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The network scanning Security program is actually an IP network scanning tool that is used both for scanning large networks that are a collection of hundreds of computers and for scanning personal computers at home. Network scanning software can scan a collection of thousands of IP addresses, computers as well as IP domains, and there is no limit to the number of computers and networks in the collection. In this article, we are going to provide information about network scanning software and the best of them in the world of technology. But before that let’s talk a little about the concept of network and also network scanning.

Network world and network scanning program

In fact, the term network is very broad in the world of technology. The network is known as the main pillar of the communication system that is used to share data and resources. The next term that enters our discussion is network security or in other words Network Security. Network security includes a set of rules, policies, and guidelines adopted to monitor and prevent misuse and unauthorized manipulation in a network.

Network scanning program deals with network security. In fact, network scanning is a set of activities that identify network vulnerabilities and weak points of a network to protect it against unwanted and unusual behaviors that can damage the system. These activities can even target your personal and confidential information.

In summary, the network scanning process includes the following:

• Identification of filter systems between two active hosts in a network.
• Implementation of UDP and TCP network services.
• Identify the TCP sequence number of both hosts.

Key features of network scanning software

• Easy to use: The network scanning program is easy to use for all users. Even an inexperienced user can scan the network with just a few clicks.
• Good performance: The network scanning program uses multi-threaded scanning. This means that the software scans several thousands of computers simultaneously.
• Scalability. You can scan multiple computers or entire subnets.
• Flexible filter options. Using the network scan program, you can filter the results by resource type or access rights.
• Check the status of the computer. A network scan program can check whether the computer is turned on or not. This check can be done both by using ping and by connecting to the ports specified by the user.
• The program can also retrieve the NetBIOS or domain computer name (defined by the user).
• You can view all available computer resources: This means that you can scan not only NetBIOS resources but also FTP and web servers using network scanning software.
• Check network resources. This program checks resource access rights (read/write) for both the current user and any specified user.
• Available to all users. You will not need any prerequisites or privileges as an administrator to use this program, and any normal user can use this program.

In the following, we will introduce you the 15 best network scanning tools. Stay with us until the end of this article.

15 Top Network Scanning Tools (Network and IP Scanner)

In fact, there are different programs for network scanning. In this article, we are going to introduce you the best network scanning software, each of which has unique features. The best network scanning tools (top network and IP scanner) for superior network security include:

1- Acunetix network scan tool

Acunetix Online is a fully automated network scanning tool that detects and reports over 50,000 network vulnerabilities and misconfigurations. This program checks for open ports and running services. The security of routers, firewalls, switches, testing for weak passwords, DNS zone transfers, poorly configured proxy servers, weak SNMP communication strings, and TLS/SSL ciphers are among other things evaluated by this network scanning program. In the Acunetix program, the network scanning tool set is provided to users for free for 1 year.

2- SolarWinds Network Device Scanner network scanning tool

SolarWinds allows the network administrator to monitor, inspect, map and scan network devices. The network scanning tool can be scheduled once for a regular scan and then automatically detect new devices as they are added to the network. This network scanning program automatically detects and scans network devices. You will be able to have a network topology map.

3- Intruder network scan tool

Intruder is a powerful network scanner that finds cybersecurity weaknesses and risks in network systems, and explains how to fix them before they fail. Its security checks include identifying misconfigurations, missing security patches, and problems with web applications such as SQL injection and on-site scripting. Built by experienced security professionals, Intruder takes care of most of the difficult parts of vulnerability management, so you can focus on what’s really important. Intruder also integrates with major cloud providers as well as Slack & Jira.

4- OpenVAS network scan tool

The Open Vulnerability Assessment System (OpenVAS) is a network security scanning tool that is freely available to users.

Network scanning features provided by OpenVAS include:

• Full Scan: Full network scan.
• Web Server Scan: To scan web server and web applications.
• WordPress Scan: for WordPress vulnerabilities and WordPress web server issues.
• OpenVAS is known as a powerful tool for network vulnerability scanning with intelligent scanning.

5- Wireshark network scanning tool

Wireshark is an open-source network scanning program known as a cross-platform network protocol analyzer. Wireshark runs on Windows, Linux and OSX. This network scanning program has many features and its only drawback is that it works poorly in the case of remote exploitation.

