modern 32-bit x86 or 64-bit AMD64/x86-64 processor.
• 128MB available RAM Larger capture files require more RAM.
• 75MB available disk space Capture files require additional disk space.
• 800*600 (1280*1024 or higher recommended) resolution with at least 65536 (16bit) colors (256 colors should work if Wireshark is installed with the "legacy GTK1" selection of the Wireshark 1.0.x releases)
• A supported network card for capturing:
• Ethernet: Any card supported by Windows should work See the wiki pages on Ethernet capture and offloading for issues that may affect your environment.
• 802.11: See the Wireshark wiki page Capturing raw 802.11 information may be difficult without special equipment.
• Other media: See http://wiki.wireshark.org/CaptureSetup/NetworkMedia
Many older versions of Windows are no longer supported due to a lack of developer usage, which complicates maintenance and support Additionally, essential libraries that Wireshark relies on, such as GTK and WinPcap, have ceased support for these outdated systems Furthermore, Microsoft has also discontinued support for these older Windows versions.
Windows 95, 98, and ME are outdated and no longer receive support, lacking essential memory protection features like VirtualProtect that enhance program safety and security The last compatible version for these systems was Ethereal 0.99.0, which includes WinPcap 3.1, available for download at http://ethereal.com/download.html Some users may need to install Ethereal 0.10.0 on certain systems due to compatibility issues, and Microsoft officially ended support for Windows 98 and ME in 2006.
Windows NT 4.0 is incompatible with newer versions of Wireshark, with Wireshark 0.99.4 being the last version that supports it, which includes WinPcap 3.1 This version can still be downloaded from [Wireshark's official site](http://www.wireshark.org/download/win32/all-versions/wireshark-setup-0.99.4.exe) Note that Microsoft discontinued support for Windows NT 4.0 in 2004.
Windows 2000 is incompatible with current versions of Wireshark, with Wireshark 1.2.x being the last supported version that includes WinPcap 4.1.2 Users can still download this version from the all-versions section at [Wireshark's website](http://www.wireshark.org/download/win32/all-versions/) It's important to note that Microsoft ended support for Windows 2000 in 2010.
• Windows CE and the embedded versions of Windows are not currently supported.
• Multiple monitor setups are supported but may behave a bit strangely.
Wireshark currently runs on most UNIX platforms The system requirements should be comparable to the Windows values listed above.
Binary packages are available for at least the following platforms:
• Red Hat Fedora/Enterprise Linux
If a binary package is not available for your platform, you should download the source and try to build it.Please report your experiences to wireshark-dev[AT]wireshark.org
Where to get Wireshark?
You can download the latest version of Wireshark from the official website at [wireshark.org](http://www.wireshark.org/download.html), where you have the option to select from multiple download mirrors.
A new Wireshark version will typically become available every 4-8 months.
If you want to be notified about new Wireshark releases, you should subscribe to the wireshark-announce mailing list You will find more details in Section 1.6.4, “Mailing Lists”.
A brief history of Wireshark
In late 1997, Gerald Combs began developing Ethereal, now known as Wireshark, to create a tool for identifying networking issues while simultaneously enhancing his understanding of networking.
Ethereal, which was first launched in July 1998 as version 0.2.0 after multiple development delays, quickly gained traction with an influx of patches, bug reports, and supportive feedback, marking the beginning of its successful journey.
Not long after that, Gilbert Ramirez saw its potential and contributed a low-level dissector to it.
In October, 1998, Guy Harris of Network Appliance was looking for something better than tcpview, so he started applying patches and contributing dissectors to Ethereal.
In late 1998, Richard Sharpe recognized the potential of TCP/IP while teaching courses on the subject Although it initially lacked support for certain necessary protocols, he discovered that new protocols could be easily integrated This led him to actively contribute dissectors and patches to enhance its functionality.
Since the project's inception, the list of contributors has grown significantly, with most starting from a protocol that Wireshark or Ethereal did not support Many of these contributors copied existing dissectors and shared their code with the team.
In 2006 the project moved house and re-emerged under a new name: Wireshark.
In 2008, Wireshark reached a significant milestone with the release of version 1.0, marking the culmination of ten years of development This version was recognized as the first complete release, incorporating essential features Notably, its launch coincided with the inaugural Wireshark Developer and User Conference, known as SharkFest.
Development and maintenance of Wireshark
Wireshark, originally created by Gerald Combs, is continuously developed and maintained by a dedicated team of contributors who focus on bug fixes and enhancing its features.
Wireshark has seen significant contributions from numerous individuals who have developed protocol dissectors, a trend that is anticipated to persist For a comprehensive list of contributors, users can refer to the about dialog box within Wireshark or visit the authors page on the official Wireshark website.
Wireshark is a free and open-source software tool released under the GNU General Public License (GPL), allowing users to access and modify its source code Users are encouraged to tailor Wireshark to their specific requirements and are invited to share any enhancements with the Wireshark development team.
You gain three benefits by contributing your improvements back to the community:
By sharing valuable contributions, you not only assist others but also gain appreciation from those who benefit from your efforts, much like the developers of Wireshark have done for countless users.
The Wireshark developers are likely to enhance your contributions, as there is always potential for further improvement Additionally, they may incorporate advanced features based on your code, which could also benefit you personally.
The Wireshark maintainers and developers will ensure that your code remains compatible with the latest updates, addressing any API changes or modifications as needed With frequent updates to Wireshark, you can easily download the latest version from the website, and your contributions will be seamlessly integrated, requiring no additional effort on your part.
The Wireshark source code and binary kits for some platforms are all available on the download page of the Wireshark website: http://www.wireshark.org/download.html.
Reporting problems and getting help
If you have problems, or need help with Wireshark, there are several places that may be of interest to you (well, besides this guide of course).
You will find lots of useful information on the Wireshark homepage at http://www.wireshark.org.
The Wireshark Wiki, accessible at [wiki.wireshark.org](http://wiki.wireshark.org), offers extensive resources on Wireshark and packet capturing, including detailed guides not found in the user manual It features instructions on capturing packets in switched networks, ongoing development of a protocol reference, and much more valuable content for users.
You can easily enhance the wiki by sharing your expertise on specific topics, such as a network protocol you're familiar with, directly through your web browser.
The "Frequently Asked Questions" will list often asked questions and the corresponding answers.
Before sending an email to the mailing lists provided, please read the FAQ, as it frequently addresses common questions This will help you save time for yourself and others, considering the large number of subscribers on these lists.
You will find the FAQ inside Wireshark by clicking the menu item Help/Contents and selecting the FAQ page in the dialog shown.
