PAGES
← all tools
◆ Network Analysis & Monitoring

Netcap

v0.13.0 open-source

Netcap converts network packets into structured Protocol Buffer audit records designed for security monitoring, forensic analysis, and machine learning.

Summary

Netcap is an open-source network-analysis tool, distributed under GPLv3, that converts captured network packets into structured, type-safe Protocol Buffer audit records for security monitoring, forensic analysis, and machine learning. It runs as a single Go binary on the command line, with 83 packet decoders and 40+ stream decoders covering everything from TLS and HTTP/2 to industrial protocols like Modbus and S7Comm, and it ships a built-in web UI for the forensic analysts, threat hunters, and OT security teams who need to inspect traffic rather than just alert on it. It sits in the packet-capture and traffic-classification space, pairing deep packet inspection (nDPInDPIAn open-source deep packet inspection library maintained by ntop that classifies network traffic by protocol and application, giving cyber tools visibility into what flows are actually carrying beyond port numbers./libprotoident) with a rule engine for detection logic and IOCIOCAn indicator of compromise, an observable clue that may point to malicious activity, such as a suspicious file hash or domain. It is evidence to investigate, rather than proof by itself. lookups, and it now includes an MCPMCPModel Context Protocol, a standard for connecting AI applications to external tools and data sources. A compatible server exposes capabilities an assistant can use through a common interface. server for LLMLLMA large language model, a neural network trained on large amounts of text to recognize patterns and generate language. Applications use it for tasks such as answering, summarizing and writing code.-driven PCAPPCAPA packet capture, recorded network packets that can be inspected later. Analysts use it to reconstruct communication and investigate protocol behavior or suspicious traffic. analysis. With 245 commits and 19 releases in the past year, the most recent just 12 days ago, it is under active development.

Netcap converts network packets into structured Protocol Buffer audit records designed for security monitoring, forensic analysis, and machine learning.

How Netcap helps

Which protocols and services were actually in this capture, beyond what the port numbers suggest?

classifies traffic with nDPI and libprotoident deep packet inspection and writes the detected application into the relevant audit record, catching cases where a service runs on a non-standard port

Which hosts in this capture talked to known-bad infrastructure?

matches connection records against IOC databases pulled from the hosted or self-hosted database service and flags the matching audit records

Is there a beaconing or scanning pattern hiding in this traffic?

the detection rule engine tracks source-to-distinct-destination fan-out and record-time thresholds and reports sources that cross them, using time-of-day helpers to separate off-hours activity from business-hours noise

Which files moving across the wire are worth a closer look?

extracts files from reassembled streams and runs YARA and Magika against them to identify file types and flag malware matches

Is a workstation on this network one that was never approved?

checks connection sources against an approved-workstation allowlist through a rule-engine expression helper and surfaces any host missing from it

all 26 features, with the evidence for each →

Languages

Not documented

Features

26 capabilities across 10 capability groups · 3 backed by code, an API document or a real run

Built from Netcap's releases, docs, README and our own runs. “Seen” marks the month we first spotted a release the vendor didn't date. Group names and tags are our labels.

Compare with peers →

  • Netcap covers 8 of the 34 network analysis capabilities we track.
  • Netcap covers 2 of the 5 network observation capabilities we track.

What Netcap offers you

  • Command-line interface11
  • Agent-based deployment2
  • JSON data export1
  • Offline mode1
  • REST API1
Network traffic analysis 4 features Network observation since 2018
Protobuf decoding verified Decodes protobuf-encoded traffic using user-supplied .proto schema files, port-to-message-type mappings, and optional display of alternative type interpretations for unknown fields. 30 releases · 5 other sources · first seen Oct 2025

Shared capability: Network traffic analysis

release 30 total

  • Validates full TACACS+ and SSH signatures including confusable edge cases. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --dnp3-point-map flag (env NC_DNP3_POINT_MAP) to net capture, accepting a CSV of outstation, group, index, and name to resolve DNP3 point indexes to human-readable labels.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Improves decoder selection to pick the decoder that required the most evidence rather than the one bound to the lowest port number. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Rewrites the DNP3 decoder to produce only frames and objects actually present in captured traffic. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Timestamps each FTP, IMAP, and IRC message from the individual packet that carried it, rather than from the connection. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Timestamps each HTTP request and response individually, rather than once per connection. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history