6- Nikto network scan tool

Nikto is an open source web server scanner. This network scanning program performs very fast tests to detect suspicious network behavior as well as any network programs that can exploit network traffic. Some of the best features of Nikto are:

• Full HTTP proxy support.
• Custom reports in XML, HTML and CSV formats.

7- Angry IP Scanner network scanning tool

Angry IP Scanner is a free and open source network scanning program with the ability to scan IP addresses and also has the ability to scan ports efficiently and quickly. The scan report provided by this program includes information such as hostname, NetBIOS (Network Basic Input/Output), MAC address, computer name, workgroup information and many other important information. The report is provided in CSV, Txt or XML format.

8- Advanced IP Scanner network scanning tool

Advanced IP Scanner is a free and open source network scanning tool that works in the Windows environment.

9- Qualys Freescan network scanning tool

Qualys Freescan is a free and open source network scanning tool that enables network scanning for URLs, Internet IPs, and local servers to identify security vulnerabilities. Qualys Freescan supports 3 important features:

• Vulnerability checks: For malware and SSL related issues.
• OWASP: Web Application Security Audits
• SCAP Checks: Checks the computer’s network configuration against security content such as SCAP.

10- SoftPerfect Network Scanner network scanning tool

SoftPerfect Network Scanner is a free network scanning program known for its advanced scanning features for multipurpose IPv4 / IPv6 scanning. This network scanning program provides the user with information such as host name, MAC address, which are connected to the LAN based on SNMP, HTTP and NetBIOS.

11- Retina Network Security Scanner network scanning tool

Retina Network Security Scanner is a network scanning software as well as a network vulnerability remediation solution that provides network security programs for Microsoft, Adobe and Firefox applications. This network scanning program is free and requires a Windows server to provide security patches for up to 256 IPs.

12- Nmap network scan tool

Nmap software, as its name suggests, performs a general mapping of the network and its ports numerically. For this reason, this network scanning program is also known as a port scanning tool. Nmap comes with NSE (Nmap Scripting Engine) scripts to detect network security issues and misconfigurations. Nmap is a free network scanning program that checks host availability by checking IPs. Nmap has the following features:

• Zenmap with advanced GUI.
• Ndiff for computer scan results.
• NPing for response analysis.

13- Nessus

Nessus is a widely used network security scanner that works with UNIX systems. This network scanning tool used to be free and open source but is now available as a commercial network scanning software. A free version of Nessus with limited security features is still available.

Important security features of Nessus network scanning software include the following:

• Web-based interface
• Client-server architecture
• The possibility of remote access
• Built-in plugins

14- Metasploit Framework

This network scanning program was originally a penetration testing tool, but now it is used as a network scanning tool that detects the extent of network exploitation. Metasploit Framework was originally an open-source network scanning tool, but was acquired by Rapid7 in 2009 and introduced as a commercial tool.

15- Snort

Snort is used as a free and open source system to identify and prevent network intrusions. In fact, Snort analyzes network traffic by examining the IP addresses entering the network.

Frequently Asked Questions

1- What is the exact definition of network scanning?

Network scanning is a process that can be defined in many ways. For example, it can be defined as activities during which it identifies active users (clients and servers) in a network and their activities and collects the necessary information to attack a network.

2- What is the network scanning program used for?

The network scan program is used for system maintenance and network security assessment. Network scanning software can also be used for purposes such as system hacking.

3- What is port scanning?

Network scanning is also known as port scanning, where data packets are sent to specific ports.

4- What facilities does the network scanning program provide us?

The network scan tool can show you all shared resources, including system and hidden NetBIOS (Samba), along with FTP and web resources. The network scan tool can be used to check network computers and also check the network resources that are available.

5- Who can use the network scanning program?

Both network administrators and regular users can use the network scanning tool. The network scan tool not only finds network computers and shared resources but also checks its access rights. As a result, the user can mount it as a network drive or just open it in Explorer or his browser. Using the network scanning software, you can easily convert the network scanning results to an XML, HTML or text file or save it in the program itself.