The Wireshark website offers an online version of its content, which is usually more current and user-friendly due to its HTML format You can access it at [Wireshark FAQ](http://www.wireshark.org/faq.html).
mailing list is dedicated to developers interested in creating protocol dissectors, providing a platform for collaboration and development discussions.
You can subscribe to various mailing lists directly from the Wireshark website at http://www.wireshark.org To do this, simply click on the mailing lists link located on the left side of the homepage Additionally, all mailing lists are archived and accessible on the Wireshark website.
To find answers quickly, check the list archives to see if your question has been asked previously This can save you time by providing you with responses that may already exist, eliminating the need to wait for new replies.
Before reporting any problems, please make sure you have installed the latest version of Wireshark.
When reporting problems with Wireshark, it is helpful if you supply the following information:
1 The version number of Wireshark and the dependent libraries linked with it, e.g GTK+, etc You can obtain this from the about dialog box of Wireshark, or with the command wireshark -v.
2 Information about the platform you run Wireshark on.
3 A detailed description of your problem.
4 If you get an error/warning message, copy the text of that message (and also a few lines before and after it, if there are some), so others may find the place where things go wrong Please don't give something like: "I get a warning while doing x" as this won't give a good idea where to look at.
Avoid sending large files over 100KB to mailing lists; instead, include a note indicating that additional data is available upon request Sending large files can irritate recipients who may not be interested in your specific issue Those who genuinely wish to assist you will reach out for more information if needed.
If you send captured data to the mailing lists, be sure they don't contain any sensitive or confidential information like passwords or such.
1.6.6 Reporting Crashes on UNIX/Linux platforms
When reporting crashes with Wireshark, it is helpful if you supply the traceback information (besides the information mentioned in "Reporting Problems").
You can obtain this traceback information with the following commands:
$ gdb `whereis wireshark | cut -f2 -d: | cut -d' ' -f2` core >& bt.txt backtrace
Type the characters in the first line verbatim! Those are back-tics there!
To use the backtrace command in gdb, enter it exactly as shown after the initial line, though it won't be displayed on the screen Pressing Control-D will exit gdb and generate a file named bt.txt in the current directory, which should be included with your bug report.
If you do not have gdb available, you will have to check out your operating system's debugger.
You should mail the traceback to the wireshark-dev[AT]wireshark.org mailing list.
1.6.7 Reporting Crashes on Windows platforms
Windows distributions do not include symbol files (.pdb) due to their large size, making it impossible to generate a meaningful backtrace file If you encounter a crash, please report it using the standard reporting mechanism outlined above.
Building and Installing Wireshark
Introduction
As with all things, there must be a beginning, and so it is with Wireshark To use Wireshark, you must:
• Obtain a binary package for your operating system, or
• Obtain the source and build Wireshark for your operating system.
Many Linux distributions include Wireshark, but they often provide outdated versions Currently, no other UNIX systems or Microsoft Windows include Wireshark by default Therefore, it's essential to know how to obtain the latest version of Wireshark and the installation process.
This chapter shows you how to obtain source and binary packages, and how to build Wireshark from source, should you choose to do so.
The following are the general steps you would use:
1 Download the relevant package for your needs, e.g source or binary distribution.
2 Build the source into a binary, if you have downloaded the source.
This may involve building and/or installing other necessary packages.
3 Install the binaries into their final destinations.
Obtaining the source and binary distributions
You can download both source and binary distributions of Wireshark from the official website at http://www.wireshark.org Just click on the download link and choose either the source package or the binary package from the nearest mirror site.
If you haven't previously downloaded Wireshark, you'll likely need to download various source packages to build it from source This process is explained in more detail in the following sections.
Once you have downloaded the relevant files, you can go on to the next step.
Although the Wireshark website offers various binary packages, there may not be one available for your specific platform, and these packages are often outdated compared to the latest release, as they are provided by contributors with access to the respective platforms.
For this reason, you might want to pull down the source distribution and build it, as the process is relatively simple.
Before you build Wireshark under UNIX
Before you build Wireshark from sources, or install a binary package, you must ensure that you have the following other packages installed:
• GTK+, The GIMP Tool Kit.
You will also need Glib Both can be obtained from www.gtk.org
• libpcap, the packet capture software that Wireshark uses.
You can obtain libpcap from www.tcpdump.org
Depending on your system, you may be able to install these from binaries, e.g RPMs, or you may need to obtain them in source code form and build them.
If you have downloaded the source for GTK+, the instructions shown in Example 2.1, “Building GTK+ from source” may provide some help in building it:
Example 2.1 Building GTK+ from source gzip -dc gtk+-2.21.1.tar.gz | tar xvf -
cd gtk+-2.21.1
make install
When building GTK+ from source, ensure that the version number in Example 2.1 corresponds to the version you have downloaded The directory name may vary with different GTK+ versions, and you can determine the correct directory by running the command `tar xvf -`, which will display the appropriate directory name to navigate to.
To extract the contents of gtk+-2.21.1.tar.gz on Linux or with GNU tar, you can use the command `tar zxvf gtk+-2.21.1.tar.gz` Additionally, many UNIX systems allow the use of `gunzip -c` or `gzcat` as alternatives to `gzip -dc`.
If you downloaded GTK+ or any other tar file using Windows, you may find your file called gtk+-2_21_1_tar.gz.
You should consult the GTK+ web site if any errors occur in carrying out the instructions in Example 2.1,
To build and install libpcap, refer to the general instructions in Example 2.2 If your operating system lacks support for tcpdump, consider downloading and installing it from the tcpdump website.
Example 2.2 Building and installing libpcap gzip -dc libpcap-1.0.0.tar.Z | tar xvf -
cd libpcap-1.0.0
make install
The directory you need to access varies based on the version of libpcap you have downloaded To identify the unpacked directory name, simply use the command "tar xvf -".
For Red Hat 6.x and its derivatives, such as Mandrake, you can easily install necessary packages via RPMs While most Linux systems typically include GTK+ and GLib, you will likely need to install their development versions The commands outlined in Example 2.3 will ensure that all required RPMs are installed if they are not already present on your system.
To install the necessary RPM packages on Red Hat Linux 6.2 and later versions, navigate to the directory containing the RPM files by using the command `cd /mnt/cdrom/RedHat/RPMS` Then, execute the following commands to install the required packages: `rpm -ivh glib-1.2.6-3.i386.rpm`, `rpm -ivh glib-devel-1.2.6-3.i386.rpm`, `rpm -ivh gtk+-1.2.6-7.i386.rpm`, `rpm -ivh gtk+-devel-1.2.6-7.i386.rpm`, and `rpm -ivh libpcap-0.4-19.i386.rpm`.
