What is Wireshark
Wireshark is a powerful network protocol analyzer that is widely used on Linux systems for troubleshooting network issues, analyzing network traffic and security auditing. It is an open-source tool that allows you to capture and analyze network packets in real time and display them in a user-friendly graphical interface. Wireshark is capable of decoding hundreds of different protocols, including TCP/IP, HTTP, DNS, and SSH.
With Wireshark, you can capture and analyze network traffic to diagnose network problems, such as slow response times or dropped packets. You can also use Wireshark to identify security issues, such as unauthorized access attempts, malware infections, or data breaches.
Wireshark is a versatile tool that can be used by network administrators, security professionals, and developers. It is available on various Linux distributions and can be installed from the command line using package managers like apt (for Ubuntu and Debian-based systems) or yum (for Red Hat-based systems).
Overall, Wireshark is an essential tool for anyone who needs to monitor, analyze, and troubleshoot network traffic on Linux systems. Its user-friendly interface and powerful features make it a popular choice among network professionals, and its open-source nature ensures that it remains a reliable and accessible tool for years to come.
How to Install Wireshark on Ubuntu
Here are the steps for how to install Wireshark on Ubuntu:
- Open the terminal on your Ubuntu machine.
- Update the package list by running the following command:
sudo apt-get update
- Install Wireshark by running the following command:
sudo apt-get install wireshark
- During the installation process, you will be prompted to choose whether to allow non-superusers to capture packets. If you want to allow non-superusers to capture packets, select “Yes” and press Enter. If you don’t want to allow non-superusers to capture packets, select “No” and press Enter.
- Once the installation is complete, add your user account to the wireshark group by running the following command:
sudo usermod -aG wireshark $USER
- Log out and log back in for the changes to take effect.
- Start Wireshark by running the following command:
wireshark
That’s it! You have successfully installed Wireshark on your Ubuntu machine.