IPGRAB(8)

👑 IPGRAB — the verbose packet sniffer, bestie edition

okay so like. ipgrab lives in section 8 of the System Manager's Manual, and it is literally the nosiest little packet sniffer you've ever met. She reads packets, she parses them, she tells you everything. 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

ipgrab [ -ablmnPprTtwx ] [ -c cnt ] [ -i if ] [ expr ]

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

ipgrab reads and parses packets all the way from the link layer up through the application layer, dumping out explicit header information the entire way down. No secrets, no mystery, just vibes and headers. 🦋

It's a lot like tcpdump except — and this is the main character detail — it prints almost every header field. Like, all of them. She's thorough. She's extra. She ate. 🔥

🎀 Options 🎀

• -a — do not display application layer data. keep your eyes off the app layer, bestie.
• -b — buffer standard output. super useful when you're redirecting output to a file. 🫶
• -c cnt, --count cnt — terminate after receiving cnt packets. she stops when she's counted enough. periodt.
• -C proto, --CCP proto — assume a particular CCP protocol, like MPPC. as of right now, MPPC is the only one supported. she's picky, she's growing.
• -d — dump extra padding in packets. so like, according to an IP header the packet ends at a certain point, but the link layer may have padded it beyond that — this option displays the padding. 💀 not valid in minimal mode.
• -h, --help — display the usage screen with a brief description of the command line options. your girl is helpful. 🌈
• -i if, --interface if — makes ipgrab listen to packets on interface if, e.g. eth0. if you don't use this option, the default interface will be assumed. (she'll just pick one. she's confident.)
• -l — don't display link-layer headers. the following protocols are considered to be link layer: ARP, CHAP, Ethernet, IPCP, LCP, LLC, Loopback, PPP, PPPoE, Raw, Slip.
• -m — minimal mode output. when she's operating in this mode, ipgrab displays only brief header information. lowkey mode, highkey useful. ✨
• -n — don't display network-layer headers. the following protocols are considered to be network layer: AH, ESP, GRE, ICMP, ICMPv6, IGMP, IP, IPv6, IPX, IPXRIP.
• -P string — initiate a dynamic port mapping. this option must be followed by a string of the form <protocol>=<port>, such as http=8080. so like, you map it, she listens. 💜
• -p — dump packet payloads beyond what IPgrab parses. in other words, if IPgrab does not parse a particular application, this option will dump application data in hex and text format. she shows you the raw stuff. 🙈
• -r FILE — read packets from a file, rather than an interface. the file should be created in "raw" format, such as with the -w option. 📁
• -T — do not display timestamps in minimal mode. no clock, no stress. ⏰
• -t — don't display transport layer headers. the following protocols are considered to be transport layer: SPX, TCP, UDP.
• -v, --version — display version number and then quit. she'll tell you who she is and then dip. 👑
• -w FILE — write the raw packets to a file, rather than the screen. the packets will not be parsed. the file can be read with the -r option. (yes, -w and -r are a matched set, they're soulmates fr fr. 🫶)
• -x — hex dump mode. after processing each layer, dump out the contents of that layer in hex and text. only valid in main mode.
• expr — Berkeley packet filter expression. see tcpdump(8) man page for details and examples. 🍓

💖 SEE ALSO 💖

• tcpdump(8)

⭐ NOTES ⭐

requires libpcap version 0.3 or greater to be installed. no cap, if you don't have it, she can't run. 😭

🧚 AUTHOR 🧚

Michael S. Borella http://www.borella.net/mike/ mike@borella.net

and that's the whole page, bestie. this beauty is part of the System Manager's Manual, dated 07 March 2007, and she's serving section 8 energy from the first line to the last. iykyk. 💅✨🦋