If you are using a version of Red Hat later than 6.2, the required RPMs have most likely changed Simply use the correct RPMs from your distribution.
Under Debian you can install Wireshark using aptitude aptitude will handle any dependency issues for you Example 2.4, “Installing debs under Debian” shows how to do this.
Example 2.4 Installing debs under Debian aptitude install wireshark-dev
Building Wireshark from source under UNIX
Use the following general steps if you are building Wireshark from source under a UNIX operating system:
1 Unpack the source from its gzip'd tar file If you are using Linux, or your version of UNIX uses GNU tar, you can use the following command: tar zxvf wireshark-1.4-tar.gz
For other versions of UNIX, you will want to use the following commands: gzip -d wireshark-1.4-tar.gz tar xvf wireshark-1.4-tar
The pipeline gzip -dc wireshark-1.4-tar.gz | tar xvf - will work here as well.
If you have downloaded the Wireshark tarball under Windows, you may find that your browser has created a file with underscores rather than periods in its file name.
2 Change directory to the Wireshark source directory.
3 Configure your source so it will build correctly for your version of UNIX You can do this with the following command:
If this step fails, you will have to rectify the problems and rerun configure Troubleshooting hints are provided in Section 2.6, “Troubleshooting during the install on Unix”.
4 Build the sources into a binary, with the make command For example: make
5 Install the software in its final destination, using the command: make install
Once you have installed Wireshark with make install above, you should be able to run it by entering wireshark.
Installing the binaries under UNIX
Installing the Wireshark binary on your specific version of UNIX varies based on the installation methods applicable to that version For instance, on AIX, you would utilize the smit tool for the installation, whereas on Tru64 UNIX (previously known as Digital UNIX), the setld command would be used.
2.5.1 Installing from rpm's under Red Hat and alike
Use the following command to install the Wireshark RPM that you have downloaded from the Wireshark web site:
Building and Installing Wireshark rpm -ivh wireshark-1.4.i386.rpm
If the previous step is unsuccessful due to missing dependencies, ensure that you install the necessary dependencies before attempting the step again For guidance on the required RPMs for installation, refer to Example 2.3, “Installing required RPMs under Red Hat Linux 6.2 and beyond.”
2.5.2 Installing from deb's under Debian
If you can just install from the repository then use: aptitude install wireshark aptitude should take care of all of the dependency issues for you.
Use the following command to install downloaded Wireshark deb's under Debian: dpkg -i wireshark-common_1.4.0-1_i386.deb wireshark_1.4.0-1_i386.deb dpkg doesn't take care of all dependencies, but reports what's missing.
2.5.3 Installing from portage under Gentoo Linux
Use the following command to install Wireshark under Gentoo Linux with all of the extra features:
USE="adns gtk ipv6 portaudio snmp ssl kerberos threads selinux" emerge wireshark
2.5.4 Installing from packages under FreeBSD
Use the following command to install Wireshark under FreeBSD: pkg_add -r wireshark pkg_add should take care of all of the dependency issues for you.
Troubleshooting during the install on Unix
A number of errors can occur during the installation process Some hints on solving these are provided here.
If the configuration stage fails, it is essential to investigate the cause by examining the config.log file located in the source directory The final lines of this log will provide valuable insights to help identify the issue.
Common issues include the absence of GTK+ on your system or having an outdated version Additionally, the configuration process will fail if libpcap, specifically the necessary include files, is not installed.
Another frequent issue arises when the final compile and link stage fails with an "Output too long" error This problem is often due to an outdated version of sed, particularly the one included with Solaris As sed is utilized by the libtool script to create the final link command, it can lead to confusing errors To resolve this, users should download an updated version of sed from the Free Software Foundation's website.
If you're unable to identify the issues, consider reaching out to the wireshark-dev mailing list with a detailed email Be sure to include the output from config.log and any other pertinent information, such as a trace from the make stage.
Building from source under Windows
It is recommended to use the binary installer for Windows, until you want to start developing Wireshark on the Windows platform.
For further information how to build Wireshark for Windows from the sources, have a look at the Developer's Guide on the Documentation Page.
You may also want to have a look at the Development Wiki: http://wiki.wireshark.org/Development for the latest available development documentation.
Installing Wireshark under Windows
In this section we explore installing Wireshark under Windows from the binary packages.
You may acquire a binary installer of Wireshark named something like: wireshark- winxx-1.4.x.exe The Wireshark installer includes WinPcap, so you don't need to download and install two separate packages.
To download Wireshark, visit the official website at [wireshark.org](http://www.wireshark.org/download.html) and run the installer In addition to the standard installation options, you will find several optional components available for selection.
Tip: Just keep the defaults!
If you are unsure which settings to select, just keep the defaults.
• Wireshark GTK - Wireshark is a GUI network protocol analyzer.
TShark - TShark is a command-line based network protocol analyzer.
Plugins / Extensions (for the Wireshark and TShark dissection engines):
• Dissector Plugins - Plugins with some extended dissections.
• Tree Statistics Plugins - Plugins with some extended statistics.
• Mate - Meta Analysis and Tracing Engine (experimental) - user configurable extension(s) of the display filter engine, see http://wiki.wireshark.org/Mate for details.
• SNMP MIBs - SNMP MIBs for a more detailed SNMP dissection.
Tools (additional command line tools to work with capture files):
• Editcap - Editcap is a program that reads a capture file and writes some or all of the packets into another capture file.
• Text2Pcap - Text2pcap is a program that reads in an ASCII hex dump and writes the data into a libpcap- style capture file.
• Mergecap - Mergecap is a program that combines multiple saved capture files into a single output file.
• Capinfos - Capinfos is a program that provides information on capture files.
• Rawshark - Rawshark is a raw packet filter.
To access the User's Guide locally, ensure you have it installed; otherwise, the Help buttons in various dialogs will need an internet connection to display the help pages.
• Start Menu Shortcuts - add some start menu shortcuts.
• Desktop Icon - add a Wireshark icon to the desktop.
• Quick Launch Icon - add a Wireshark icon to the Explorer quick launch toolbar.
• Associate file extensions to Wireshark - Associate standard network trace files to Wireshark.
The Wireshark installer contains the latest released WinPcap installer.
If you don't have WinPcap installed, you won't be able to capture live network traffic, but you will still be able to open saved capture files.
• Currently installed WinPcap version - the Wireshark installer detects the currently installed WinPcap version.
To ensure optimal performance, install the latest version of WinPcap if your current version is outdated or if WinPcap is not installed on your system, as this will be automatically selected during the Wireshark installation process.