command line

  • --modbus-rtu-endpoints — RTU-over-TCP destination allowlist (comma-separated IP:port or [IPv6]:port) v0.9.8 · Sep 2026 · command-line history
  • --proto-show-alternatives — show alternative type interpretations for unknown protobuf fields v0.9.1 · May 2026 · command-line history
  • --proto-paths — search paths for .proto schema files (can be specified multiple times) v0.9.1 · May 2026 · command-line history
  • --proto-message-types — port-to-message-type mappings (format: port:package.MessageType, can be specified multiple times) v0.9.1 · May 2026 · command-line history

example

  • Pull the latest IOC databases from dbs.netcap.io before a threat-hunting session so detections are up to date. net util -download-dbs v0.7.0 · Oct 2025 · source
Stream decoding verified Decodes streams and messages from protocols such as S7comm, Modbus RTU, DNP3, TACACS+, SSH, FTP, IMAP, IRC, and HTTP within captured traffic. 21 releases · 5 other sources · first seen Dec 2018

Shared capability: Network traffic analysis

release 21 total

  • Adds FTP data correlation and extraction integrated into book/NSM investigation workflows. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Upgrades native DPI to go-dpi v1.5.0 with incremental per-worker flow state and a ten-observation inspection budget, reducing microbenchmark latency from 98.75 µs to 17.42 µs per flow (10-packet case). v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --dnp3-point-map flag (env NC_DNP3_POINT_MAP) to net capture, accepting a CSV of outstation, group, index, and name to resolve DNP3 point indexes to human-readable labels.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Gives IEC 62351 records their own per-record timestamp and traffic direction across all four decoding paths. v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds lookup_cve MCP tool that fetches real NVD vulnerability data with caching. v0.9.1 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds stream size limits for TCP reassembly to bound memory consumption during large captures. v0.7.6 · Oct 2025 · source · release history

command line

  • --dnp3-point-map — CSV of outstation,group,index,name resolving DNP3 point indexes v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · command-line history

example

  • Do the same on a live interface with the point map supplied via environment variable, e.g. in a containerised sensor deployment. NC_DNP3_POINT_MAP=/etc/netcap/points.csv sudo net capture -iface eth0 v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Hunt for unauthorized S7comm operations (logic download, PLC stop) on an OT network PCAP, with an allowlist of known-good engineering workstations to suppress false positives. ./net capture -read ot-traffic.pcap --rules rules/examples/s7comm_hunt.yml --approved-workstations 10.0.1.50,10.0.1.51 v0.9.1 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Use non-lazy decoding to prevent potential issues with packet data mutability during processing netcap -r traffic.pcap --decode-option default v0.3.9 · Jan 2019 · source
  • Capture full payload data for TCP packets from a PCAP file netcap -r traffic.pcap -payload v0.3.9 · Jan 2019 · source
Capture-time network detection shipped Enables bounded real-time detections during live capture or PCAP replay — covering DNS DGA/tunneling, ICMP tunneling, TCP scans, SMTP fan-out, SSH anomalies, Stratum/IRC/OAST/Telegram, C2/sinkhole/imposter, and legacy cleartext-service ports — with a configurable policy file for thresholds, authorized source CIDRs, and versioned domain/IP indicators. 3 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: Network traffic analysis

release

  • Adds --dns-resolution-context flag (env NC_DNS_RESOLUTION_CONTEXT) to snapshot matched UDP DNS answers onto Connection records for use in capture-time detection rules. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -network-detection flag to net capture to enable bounded capture-time detections (DNS DGA/tunneling, ICMP tunneling, TCP scans, SMTP fan-out, SSH transfer/nonstandard-port, Stratum/IRC/OAST/Telegram, C2/sinkhole/imposter, legacy cleartext-service ports).⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -network-detection-config <policy.json> to load bounded JSON thresholds, authorized source IPs/CIDRs, and versioned domain/IP indicators (internal/networkdetect/config.go). v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Enable all capture-time network detections on a PCAP file with default thresholds — fastest way to triage a suspicious capture for DGA, tunneling, scans, and C2 beaconing. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap -network-detection v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Load a custom policy to tune detection thresholds, restrict authorized source CIDRs, and supply versioned C2 domain/IP indicators for a production environment. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap -network-detection -network-detection-config policy.json v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source
File-type identification and malware detection shipped Identifies file types within captured traffic using YARA signatures and Magika, enabling the detection of malicious payloads. 2 releases · first seen Nov 2019

