Packet analyzers

Popular open source packet analyzers ranked by approximate popularity and usage, along with their key features:

1. Wireshark

• Most widely used GUI-based packet analyzer.

• Supports deep inspection of hundreds of protocols.

• Live capture & offline analysis.

• Cross-platform (Windows, Linux, macOS).

• Advanced filtering (BPF syntax) and decryption support (TLS, SSL).

2. TShark (CLI version of Wireshark)

• Command-line equivalent of Wireshark.

• Ideal for scripting & automation.

• Same powerful dissection capabilities as Wireshark.

• Output in JSON, CSV, XML, and other formats.

3. tcpdump

• Lightweight CLI packet sniffer for Unix-like systems.

• Uses BPF (Berkeley Packet Filter) for efficient capture.

• Minimal overhead, great for remote servers.

• Output can be piped into Wireshark for analysis.

4. Zeek (formerly Bro)

• Network security monitoring tool, not just a sniffer.

• Focuses on behavioral analysis (e.g., detecting anomalies).

• Generates high-level logs (HTTP, DNS, SSH) instead of raw packets.

• Scriptable for custom traffic analysis.

5. Suricata

• Real-time IDS/IPS (Intrusion Detection/Prevention System).

• Multi-threaded for high-speed traffic analysis.

• Supports automated threat detection (signature & anomaly-based).

• Can export PCAPs for further analysis.

6. Snort

• One of the oldest open-source IDS/IPS tools.

• Rule-based detection (malware, exploits, port scans).

• Can work in sniffer, logger, or IPS mode.

• Large community rule sets available.

7. Arkime (formerly Moloch)

• Large-scale packet capture & indexing (for full traffic retention).

• Web-based interface for searching and analyzing stored PCAPs.

• Used by enterprises and ISPs for forensic analysis.

Recommendations Based on Use Cases

Use Case	Best Tool(s)	Why?
General Troubleshooting	Wireshark, TShark	Deep protocol inspection, user-friendly GUI (Wireshark), CLI scripting (TShark).
High-Speed Packet Capture	tcpdump, Suricata	Low overhead (tcpdump), multi-threaded analysis (Suricata).
Security Monitoring (IDS/IPS)	Suricata, Zeek, Snort	Real-time threat detection, signature & anomaly-based analysis.
Network Forensics	Arkime (Moloch), Wireshark	Long-term packet storage (Arkime), detailed analysis (Wireshark).
Automation & Scripting	TShark, tcpdump	Easily integrated into scripts (TShark for JSON/CSV, tcpdump for BPF).
Behavioral Analysis	Zeek (Bro)	Generates high-level logs (e.g., HTTP sessions) instead of raw packets.

Additional Notes:

• For enterprise-scale analysis, Arkime + Suricata is a powerful combo.

• For low-level debugging, tcpdump + Wireshark is the gold standard.

• For threat hunting, Zeek + Suricata provides both logging and real-time detection.