Nmap (Network Mapper)

Nmap (Network Mapper) is a powerful open-source network scanning and security auditing tool designed for discovering hosts, services, open ports, and network configurations. It is widely used by system administrators, DevOps engineers, and security professionals for network inventory, monitoring, and vulnerability assessment.

Features of Nmap:

• Performs fast and accurate network discovery using IP-based scanning.
• Detects open ports, running services, and service versions.
• Supports multiple scan types including TCP, UDP, SYN, and OS detection.
• Includes NSE (Nmap Scripting Engine) for advanced security checks and automation.
• Works entirely via command-line interface (CLI) with no database dependency.
• Compatible with IPv4 and IPv6 networks.

Nmap Usage

$ sudo su
$ nmap --version              # Check Nmap version
$ nmap 192.168.1.1             # Scan a single IP
$ nmap -p 1-1000 192.168.1.1    # Scan specific port range
$ nmap -sV 192.168.1.1          # Detect running services and versions
$ nmap -A 192.168.1.1           # Aggressive scan (OS, services, scripts)