Visualizing your network with RadialNet

Net View

© Saniphoto, Fotolia

© Saniphoto, Fotolia

Article from Issue 94/2008
Author(s):

RadialNet draws a picture of the network, helping admins identify potential security holes.

A number of programs let the user map network structures and vulnerabilities. One of the most popular tools is the terminal-based network mapper Nmap [1]. Many admins value Nmap's security and structure analysis functionality. Unfortunately, Nmap only offers a few internal options for visualizing the results of the analysis. A tool called RadialNet [2] visualizes network structures mapped by Nmap to provide a graphical overview of the networked computers (Figure 1).

Installation

RadialNet is written in Python. To use the program, you need a Python interpreter, along with the PyCairo, PyGTK, and PyGObject packages for the graphics. On Ubuntu, you can install these packages by typing sudo apt-get install python-cairo python-gtk2 python-gobject. Other distributions also include the packages by default. Launch your favorite distribution's software management tool to complete the installation.

After downloading RadialNet 0.44 [2], you can unpack the tool in a terminal window by typing tar xfvz radial-net- 0.44.tar.gz. Then, to launch the program, type python radialnet.pyw. RadialNet helps you visualize Nmap analysis results (see the "Exploring the Network with Nmap" box). The data must be formatted in XML and can be passed in to the program either at launch time, by adding a -f FILENAME flag, or interactively by selecting Open.

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