Shared capability: Network traffic analysis

release

  • Adds YARA and Magika support for file-type identification and malware detection in captured traffic. v0.9.0 · Apr 2026 · source · release history
  • Includes contextual information in generated audit records v0.4.2 · Nov 2019 · source · release history
Packet capture (live and offline) 1 feature Network analysis since 2020
Interface discovery shipped Provides a command-line flag to list available network interfaces on the host machine for live capture operations. 1 release · first seen Feb 2020

Shared capability: Packet capture (live and offline)

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds -list-interfaces flag to all live capture tools in Netcap v0.4.4 · Feb 2020 · source · release history
TLS decryption from key logs 1 feature Network analysis since 2026
TLS session-secret decryption shipped Provides an offline TLS session-secret analysis adapter for post-capture decryption workflows. 1 release · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: TLS decryption from key logs

Also counts toward: Offline mode

release

  • Adds a qualified offline TLS session-secret analysis adapter for post-capture decryption workflows. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
Capture file formats 1 feature Network analysis since 2019
JSON export capability shipped Allows exporting capture data to JSON format for easier parsing and integration with downstream systems. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Nov 2019

Shared capability: Capture file formats

Also counts toward: JSON data export

release

  • Adds --json flag to the dump tool to output capture data as JSON v0.4.2 · Nov 2019 · source · release history

example

  • Dump packet captures to a file in JSON format for easier parsing. netcap dump --json -o output.json v0.4.2 · Nov 2019 · source
Remote capture 1 feature Network analysis since 2019
Distributed capture agent shipped Runs a remote capture agent that ships traffic to a central collector over a TCP/TLS 1.3 wire format, with pinned mutual-TLS 1.3 identity (certificate/key/fingerprint), configurable batch flushing, and a keypair-generation flow for provisioning new agents. 7 releases · 2 other sources · first seen May 2019

Shared capability: Remote capture

Also counts toward: Agent-based deployment, Command-line interface

release 7 total

  • The gen-config / NC_GEN_CONFIG agent flag is removed; use gen-keypair / NC_GEN_KEYPAIR instead, and configure pinned agent identities with -cert, -key, and -server-fingerprint. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds net agent -cert (env NC_CERT, default agent.crt), -key (env NC_KEY, default agent.key), and -server-fingerprint (env NC_SERVER_FINGERPRINT) flags for pinned mutual-TLS 1.3 agent identity in distributed capture. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -flush-interval (env NC_FLUSH_INTERVAL, default 5s) and -max-pending (env NC_MAX_PENDING) flags to the agent subcommand for batching control over the new TLS wire format. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds net agent -gen-keypair flag (env NC_GEN_KEYPAIR) to write a new agent certificate and key and print its fingerprint, replacing the former gen-config flow. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Distributed collection uses a new TCP/TLS 1.3 wire format that is incompatible with v0.10.2 and earlier; net agent and net collect must be upgraded together. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Distributed collection uses a new TCP/TLS 1.3 wire format incompatible with v0.10.2 and earlier — net agent and net collect must be upgraded together. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Start the agent with the collector's fingerprint pinned, flushing batches every 2 seconds. net agent -cert agent.crt -key agent.key -server-fingerprint <collector-sha256> -flush-interval 2s v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Generate a pinned TLS identity for a new distributed capture agent before connecting it to a collector. net agent -gen-keypair -cert agent.crt -key agent.key v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source
Intrusion detection and rules 1 feature Network analysis since 2019
Detection rule engine shipped Executes configurable threat-hunting rules against audit records with support for time-of-day checks, fan-out detection, IP allowlisting, and Modbus correlation. 10 releases · 4 other sources · first seen May 2019