• Start WinPcap service "NPF" at startup - so users without administrative privileges can capture. More WinPcap info:
• Wireshark related: http://wiki.wireshark.org/WinPcap
• General WinPcap info: http://www.winpcap.org
You can simply start the Wireshark installer without any command line parameters, it will show you the usual interactive installer.
For special cases, there are some command line parameters available:
• /NCRC disables the CRC check
• /S runs the installer or uninstaller silently with default values Please note: The silent installer won't install WinPCap!
• /desktopicon installation of the desktop icon, =yes - force installation, =no - don't install, otherwise use defaults / user settings This option can be useful for a silent installer.
• /quicklaunchicon installation of the quick launch icon, =yes - force installation, =no - don't install, otherwise use defaults / user settings.
The /D parameter specifies the default installation directory ($INSTDIR), taking precedence over InstallDir and InstallDirRegKey It should always be the final parameter in the command line and must not include quotes, even if the directory path contains spaces.
Example: wireshark-win32-1.4.0.exe /NCRC /S /desktopicon=yes
/quicklaunchicon=no /D=C:\Program Files\Foo
As mentioned above, the Wireshark installer takes care of the installation of WinPcap, so usually you don't have to worry about WinPcap at all!
The following is only necessary if you want to try a different version than the one included in the Wireshark installer, e.g because a new WinPcap (beta) version was released.
Additional WinPcap versions (including newer alpha or beta releases) can be downloaded from the following locations:
• The main WinPcap site: http://www.winpcap.org
• The Wiretapped.net mirror: http://www.mirrors.wiretapped.net/security/packet-capture/winpcap
At the download page you will find a single installer exe called something like "auto-installer", which can be installed under various Windows systems, including NT4.0/2000/XP/2003/Vista/7/2008.
To stay updated with the latest features and improvements, consider regularly updating your installed Wireshark version Joining Wireshark's announce mailing list ensures you receive notifications about new releases and updates, as detailed in Section 1.6.4.
“Mailing Lists” for details how to subscribe to this list.
Wireshark releases new versions approximately every 4 to 8 months, and updating the software is as straightforward as the initial installation—just download the installer executable and run it Typically, a reboot is not necessary, and your personal settings will remain intact throughout the update process.
New versions of WinPcap are released infrequently, typically once a year You can find instructions for updating and downloading the latest WinPcap versions After installing a new version, it is generally necessary to reboot your machine.
If you have an older version of WinPcap installed, you must uninstall it before installing the current version Recent versions of the WinPcap installer will take care of this.
You can uninstall Wireshark the usual way, using the "Add or Remove Programs" option inside the Control Panel Select the "Wireshark" entry to start the uninstallation procedure.
The Wireshark uninstaller offers various options for uninstallation, allowing users to remove core components while retaining personal settings and WinPcap.
WinPcap won't be uninstalled by default, as other programs than Wireshark may use it as well.
You can uninstall WinPcap independently of Wireshark, using the "WinPcap" entry in the "Add or Remove Programs" of the Control Panel.
After uninstallation of WinPcap you can't capture anything with Wireshark.
It might be a good idea to reboot Windows afterwards.
User Interface
Introduction
By now you have installed Wireshark and are most likely keen to get started capturing your first packets.
In the next chapters we will explore:
• How the Wireshark user interface works
• How to capture packets in Wireshark
• How to view packets in Wireshark
• How to filter packets in Wireshark
Start Wireshark
You can start Wireshark from your shell or window manager.
When starting Wireshark it's possible to specify optional settings using the command line. See Section 10.2, “Start Wireshark from the command line” for details.
In the upcoming chapters, you will encounter numerous Wireshark screenshots Since Wireshark operates on various platforms and window managers, the appearance of your interface may differ from the screenshots provided However, despite these visual variations, the functionality remains consistent, ensuring that the screenshots are still comprehensible.
The Main window
Wireshark's user interface is displayed in Figure 3.1, “The Main Window,” showcasing the layout typically seen after capturing or loading packets, with detailed instructions on this process provided later in the article.
Wireshark's main window consists of parts that are commonly known from many other GUI programs.
1 The menu (see Section 3.4, “The Menu”) is used to start actions.
2 The main toolbar (see Section 3.15, “The "Main" toolbar”) provides quick access to frequently used items from the menu.
3 The filter toolbar (see Section 3.16, “The "Filter" toolbar”) provides a way to directly manipulate the currently used display filter (see Section 6.3, “Filtering packets while viewing”).
4 The packet list pane (see Section 3.17, “The "Packet List" pane”) displays a summary of each packet captured By clicking on packets in this pane you control what is displayed in the other two panes.
5 The packet details pane (see Section 3.18, “The "Packet Details" pane”) displays the packet selected in the packet list pane in more detail.
6 The packet bytes pane (see Section 3.19, “The "Packet Bytes" pane”) displays the data from the packet selected in the packet list pane, and highlights the field selected in the packet details pane.
7 The statusbar (see Section 3.20, “The Statusbar”) shows some detailed information about the current program state and the captured data.
The layout of the main window can be customized by changing preference settings SeeSection 10.5, “Preferences” for details!
Keyboard navigation allows for complete control over packet lists and detailed navigation within a capture file For a comprehensive overview of the necessary keystrokes, refer to Table 3.1, “Keyboard Navigation,” and for more navigation options, consult Table 3.5, “Go menu items.”
Tab, Shift+Tab Move between screen elements, e.g from the toolbars to the packet list to the packet detail.
Down Move to the next packet or detail item.
Up Move to the previous packet or detail item.
Ctrl+Down, F8 Move to the next packet, even if the packet list isn't focused.
Ctrl+Up, F7 Move to the previous packet, even if the packet list isn't focused.
Ctrl+] Move to the next packet of the conversation (TCP, UDP or IP)
Ctrl+[ Move to the previous packet of the conversation (TCP, UDP or IP)
Left In the packet detail, closes the selected tree item If it's already closed, jumps to the parent node.
Right In the packet detail, opens the selected tree item.
Shift+Right In the packet detail, opens the selected tree item and all of its subtrees.
Ctrl+Right In the packet detail, opens all tree items.
Ctrl+Left In the packet detail, closes all tree items.
Backspace In the packet detail, jumps to the parent node.
Return, Enter In the packet detail, toggles the selected tree item.
Additionally, typing anywhere in the main window will start filling in a display filter.
The Menu
The Wireshark menu sits on top of the Wireshark window An example is shown in Figure 3.2, “The Menu”.
Menu items will be greyed out if the corresponding feature isn't available For example, you cannot save a capture file if you didn't capture or load any data before.
