WinPcap provides some special interface names: The interfaces names are provided by the network card manufacturer, which can be helpful to identify an interface. There are some common interface names which are depending on the platform. even completely hide an interface from the capture dialogs.In the Wireshark preferences (Edit/Preferences/Capture), you can: If you are unsure which interface to choose this dialog is a good starting point, as it also includes the number of packets currently rushing in. The 'Capture/Interfaces' dialog provides a good overview about all available interfaces to capture from. Required interface not listed (or no interfaces listed at all).To check if promiscuous mode is enabled, click Capture > Options and verify the “Enable promiscuous mode on all interfaces” checkbox is activated at the bottom of this window. If you have promiscuous mode enabled-it’s enabled by default-you’ll also see all the other packets on the network instead of only packets addressed to your network adapter. Wireshark captures each packet sent to or from your system.

You can configure advanced features by clicking Capture > Options, but this isn’t necessary for now.Īs soon as you click the interface’s name, you’ll see the packets start to appear in real time. For example, if you want to capture traffic on your wireless network, click your wireless interface. Capturing PacketsĪfter downloading and installing Wireshark, you can launch it and double-click the name of a network interface under Capture to start capturing packets on that interface. Don’t use this tool at work unless you have permission. Just a quick warning: Many organizations don’t allow Wireshark and similar tools on their networks.

Wireshark portable no interfaces