Shared capability: Intrusion detection and rules

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release 10 total

  • Adds IOC and behavioral qualification alerts persisted through the rules engine with portable evidence references. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Exposes /api/network-detection API endpoint covering detection coverage, overflow, skipped late events, and stream gaps. v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Exposes /alerts UI endpoint with classification, measured values, scope, limits, and original evidence export for network detections. v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -network-detection-config <policy.json> to load bounded JSON thresholds, authorized source IPs/CIDRs, and versioned domain/IP indicators (internal/networkdetect/config.go). v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --approved-workstations flag for loading an approved-workstation allowlist used by detection rules via the IsApprovedWorkstation expression helper. v0.9.1 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds IsBusinessHours and HourOfDay time-of-day helpers to the detection rule expression engine. v0.9.1 · Sep 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Capture from a PCAP file with DNS resolution context enabled so that detection rules can match on the DNS name that resolved a connection's destination. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap --service --dns-resolution-context v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Query the network-detection coverage and overflow status programmatically to verify indicator health and check for skipped late events. curl http://localhost:8080/api/network-detection v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Enable all capture-time network detections on a PCAP file with default thresholds — fastest way to triage a suspicious capture for DGA, tunneling, scans, and C2 beaconing. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap -network-detection v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Load a custom policy to tune detection thresholds, restrict authorized source CIDRs, and supply versioned C2 domain/IP indicators for a production environment. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap -network-detection -network-detection-config policy.json v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source
Rule source management and updates 1 feature Network analysis since 2025
Database and IOC management shipped Manages internal databases and Indicators of Compromise (IOCs) via self-hosted generation, on-demand downloading, source filtering, and service-mode preloading. 17 releases · 5 other sources · first seen Oct 2025

Shared capability: Rule source management and updates

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release 17 total

  • Adds -geoProviders flag to select among bundled geolocation providers (e.g. dbip,geolite2); DB-IP Lite City data is now included in database downloads. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -geoProviders CLI argument to select the DB-IP geolocation provider set for distributed database downloads. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Upgraded installations are prompted to fetch netcap.sqlite because database downloads now use the DB-IP Lite layout, replacing the previous bleve-based database sources. v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Vulnerability database format changed: nvd.bleve and exploit-db.bleve are no longer read; you must run net util -download-dbs after upgrading to fetch the new netcap.sqlite (layout 2) from https://dbs.netcap.io/dbs/v2/. v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • The https://dbs.netcap.io/dbs/latest endpoint now serves a frozen bleve revision and is no longer rebuilt; netcap v0.10+ must use the v2 URL. v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Updates net util -index to accept any value (e.g. -index all) and rebuild netcap.sqlite from NVD and exploit-db feeds via the new BuildVulnDB path. v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • After upgrading to v0.10, download and verify the new SQLite vulnerability database before running any vuln lookups. net util -download-dbs v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Rebuild netcap.sqlite locally from downloaded NVD and exploit-db feeds, for air-gapped or custom database workflows. net util -index all v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Pull the latest IOC databases from dbs.netcap.io before a threat-hunting session so detections are up to date. net util -download-dbs v0.7.0 · Oct 2025 · source
  • Start capture with web UI service mode ./net capture -read traffic.pcap --service
  • Capture audit records from PCAP file ./net capture -read traffic.pcap
Network anomaly detection 1 feature Network analysis since 2026
Behavioral IDS shipped Adds scoped behavioral intrusion detection via capture and agent flags, using versioned learning and monitoring phases, durable persistent baselines, and resumable live alert streaming. 1 release · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: Network anomaly detection

Also counts toward: Agent-based deployment, Command-line interface

release

  • Adds scoped behavioral IDS via capture -behavior and agent -behavior flags, with versioned learning/monitoring phases, durable persistent baselines, and resumable live alert streaming. v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
Flow record export (NetFlow, IPFIX) 1 feature Network analysis since 2026
NetFlow/IPFIX/sFlow ingestion shipped Normalizes NetFlow v5/v9, IPFIX, and sFlow metadata during capture, with configurable UDP collector ports and collection health reporting. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: Flow record export (NetFlow, IPFIX)

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds --flow-export-ports flag (env NC_FLOW_EXPORT_PORTS, default 2055,4739,6343,9995,9996) to specify UDP destination ports observed as flow exports. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --flow-exports flag (env NC_FLOW_EXPORTS, default true) to normalize NetFlow v5/v9, IPFIX, and sFlow metadata with collection health during capture.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Ingest NetFlow/IPFIX/sFlow alongside packet data, restricting the listened UDP ports to a non-default collector setup. sudo ./net capture -iface en0 --flow-exports --flow-export-ports 2055,9996 v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source
Full packet retention 1 feature Network observation since 2026
Bounded rotating PCAPNG retention shipped Writes bounded rotating PCAPNG segments during capture, with configurable per-segment size and total disk budget, enabling retrieval of pre-alert raw traffic. 3 releases · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: Full packet retention