It contains the following items:
The "File" menu in Wireshark allows users to open and merge capture files, as well as save, print, or export them in full or in part For more details, refer to Section 3.5, “The 'File' menu.”
The "Edit" menu offers options to locate packets, manage time references, and mark multiple packets, as well as handle configuration profiles and customize your preferences; however, cut, copy, and paste functionalities are currently unavailable For more details, refer to Section 3.6, “The 'Edit' menu.”
The "View" menu allows users to customize the display of captured data, featuring options for packet colorization, font zooming, separate packet windows, and the ability to expand or collapse details within packet trees For more information, refer to Section 3.7, “The 'View' menu.”
Go This menu contains items to go to a specific packet See Section 3.8, “The "Go" menu”.
Capture This menu allows you to start and stop captures and to edit capture filters See Section 3.9,
Analyze This menu contains items to manipulate display filters, enable or disable the dissection of protocols, configure user specified decodes and follow a TCP stream See Section 3.10,
The "Statistics" menu offers a range of options to present different statistical windows, showcasing a summary of captured packets, protocol hierarchy statistics, and additional insights For detailed information, refer to Section 3.11, “The 'Statistics' Menu.”
Telephony This menu contains items to display various telephony related statistic windows, including a media analysis, flow diagrams, display protocol hierarchy statistics and much more See Section 3.12, “The "Telephony" menu”.
Tools This menu contains various tools available in Wireshark, such as creating Firewall ACL
Rules See Section 3.13, “The "Tools" menu”.
The "Help" menu offers essential resources for users, including access to basic assistance, a list of supported protocols, manual pages, online resources, and the standard about dialog For more details, refer to Section 3.14, “The 'Help' menu.”
Each of these menu items is described in more detail in the sections that follow.
Access menu items easily by using the designated accelerator keys displayed on the right side of the menu For instance, to open the capture dialog, simply press the Control (or Strg in German) key along with the K key simultaneously.
The "File" menu
The Wireshark file menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.2, “File menu items”.
To load a capture file for viewing, use the "Open" option by pressing Ctrl+O, which opens the file dialog box For more details, refer to Section 5.2.1, titled “The 'Open Capture File' dialog box.”
Open Recent This menu item shows a submenu containing the recently opened capture files Clicking on one of the submenu items will open the corresponding capture file directly.
The "Merge" menu option opens a dialog box that enables users to combine a capture file with the currently loaded file, as detailed in Section 5.4, “Merging capture files.”
The "Import" menu option opens a dialog box for importing text files into a new temporary capture, with further details provided in Section 5.5, “Import text file.”
To close the current capture, use the Ctrl+W shortcut If the capture hasn't been saved, you'll be prompted to save it first, although this reminder can be disabled through a preference setting.
To save the current capture in Wireshark, use the Ctrl+S shortcut If a default capture file name has not been specified using the -w option, Wireshark will display the "Save Capture File As" dialog box, which is detailed in Section 5.3.1.
If you have already saved the current capture, this menu item will be greyed out.
You cannot save a live capture while the capture is in progress You must stop the capture in order to save.
To save your current capture file, use the shortcut Shift+Ctrl+S, which opens the "Save Capture File As" dialog box, allowing you to choose your desired file location For more details, refer to Section 5.3.1 on the "Save Capture File As" dialog box.
This menu option enables users to display a list of files within a file set by opening the Wireshark List File Set dialog box, as detailed in Section 5.6, “File Sets.”
When the loaded file belongs to a file set, proceed to the next file in the series However, if it is not part of a file set or is the last file in that set, the option will be disabled and appear greyed out.
To navigate a file set, you can jump to the previous file if the currently loaded file is part of it However, if the file is not included in a set or if it is the first file, the option will be unavailable and displayed in grey.
This menu option enables the export of all or selected packets from the capture file into a plain ASCII text file, triggering the Wireshark Export dialog box for further actions.
“The "Export as Plain Text File" dialog box”).
The menu option enables the export of all or selected packets from the capture file to a PostScript file, displaying the Wireshark Export dialog box for further actions.
“The "Export as PostScript File" dialog box”).
This feature enables users to export selected packet summaries from the capture file into a csv format, compatible with spreadsheet applications The process initiates the Wireshark Export dialog box, which is detailed in Section 5.7.3, titled “The 'Export as CSV (Comma Separated Values) File' dialog box.”
This menu option enables users to export selected packet bytes from the capture file into a c file, facilitating the integration of stream data into custom C programs It opens the Wireshark Export dialog box, which is detailed in Section 5.7.4, “The 'Export as'.”
C Arrays (packet bytes) file" dialog box”).
This feature enables the export of all or selected packets from the capture file into a PSML (Packet Summary Markup Language) XML file, opening the Wireshark Export dialog box for user interaction.
Menu Item Accelerator Description discussed further in Section 5.7.5, “The "Export as PSML File" dialog box”).
This feature enables the export of all or selected packets from the capture file to a PDML (Packet Details Markup Language) XML file It opens the Wireshark Export dialog box, which is detailed in Section 5.7.6, "The 'Export as PDML File' Dialog Box."
The "Edit" menu
The Wireshark Edit menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.3, “Edit menu items”.
Shift+Ctrl+D This menu item will copy the description of the selected item in the detail view to the clipboard.
Shift+Ctrl+F This menu item will copy the fieldname of the selected item in the detail view to the clipboard.
Copy > Value Shift+Ctrl+V This menu item will copy the value of the selected item in the detail view to the clipboard.
Shift+Ctrl+C This menu item will use the selected item in the detail view to create a display filter This display filter is then copied to the clipboard.
To locate a specific packet, use the "Find Packet" feature by pressing Ctrl+F, which opens a dialog box enabling searches based on various criteria For more detailed guidance on finding packets, refer to Section 6.8, “Finding Packets.”
Find Next Ctrl+N This menu item tries to find the next packet matching the settings from "Find Packet ".
Find Previous Ctrl+B This menu item tries to find the previous packet matching the settings from "Find Packet ".
Ctrl+M This menu item "marks" the currently selected packet See
Section 6.10, “Marking packets” for details.
Shift+Ctrl+N Find the next marked packet.
Shift+Ctrl+B Find the previous marked packet.
This menu item "marks" all displayed packets.
This menu item "unmarks" all marked packets.
Ctrl+X This menu item marks the currently selected packet as ignored See
Section 6.11, “Ignoring packets” for details.
Shift-Ctrl-Alt-X This menu item marks all displayed packets as ignored.
Shift-Ctrl-X This menu item unmarks all ignored packets.
