RANDPKT(1)                                                          RANDPKT(1)

NAME
       randpkt - Random packet generator

SYNOPSIS
       randpkt [ -b <maxbytes> ] [ -c <count> ] [ -F <file format> ] [ -r ]
       [ -t <type> ] <filename>

       randpkt -h|--help

       randpkt -v|--version

DESCRIPTION
       randpkt is a small utility that creates a trace file full of random
       packets.

       By creating many randomized packets of a certain type, you can test
       packet sniffers to see how well they handle malformed packets.  The
       sniffer can never trust the data that it sees in the packet because you
       can always sniff a very bad packet that conforms to no standard.
       randpkt produces very bad packets.

       When creating packets of a certain type, randpkt uses a sample packet
       that is stored internally to randpkt. It uses this as the starting
       point for your random packets, and then adds extra random bytes to the
       end of this sample packet.

       For example, if you choose to create random ARP packets, randpkt will
       create a packet which contains a predetermined Ethernet II header, with
       the Type field set to ARP. After the Ethernet II header, it will put a
       random number of bytes with random values.

OPTIONS
       -b <maxbytes>

           Default 5000.

           Defines the maximum number of bytes added to the sample packet.  If
           you choose a maxbytes value that is less than the size of the
           sample packet, then your packets would contain only the sample
           packet... not much variance there! randpkt exits on that condition.

       -c <count>

           Default 1000.

           Defines the number of packets to generate.

       -F <file format>

           Default pcapng.

           Sets the file format of the output capture file. randpkt can write
           the file in several formats; randpkt -F provides a list of the
           available output formats.  Note that not all output formats support
           all packet types.

       -h|--help
           Print the version number and options and exit.

       -r

           The packet type is determined randomly for each packet.  This
           requires an output format that can support different encapsulations
           per packet, like pcapng.

       -t <type>

           Default Ethernet II frame.

           Defines the type of packet to generate:

               arp             Address Resolution Protocol
               bgp             Border Gateway Protocol
               bvlc            BACnet Virtual Link Control
               dns             Domain Name Service
               eth             Ethernet
               fddi            Fiber Distributed Data Interface
               giop            General Inter-ORB Protocol
               icmp            Internet Control Message Protocol
               ip              Internet Protocol
               ipv6            Internet Protocol Version 6
               llc             Logical Link Control
               m2m             WiMAX M2M Encapsulation Protocol
               megaco          MEGACO
               nbns            NetBIOS-over-TCP Name Service
               ncp2222         NetWare Core Protocol
               sctp            Stream Control Transmission Protocol
               syslog          Syslog message
               tds             TDS NetLib
               tcp             Transmission Control Protocol
               tr              Token-Ring
               udp             User Datagram Protocol
               usb             Universal Serial Bus
               usb-linux       Universal Serial Bus with Linux specific header

       -v|--version
           Print the full version information and exit.

DIAGNOSTIC OPTIONS
       --log-level <level>
           Set the active log level.  Supported levels in lowest to highest
           order are "noisy", "debug", "info", "message", "warning",
           "critical", and "error".  Messages at each level and higher will be
           printed, for example "warning" prints "warning", "critical", and
           "error" messages and "noisy" prints all messages.  Levels are case
           insensitive.

       --log-fatal <level>
           Abort the program if any messages are logged at the specified level
           or higher.  For example, "warning" aborts on any "warning",
           "critical", or "error" messages.

       --log-domains <list>
           Only print messages for the specified log domains, e.g.
           "GUI,Epan,sshdump".  List of domains must be comma-separated. Can
           be negated with "!" as the first character (inverts the match).

       --log-debug <list>
           Force the specified domains to log at the "debug" level.  List of
           domains must be comma-separated. Can be negated with "!" as the
           first character (inverts the match).

       --log-noisy <list>
           Force the specified domains to log at the "noisy" level.  List of
           domains must be comma-separated. Can be negated with "!" as the
           first character (inverts the match).

       --log-fatal-domains <list>
           Abort the program if any messages are logged for the specified log
           domains.  List of domains must be comma-separated.

       --log-file <path>
           Write log messages and stderr output to the specified file.

EXAMPLES
       To see a description of the randpkt options use:

           randpkt

       To generate a capture file with 1000 DNS packets use:

           randpkt -b 500 -t dns rand_dns.pcapng

       To generate a small capture file with just a single LLC frame use:

           randpkt -b 100 -c 1 -t llc single_llc.pcapng

SEE ALSO
       pcap(3), editcap(1)

                                  2024-10-13                        RANDPKT(1)