release

  • Adds --packet-segment-mb flag (env NC_PACKET_SEGMENT_MB, default 32) to set the per-segment size target in MiB for retained PCAPNG segments. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --packet-retention-mb flag (env NC_PACKET_RETENTION_MB, default 512) to cap total retained packet disk budget in MiB. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --retain-packets flag (env NC_RETAIN_PACKETS) to write bounded rotating PCAPNG segments during capture. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Live capture with PCAPNG rolling retention — keep up to 512 MiB of raw packets in 32 MiB segments so you can retrieve pre-alert traffic without storing everything. sudo ./net capture -iface en0 --retain-packets --packet-segment-mb 32 --packet-retention-mb 512 v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source
Other / not yet classified 13 features Features we have not matched to a capability yet. A suggested match is marked.
Packet archive indexing and correlation shipped suggested Indexes connection facets, certificate and timeline correlation, Community ID bitmaps, vulnerability and exploit pivots, and database notices across packet archives to enable fast prefiltering, cursor-paginated timeline lookup, and cross-session correlation in the web UI. 17 releases · first seen Sep 2026

Suggested capability: Network traffic analysis. This is our guess, not confirmed.

release 17 total

  • Adds GET /api/evidence/related API endpoint and net investigate related subcommand to retrieve cross-protocol evidence timelines linking DNS, connections, protocol records and alerts. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Enforces per-directory index and result limits that report truncation when exceeded. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --evidence-links-max-records flag (env NC_EVIDENCE_LINKS_MAX_RECORDS, default 1,000,000) to cap the number of records indexed per output directory before truncation is reported. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --flow-export-ports flag (env NC_FLOW_EXPORT_PORTS, default 2055,4739,6343,9995,9996) to specify UDP destination ports observed as flow exports. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds explicit flow windows, distributions, and estimated time series for network traffic analysis. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Vulnerability lookups now use netcap.sqlite (SQLite + FTS5) instead of separate .bleve directories. v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
Cross-protocol evidence linking shipped Enables linking related events across different network protocols and data sources during capture and investigation, with configurable time windows and result limits. 4 releases · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2026

Also counts toward: Command-line interface, REST API

release

  • Adds --evidence-links flag (env NC_EVIDENCE_LINKS) to enable/disable cross-protocol evidence linking in the web UI and via /api/evidence/related.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Binds related-evidence references to audit-file content hashes and enforces capture interface/VLAN scope and bounded time windows, withholding ambiguous joins instead of guessing. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --evidence-links-max-links flag (env NC_EVIDENCE_LINKS_MAX_LINKS, default 500) to limit related records returned per query. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --evidence-links-window flag (env NC_EVIDENCE_LINKS_WINDOW, default 1 h) to bound the maximum time between a DNS answer and a connection when linking evidence. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Limit cross-protocol evidence linking to a 30-minute window and cap results at 100 links per query to reduce memory use on large captures. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap --service --evidence-links --evidence-links-window 30m --evidence-links-max-links 100 v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source
Pre-built binary distributions verified Provides pre-built binaries for macOS ARM64, Linux AMD64 (glibc and musl), and Windows AMD64 — with and without DPI — distributed with a checksums file for integrity verification. 4 releases · 1 other source · first seen Sep 2026

release

  • Bundles Ubuntu DPI runtime libraries (including transitive libtrace dependencies) for out-of-the-box DPI support on Ubuntu. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds a Windows AMD64 build (netcap-nodpi-v0.11.0-windows-amd64) alongside existing macOS and Linux targets. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds macOS ARM64 (DPI/no-DPI), Linux AMD64 glibc/musl (DPI/no-DPI), and Windows AMD64 (no-DPI) pre-built binary distributions with checksums.txt. v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Enables netcap-nodpi-* Windows builds (amd64) for basic packet capture without Deep Packet Inspection v0.9.13 · Sep 2026 · source · release history

command line

Regression testing against pcap corpus shipped suggested Validates tool behaviour against a checksum-pinned corpus of 22 representative pcap/pcapng captures, including all nine PROTOS robustness captures, via a dedicated test target. 4 releases · 1 other source · first seen May 2019

Suggested capability: Capture file formats. This is our guess, not confirmed.