Ctrl+T This menu item set a time reference on the currently selected packet See Section 6.12.1, “Packet time referencing” for more information about the time referenced packets.
This menu item tries to find the next time referenced packet.
This menu item tries to find the previous time referenced packet.
Shift-Ctrl-A This menu item brings up a dialog box for handling configuration profiles More detail is provided in Section 10.6, “Configuration Profiles”.
The Preferences menu, accessible via Shift+Ctrl+P, opens a dialog box where you can configure various parameters that govern Wireshark's functionality Additionally, you have the option to save your preferences for future sessions, ensuring a personalized experience each time you launch the application For more comprehensive information, refer to Section 10.5, “Preferences.”
The "View" menu
The Wireshark View menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.4, “View menu items”.
Main Toolbar This menu item hides or shows the main toolbar, see Section 3.15,
Filter Toolbar This menu item hides or shows the filter toolbar, see Section 3.16,
Statusbar This menu item hides or shows the statusbar, see Section 3.20, “The
Packet List This menu item hides or shows the packet list pane, see
Section 3.17, “The "Packet List" pane”.
Packet Details This menu item hides or shows the packet details pane, see
Section 3.18, “The "Packet Details" pane”.
Packet Bytes This menu item hides or shows the packet bytes pane, see
Section 3.19, “The "Packet Bytes" pane”.
Format > Date and Time of
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display the time stamps in date and time of day format, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
The fields "Time of Day", "Date and Time of Day",
"Seconds Since Beginning of Capture", "Seconds Since Previous Captured Packet" and "Seconds Since Previous Displayed Packet" are mutually exclusive.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps in time of day format, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps in seconds since beginning of capture format, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps in seconds since previous captured packet format, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps in seconds since previous displayed packet format, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps in seconds since 1970-01-01 00:00:00, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps with the precision given by the capture file format used, see Section 6.12,
“Time display formats and time references”.
The fields "Automatic", "Seconds" and " seconds" are mutually exclusive.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps with a precision of one second, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
Selecting this tells Wireshark to display time stamps with a precision of one second, decisecond, centisecond, millisecond, microsecond or nanosecond, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
This item allows you to trigger a name resolve of the current packet only, see Section 7.7, “Name Resolution”.
This item allows you to control whether or not Wireshark translates MAC addresses into names, see Section 7.7, “Name Resolution”.
This item allows you to control whether or not Wireshark translates network addresses into names, see Section 7.7, “Name Resolution”.
This item allows you to control whether or not Wireshark translates transport addresses into names, see Section 7.7, “Name Resolution”.
This item allows you to control whether or not Wireshark should colorize the packet list.
Enabling colorization will slow down the display of new packets while capturing / loading capture files.
Wireshark offers an option to automatically scroll the packet list pane as new packets arrive, ensuring that you always view the most recent packet Without this setting, new packets are added to the end of the list without scrolling, which may require manual adjustment to see the latest data.
Zoom In Ctrl++ Zoom into the packet data (increase the font size).
Zoom Out Ctrl+- Zoom out of the packet data (decrease the font size).
Normal Size Ctrl+= Set zoom level back to 100% (set font size back to normal).
Resize all column widths so the content will fit into it.
Resizing may take a significant amount of time, especially if a large capture file is loaded.
This menu item expands the currently selected subtree in the packet details tree.
Expand All Wireshark keeps a list of all the protocol subtrees that are expanded, and uses it to ensure that the correct subtrees are
Menu Item Accelerator Description expanded when you display a packet This menu item expands all subtrees in all packets in the capture.
Collapse All This menu item collapses the tree view of all packets in the capture list.
The submenu for this menu item enables users to color-code packets in the packet list pane according to the addresses of the selected packet, facilitating the differentiation of packets from various conversations For more details, refer to Section 10.3 on packet colorization.
These menu items enable one of the ten temporary color filters based on the currently selected conversation.
This menu item clears all temporary coloring rules.
This menu item opens a dialog window in which a new permanent coloring rule can be created based on the currently selected conversation.
This menu option opens a dialog box that enables you to color-code packets in the packet list pane based on your selected filter expressions This feature is particularly helpful for easily identifying specific types of packets For more information, refer to Section 10.3, “Packet Colorization.”
This menu item brings up the selected packet in a separate window. The separate window shows only the tree view and byte view panes.
Reload Ctrl-R This menu item allows you to reload the current capture file.
The "Go" menu
The Wireshark Go menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.5, “Go menu items”.
Back Alt+Left Jump to the recently visited packet in the packet history, much like the page history in a web browser.
Forward Alt+Right Jump to the next visited packet in the packet history, much like the page history in a web browser.
Go to Packet Ctrl-G Bring up a dialog box that allows you to specify a packet number, and then goes to that packet See Section 6.9, “Go to a specific packet” for details.
Go to the corresponding packet of the currently selected protocol field If the selected field doesn't correspond to a packet, this item is greyed out.
Ctrl+Up Move to the previous packet in the list This can be used to move to the previous packet even if the packet list doesn't have keyboard focus.
Use the Ctrl+Down keyboard shortcut to navigate to the next packet in the list, allowing you to efficiently move to the previous packet even when the packet list is not in focus.
First Packet Ctrl+Home Jump to the first packet of the capture file.
Last Packet Ctrl+End Jump to the last packet of the capture file.
The "Capture" menu
The Wireshark Capture menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.6, “Capture menu items”.
Interfaces This menu item brings up a dialog box that shows what's going on at the network interfaces Wireshark knows of, see Section 4.4,
“The "Capture Interfaces" dialog box”)
Options Ctrl+K This menu item brings up the Capture Options dialog box
(discussed further in Section 4.5, “The "Capture Options" dialog box”) and allows you to start capturing packets.
Start Immediately start capturing packets with the same settings than the last time.
Stop Ctrl+E This menu item stops the currently running capture, see
Section 4.11.1, “Stop the running capture”)
Restart This menu item stops the currently running capture and starts again with the same options, this is just for convenience.
This menu option opens a dialog box for creating and editing capture filters, enabling users to name and save filters for future use For more comprehensive information, please refer to Section 6.6.
The "Analyze" menu
The Wireshark Analyze menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.7, “Analyze menu items”.
This menu option opens a dialog box for creating and editing display filters, enabling you to name and save filters for future use For more detailed information, please refer to Section 6.6.
This menu option opens a dialog box for creating and editing display filter macros, enabling users to name and save these macros for future use For more information, refer to Section 6.7, “Defining and saving filter macros.”
Selecting these menu items will immediately alter the current display filter Based on the chosen option, the existing filter string will either be replaced or appended with the selected protocol field from the packet details pane.
