hping is a free packet generator

Packet generator

A packet generator or packet builder is a type of software that generates random packets or allows the user to construct detailed custom packets. Packet generators utilize raw sockets....

 and analyzer for the TCP/IP protocol distributed by Salvatore Sanfilippo (also known as Antirez).
Hping is one of the de facto tools for security auditing and testing of firewall

Firewall (computing)

A firewall is a device or set of devices designed to permit or deny network transmissions based upon a set of rules and is frequently used to protect networks from unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications to pass....

s and networks, and was used to exploit the idle scan

Idle scan

The idle scan is a TCP port scan method that consists of sending spoofed packets to a computer to find out what services are available. This is accomplished by impersonating another computer called a "zombie" and observing the behavior of the zombie system.This action can be done through common...

 scanning technique (also invented by the hping author), and now implemented in the Nmap Security Scanner

Nmap

Nmap is a security scanner originally written by Gordon Lyon used to discover hosts and services on a computer network, thus creating a "map" ofthe network...

. The new version of hping, hping3, is scriptable using the Tcl

Tcl

Tcl is a scripting language created by John Ousterhout. Originally "born out of frustration", according to the author, with programmers devising their own languages intended to be embedded into applications, Tcl gained acceptance on its own...

 language and implements an engine for string based, human readable description of TCP/IP packets, so that the programmer can write scripts related to low level TCP/IP packet manipulation and analysis in very short time.

Like most tools used in computer security

Computer security

Computer security is a branch of computer technology known as information security as applied to computers and networks. The objective of computer security includes protection of information and property from theft, corruption, or natural disaster, while allowing the information and property to...

, hping is useful to both system administrator

System administrator

A system administrator, IT systems administrator, systems administrator, or sysadmin is a person employed to maintain and operate a computer system and/or network...

s and hackers

Hacker (computer security)

In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...

.

See also

• Nmap Security Scanner
  Nmap
  Nmap is a security scanner originally written by Gordon Lyon used to discover hosts and services on a computer network, thus creating a "map" ofthe network...
  
  : Nmap and hping are often considered complementary to one another.
• Mausezahn
  Mausezahn
  ' is a fast network traffic generator written in C which allows the user to craft nearly every possible and "impossible" packet. Since version 0.31 Mausezahn is open source in terms of the GPLv2...
  
  : Another fast and versatile packet generator that also supports Ethernet header manipulation.

External links

• The Hping Website
• The Hping Wiki
• Idle Scanning, paper by Nmap author Fyodor.
• Hping 2 Fixed for Windows XP SP2 (Service Pack 2)
• The Mausezahn Website