release

  • Ships 15 pinned FlightSim CLI scenario captures (egress-disabled lab, revision 3709d1c6905d9527885c62f66f49a955c7b0d191) qualified at 1/2/4/8 workers in internal/networkdetect/testdata/live/. v0.10.4 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Tests NETCAP against a checksum-pinned Wireshark sample corpus of 22 representative pcap/pcapng captures (including all nine PROTOS robustness captures) via make test-wireshark. v0.9.15 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds LinkTypeLinuxSLL PCAP file support to the capture engine v0.6.1 · Aug 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds static-analyze command for code analysis v0.4.0 · May 2019 · source · release history

example

  • Run the pinned Wireshark sample corpus regression suite to validate all 22 pcap/pcapng captures after a build or config change. make test-wireshark v0.9.15 · Sep 2026 · source
Investigation evidence UI shipped Exposes an investigation interface with native artifact downloads, routing filters, parser health, and signed sensor imports. 3 releases · first seen Oct 2026

release

  • Adds Settings → Features UI panel to toggle evidence linking and network detections independently at runtime. v0.13.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds an investigation evidence UI exposing native artifact downloads, routing filters, parser health, and signed sensor imports. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds signed sensor-scoped collection imports and retention for distributed capture scenarios. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
DPI worker concurrency control shipped suggested Allows the number of nDPI worker contexts used during live capture to be set via a flag, trading native memory use against throughput, with an automatic mode that scales up to eight workers. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2026

Suggested capability: Network traffic analysis. This is our guess, not confirmed.

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds NC_DPI_WORKERS environment variable and -dpi-workers flag to control the number of native DPI context workers (1-8). v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds -dpi-workers flag (env NC_DPI_WORKERS) to set the number of worker-owned nDPI contexts; one context minimizes native memory, automatic mode uses up to eight.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Run a live capture with DPI using four worker contexts to balance throughput against native memory use. sudo ./net capture -iface en0 -dpi-workers 4 v0.10.3 · Oct 2026 · source
Payload capture shipped suggested Captures full payload data for supported protocols such as TCP, UDP, ModbusTCP, and USB during network analysis. 3 releases · first seen Dec 2018

Suggested capability: Packet capture (live and offline). This is our guess, not confirmed.

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Updates Ethernet, IP, UDP, and TCP metrics to expose payload entropy and size as histograms v0.4.0 · May 2019 · source · release history
  • Adds -payload flag to enable payload data capture for TCP, UDP, ModbusTCP, and USB protocols v0.3.9 · Jan 2019 · source · release history
  • Adds support for USB v0.3.7 · Dec 2018 · source · release history
Capture evidence manifest shipped Writes a signed manifest recording capture identity, configuration, and health alongside output to support chain-of-custody documentation. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2026

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds --capture-evidence flag (env NC_CAPTURE_EVIDENCE, default true) to write a capture identity, configuration, and health manifest alongside output. v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Capture from a PCAP file and write a signed evidence manifest (identity, config, health) for chain-of-custody documentation. ./net capture -read traffic.pcap --capture-evidence v0.11.0 · Oct 2026 · source
Custom module publishing shipped suggested Publishes custom module packages for distribution via a dedicated CLI command. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Jan 2022

Suggested capability: Analysis scripting and extensions. This is our guess, not confirmed.

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

example

  • Publish a custom module package for distribution. netcap publish-module <module_path> v0.6.7 · Jan 2022 · source
Docker-based build support shipped Enables building the cyber tooling within an Ubuntu Docker container environment. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2019

release

  • Adds support for compiling in an ubuntu docker container v0.4.1 · Oct 2019 · source · release history

example

  • Build netcap inside an Ubuntu Docker environment instead of the previous default or other OS requirements. # Requires the updated build scripts/configs included in this release; # usage depends on how the tool exposes its build target, # typically: docker build -t netcap . v0.4.1 · Oct 2019 · source
Search result scoring normalization shipped Updates the underlying search indexing and ranking logic to use BM25 score-based ordering with explicit term matching, removing previous threshold-based filtering. 1 release · first seen Oct 2026

release

  • Lookup results differ slightly: bleve's score thresholds are gone, every hit matches all terms, results are capped at 10 ordered by bm25. v0.10.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
License compliance auditing shipped Generates reports on software license statuses to verify compliance. 1 release · first seen Sep 2021

release

Configurable encoder buffer shipped Allows configuration of the internal encoder buffer size via a dedicated parameter to control memory usage and throughput characteristics. 1 release · first seen Feb 2020

release

  • Makes encoder buffer size configurable via membuf parameter with a new default of 10MB v0.4.4 · Feb 2020 · source · release history

Lines in monospace are the tool's own words: help text parsed from its source, or an endpoint from its API document. Under release, a line is our summary of a dated release. Under docs, it is quoted from the tool's own documentation or website. Each links back to the source it came from.