The selected menu items will modify the current display filter without applying the changes Depending on the chosen option, the existing display filter string will either be replaced or supplemented by the selected protocol field from the packet details pane.
Shift+Ctrl+R This menu item allows the user to enable/disable protocol dissectors, see Section 10.4.1, “The "Enabled Protocols" dialog box”
Decode As This menu item allows the user to force Wireshark to decode certain packets as a particular protocol, see Section 10.4.2, “User Specified Decodes”
This menu item allows the user to force Wireshark to decode certain packets as a particular protocol, see Section 10.4.3, “Show User Specified Decodes”
This menu item brings up a separate window and displays all the TCP segments captured that are on the same TCP connection as a selected packet, see Section 7.2, “Following TCP streams”
Same functionality as "Follow TCP Stream" but for UDP streams.
Same functionality as "Follow TCP Stream" but for SSL streams. XXX - how to provide the SSL keys?
The Expert Info feature provides a dialog that displays detailed information about captured packets in a log-style format The level of detail varies depending on the protocol used, ranging from comprehensive insights to minimal data This feature is still under development, and further enhancements are planned.
Same information as in "Expert Info" but trying to group items together for faster analysis.
In this menu you will find conversation filter for various protocols.
The "Statistics" menu
The Wireshark Statistics menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.8, “Statistics menu items”.
All menu items will bring up a new window showing specific statistical information.
Summary Show information about the data captured, see Section 8.2, “The
Display a hierarchical tree of protocol statistics, see Section 8.3,
Conversations Display a list of conversations (traffic between two endpoints), see
Endpoints Display a list of endpoints (traffic to/from an address), see
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
IO Graphs Display user specified graphs (e.g the number of packets in the course of time), see Section 8.6, “The "IO Graphs" window”.
Display a list of conversations, obsoleted by the combined window of Conversations above, see Section 8.4.3, “The protocol specific
Endpoint List Display a list of endpoints, obsoleted by the combined window of Endpoints above, see Section 8.5.3, “The protocol specific
Display the time between a request and the corresponding response, see Section 8.7, “Service Response Time”.
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
Compare See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
Flow Graph See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
HTTP HTTP request/response statistics, see Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
IP Addresses See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
ISUP Messages See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 8.10, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
WLAN Traffic See Section 8.9, “WLAN Traffic Statistics”
The "Telephony" menu
The Wireshark Telephony menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.9, “Telephony menu items”.
All menu items will bring up a new window showing specific telephony related statistical information.
ANSI See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
GSM See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
H.225 See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
IAX2 See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
LTE MAC See Section 9.4, “LTE MAC Traffic Statistics”
LTE RLC See Section 9.5, “LTE RLC Traffic Statistics”
MTP3 See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
RTP See Section 9.2, “RTP Analysis”
SCTP See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
SIP See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
VoIP Calls See Section 9.3, “VoIP Calls”
WAP-WSP See Section 9.6, “The protocol specific statistics windows”
The "Tools" menu
The Wireshark Tools menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.10, “Tools menu items”.
You can generate command-line ACL rules for various firewall products such as Cisco IOS, Linux Netfilter (iptables), OpenBSD pf, and Windows Firewall (using netsh) The supported rules include MAC addresses, IPv4 addresses, TCP and UDP ports, as well as combinations of IPv4 addresses and ports.
It is assumed that the rules will be applied to an outside interface.
The "Help" menu
The Wireshark Help menu contains the fields shown in Table 3.11, “Help menu items”.
Contents F1 This menu item brings up a basic help system.
FAQ's This menu item starts a Web browser showing various FAQ's.
This menu item starts a Web browser showing one of the locally installed html manual pages.
This menu item starts a Web browser showing the chosen webpage from: http://www.wireshark.org.
This menu item brings up a dialog box showing the supported protocols and protocol fields.
This menu item brings up an information window that provides some information on Wireshark, such as the plugins, the used folders,
Calling a Web browser might be unsupported in your version of Wireshark If this is the case,the corresponding menu items will be hidden.
If your web browser fails to launch properly—either not responding at all or starting without displaying any pages—check the browser settings in the preferences dialog.
The "Main" toolbar
The main toolbar offers easy access to commonly used menu items and, while it cannot be customized by users, it can be hidden through the View menu to maximize screen space for displaying additional packet data.
In the menu, only the items relevant to the current program state will be accessible, while others will appear greyed out; for instance, saving a capture file is not possible unless one has previously loaded a file.
This item brings up the Capture Interfaces List dialog box (discussed further in Section 4.3, “Start Capturing”).
Options Capture/Options This item brings up the Capture Options dialog box
(discussed further in Section 4.3, “Start Capturing”) and allows you to start capturing packets.
Start Capture/Start This item starts capturing packets with the options form the last time.
Stop Capture/Stop This item stops the currently running live capture process Section 4.3, “Start Capturing”).
Restart Capture/Restart This item stops the currently running live capture process and restarts it again, for convenience.
To load a capture file for viewing, use the File/Open option, which opens the file open dialog box For more detailed information, refer to Section 5.2.1, “The 'Open Capture File' dialog box.”
The "Save As " feature enables users to save the current capture file under a preferred name, opening the "Save Capture File As" dialog box for easy file management For more details, refer to Section 5.3.1, which discusses this dialog box in depth.
If you currently have a temporary capture file, the Save icon will be shown instead.
Close File/Close This item closes the current capture If you have not saved the capture, you will be asked to save it first.
Reload View/Reload This item allows you to reload the current capture file.
The "File/Print" option in Wireshark enables users to print all or selected packets from the capture file, opening the Wireshark Print dialog box for further customization, as detailed in Section 5.8, “Printing packets.”
Find Packet Edit/Find Packet This item brings up a dialog box that allows you to find a packet There is further information on finding packets in Section 6.8, “Finding packets”.
Go Back Go/Go Back This item jumps back in the packet history.
Go Forward Go/Go Forward This item jumps forward in the packet history.
Go to Packet Go/Go to Packet This item brings up a dialog box that allows you to specify a packet number to go to that packet.
Go/First Packet This item jumps to the first packet of the capture file.
Go/Last Packet This item jumps to the last packet of the capture file.
Colorize View/Colorize Colorize the packet list (or not).
View/Auto Scroll in Live Capture
Auto scroll packet list while doing a live capture (or not).
Zoom In View/Zoom In Zoom into the packet data (increase the font size).
Zoom Out View/Zoom Out Zoom out of the packet data (decrease the font size).
Normal Size View/Normal Size Set zoom level back to 100%.
Resize columns, so the content fits into them.
