Monthly Archives: October 2012

Wireshark Tutorial Series. Tips and tricks used by insiders and veterans

For those of you who have attended Sharkfest in the past, you already know that protocol analysis is near and dear to my heart. It’s also a field where experience and art still matter. As great as Wireshark is as a tool, it still takes coaxing by an analyst to ferret out root cause. And as networks and applications become more complex, keeping up will be challenging.

But the one thing that I noticed over the years is that people rush to install sniffers without really thinking about it. It’s almost as if people expect sniffers to magically spit out the root cause, served on a silver platter! In reality, it takes fair amount of protocol and application knowledge to truly bring a tool like Wireshark to bear.

I started posting to this blog so that I can help budding protocol analysts and perhaps show interesting tricks-of-the-trade to veteran users. To become good in this field, it takes a fair amount of practice. It takes practice to know how to capture the right data, where to capture the data, what filters to use, and how to interpret the data. So how do you go about getting started? First, you can watch the accompanying video/tutorial session (see below for the link.) Next, make sure you setup your Wireshark in a consistent manner – the video tutorial covers this.

Ever wonder how router jockeys like me can scroll through a “sho run” output so quickly? It’s because I’ve done it for so long that the eyes are trained to filter out unneeded information. That’s the key to training – knowing what to filter out so your brain can get to work on the important stuff. It turns out protocol analysis works the same way. You have to train your brain to filter out the noise. Setting up your Wireshark environment will go a long way to maximizing productivity.

There is no “right way” to setup Wireshark. There’s only “my way” and everyone else’s – by definition – is wrong! Some like destination address to be the first column just like in DOS Sniffer. Others prefer using Wireshark’s default order. Whatever your style is, make sure it’s consistent. And if you’re just starting out, perhaps you can benefit from my setup. Even Anthony Bourdain in his book “Kitchen Confidential” talks about “mise-en-place.” It’s a term used by chefs and signifies how the cooking stations are setup. It’s important because it makes them more productive. For the same reason, you need to develop your own Wireshark mise-en-place!

If you still have not modified the default layout of Wireshark, you’re definitely missing out. In the video, I’m going to help you setup Wireshark so that you can become more productive. And we’re going to embark on a journey where I show you all the secrets to protocol analysis. I’m like the “magicians’ tricks revealed” guy. I’m going to help make you a rock star – where protocol analysis is concerned – in your company. If you’re an industry veteran, don’t be alarmed. The first few sessions are geared towards beginners so they can catch up. After that, I promise you that we’ll be in the weeds!

Hope you enjoy it, and I’d love to hear your comments. You can reach me at [email protected]