Score card

  1. Shipping velocity releases a month, last 12 months
  2. Documentation quality release-notes rubric, 0–100
  3. Breaking-change discipline how rarely a release breaks users, and notice given
  4. Maintenance risk quiet time against its own cadence, maintainers
  5. Innovation & surface new capabilities, API and MCP surface
  6. Community health
  7. Contributor trend distinct committers, this year against last
  8. Maintainer concentration bus factor now against a year ago
  9. Issue backlog trend issues closed per issue opened, 12 months
  10. Responsiveness median time to a maintainer’s first reply

Nine scores for Netcap, each built from the releases, notes and API history this site tracks — and, on Researcher and Business, where it stands among every measured tool in its category and how that has moved.

Score cards are part of every paid plan.

See plans →

Each score is 0–100 on a published rubric, derived from data this site already shows. A dimension we cannot measure says so — it is never scored 0 and never enters a rank.

How this is scored
  • Shipping velocity — releases a month over the last 12 months, on a log scale where 16 a month scores 100. Needs 3 releases in the window.
  • Documentation quality — the release-notes rubric published on the analytics page, unchanged.
  • Breaking-change discipline — the share of releases carrying a breaking change (none scores 100, half or more scores 0). Only projects that label breaking changes are measured: a clean record cannot be told from an unlabelled one.
  • Maintenance risk — quiet time measured against the tool's own release cadence (quiet longer than 90 days and three typical gaps scores 0), plus the number of active maintainers and whether contributors are growing, where known. Higher is lower risk.
  • Innovation & surface — new capabilities in the feature ledger this year, API and MCP operations added, and the share of commits that are features: the mean of whichever we hold.
  • Community health (open-source tools only) — each is a direction, not a size: contributors this year against last, the bus factor now against a year ago, and issues closed per issue opened, where steady scores 50, doubled 100 and halved 0; plus the median time to a maintainer's first reply (an hour scores about 100, a month or more 0). A commercial card has no repository and carries none of the four.
  • Documented delivery (commercial tools) — when a vendor's documented new capabilities have slowed against its own baseline, that counts against the overall standing as heavily as two low dimensions. Steady delivery, or too little history to judge, leaves the standing alone; it is never a sixth score.
  • Open-source tools are scored on repository signals; commercial tools on their published changelog. Ranks compare tools within one category and one profile and need at least five measured peers; the overall standing needs three ranked dimensions. Best-in-breed or consolidator is a shape, not a quality, and is never scored.

Release-note detail over time

See how much detail Netcap puts in its release notes, quarter by quarter, and compare it with tracked tools in the same category. This history uses up to ten retained, reviewed notes per tool; sparse or blank older quarters may reflect that limit.

Checking release-note history…

Explore the full chart →

Releases

Show

20 entries

  1. October 20263
  2. September 20263
  3. April 20261
  4. October 20253
  5. January 20221
  6. September 20211
  7. August 20211
  8. February 20202
  9. November 20191
  10. October 20191
  11. May 20191
  12. January 20191
  13. December 20181
    Show

    20 entries

    Project health

    Issue, contributor and maintainer activity in dreadl0ck/netcap, 2023-10 – 2026-09, as of 2026-09-25. Twelve-month figures first; the trend lines run the whole window.

    1. Contributors 1 −1 vs prior 12 months
    2. Maintainers 1 +1 joined · −1 left, last 12 months
    3. Bus factor 1 committers behind half the commits
    4. Community-filed 33% of issues opened, last 12 months
    5. Median time to close 2 days first maintainer reply 4.5 days
    6. Open backlog 0 of 22 issues ever filed
    1. Issues opened / month 0 · 0 communitymaintainers
    2. Open backlog 0
    3. Contributors / month 1
    4. Commits / month 141
    5. Stars 1,802
    Issue themes, last 12 months
    • other 100%

    Counts from the project's public repository and git history; no individuals are identified. Maintainers are the committers covering 80% of the last year's commits. how we measure this

    Libraries its release ships

    What its latest release locks, checked against known advisories.

    None of its release's images build from a lockfile we can read.

    Add the badge to your README

    Maintain this project? The badge links readers straight to this page, so they can follow every release here.

    Tracked by Cyber Toolchain Choose a badge style and copy the code →
    browse all tools → score card for your toolchain →