This feature opens a dialog box for creating and editing capture filters, enabling you to name and save them for future use For more information, refer to Section 6.6, “Defining and saving filters.”
This feature opens a dialog box for creating and editing display filters, enabling users to name and save filters for future use For more information, refer to Section 6.6, “Defining and saving filters.”
This feature opens a dialog box that enables users to color-code packets in the packet list pane based on selected filter expressions, which is helpful for easily identifying specific packet types For more information, refer to Section 10.3, “Packet Colorization.”
The Preferences menu in Wireshark opens a dialog box where users can configure various parameters to customize their experience Additionally, users have the option to save these preferences for future sessions, ensuring that Wireshark retains their settings upon restart For more information, refer to Section 10.5, "Preferences."
Help Help/Contents This item brings up help dialog box.
The "Filter" toolbar
The filter toolbar lets you quickly edit and apply display filters More information on display filters is available in Section 6.3, “Filtering packets while viewing”.
Filter: Brings up the filter construction dialog, described in Figure 6.7, “The
"Capture Filters" and "Display Filters" dialog boxes”.
The filter input area allows users to enter or edit display filter strings, with real-time syntax checking as you type If the string is incomplete or invalid, the background will turn red, while a valid string will turn the background green Users can also select previously entered filter strings from a dropdown list, which remains accessible even after restarting the program.
After you've changed something in this field, don't forget to press the Apply button (or the Enter/Return key), to apply this filter string to the display.
This field is also where the current filter in effect is displayed.
Expression The middle button labeled "Add Expression " opens a dialog box that lets you edit a display filter from a list of protocol fields, described in Section 6.5, “The "Filter Expression" dialog box”
Clear Reset the current display filter and clears the edit area.
Apply Apply the current value in the edit area as the new display filter.
Applying a display filter on large capture files might take quite a long time!
The "Packet List" pane
The packet list pane displays all the packets in the current capture file.
Figure 3.14 The "Packet List" pane
Each entry in the packet list represents an individual packet from the capture file By selecting a line in this list, you can view additional information in the "Packet Details" and "Packet Bytes" sections.
While dissecting a packet, Wireshark will place information from the protocol dissectors into the columns.
As higher level protocols might overwrite information from lower levels, you will typically see the information from the highest possible level only.
In a network packet, the Ethernet layer encapsulates the TCP protocol within an IP packet During the dissection process, the Ethernet dissector extracts and displays the Ethernet addresses, followed by the IP dissector, which replaces the Ethernet data with the relevant IP addresses Finally, the TCP dissector further overwrites the IP information, illustrating the layered nature of data encapsulation and the way each layer can modify the information from the layer beneath it.
There are a lot of different columns available Which columns are displayed can be selected by preference settings, see Section 10.5, “Preferences”.
The default columns will show:
• No The number of the packet in the capture file This number won't change, even if a display filter is used.
• Time The timestamp of the packet The presentation format of this timestamp can be changed, see Section 6.12, “Time display formats and time references”.
• Source The address where this packet is coming from.
• Destination The address where this packet is going to.
• Protocol The protocol name in a short (perhaps abbreviated) version.
• Info Additional information about the packet content.
There is a context menu (right mouse click) available, see details in Figure 6.3, “Pop-up menu of the
The "Packet Details" pane
The packet details pane shows the current packet (selected in the "Packet List" pane) in a more detailed form.
Figure 3.15 The "Packet Details" pane
The pane displays the protocols and protocol fields of the selected packet from the "Packet List" pane, organized in a tree structure that allows for expansion and collapse.
There is a context menu (right mouse click) available, see details in Figure 6.4, “Pop-up menu of the
Some protocol fields are specially displayed.
Wireshark automatically generates additional protocol fields, indicated by brackets, which are based on the context of other packets within the capture file For instance, it performs a sequence and acknowledgment analysis for each TCP stream, which is reflected in the [SEQ/ACK analysis] fields of the TCP protocol.
Wireshark creates links to related packets in the capture file, which are displayed as underlined blue text By double-clicking these links, users can quickly navigate to the corresponding packet for further analysis.
The "Packet Bytes" pane
The packet bytes pane shows the data of the current packet (selected in the "Packet List" pane) in a hexdump style.
Figure 3.16 The "Packet Bytes" pane
A typical hexdump displays the packet data offset on the left, the hexadecimal representation of the data in the center, and the corresponding ASCII characters on the right, using a dot for any non-printable characters.
When analyzing packet data in Wireshark, multiple pages may be accessible if the tool has reassembled packets into a single data chunk This functionality is detailed in Section 7.6, “Packet Reassembling.” In such instances, additional tabs will appear at the bottom of the pane, allowing users to select the desired page for viewing.
Figure 3.17 The "Packet Bytes" pane with tabs
The additional pages might contain data picked from multiple packets.
The context menu accessed by right-clicking on tab labels displays a comprehensive list of all available pages, making it easier to navigate when the pane size is insufficient to show all tab labels clearly.
The Statusbar
The statusbar displays informational messages.
The layout features three sections: the left side displays contextual information, the middle section indicates the current packet count, and the right side presents the chosen configuration profile Users can adjust the size of these areas by dragging the handles between them.
This statusbar is shown while no capture file is loaded, e.g when Wireshark is started.
Figure 3.19 The Statusbar with a loaded capture file
The colorized bullet on the left indicates the highest expert info level in the loaded capture file Hover over the icon to view a textual description of the expert info level, and click it to open the Expert Infos dialog box For more details, refer to Section 7.3, “Expert Infos.”
• The left side shows information about the capture file, its name, its size and the elapsed time while it was being captured.
• The middle part shows the current number of packets in the capture file The following values are displayed:
• Packets: the number of captured packets
• Displayed: the number of packets currently being displayed
• Marked: the number of marked packets
• Dropped: the number of dropped packets (only displayed if Wireshark was unable to capture all packets)
• Ignored: the number of ignored packets (only displayed if packets are ignored)
The selected configuration profile is displayed on the right side of the status bar By clicking this area, a menu appears, showcasing all available configuration profiles, allowing users to easily switch between them.
Figure 3.20 The Statusbar with a configuration profile menu
For a detailed description of configuration profiles, see Section 10.6, “Configuration Profiles”.
Figure 3.21 The Statusbar with a selected protocol field
This is displayed if you have selected a protocol field from the "Packet Details" pane.
The value between the brackets (in this example arp.opcode) can be used as a display filter string, representing the selected protocol field.
Figure 3.22 The Statusbar with a display filter message
This is displayed if you are trying to use a display filter which may have unexpected results For a detailed description, see Section 6.4.4, “A common mistake”.