That depends on what you mean by "bad packets"
Ethereal works on the link level and above, but it depends on the network
card, the network card drivers, the operating system and the capture library
to provide its information. Some of these may, and probably will,
"helpfully" delete malformed packets.
So you will not see any problems that manifest on the physical layer (eg bad
voltages, bad waveforms)
You may see a subset of possible deformed packets at the link layer (eg you
will probably see bad ethernet addresses, you probably wont see short
packets) depending on the hardware and software that you are using.
On a wireless network many configurations delete the wireless protocol from
packets.
You will see all other "bad" packets. Ethereal may or may not report them as
bad, depending on the protocol and the type of malformation.
So far as I know there is no definitive list of hardware and software that
will give you the maximum subset of bad packets, but maybe individuals on
the list might suggest configurations that have worked for them.
Some commercial packet sniffers use bespoke hardware and software
throughout. These can report a wider range of malformed packets, but they
cost a lot of money.
Ethereal has no impact on network congestion in itself. If you are using an
ethernet switch, and directing all traffic to the ethereal port, I suppose
that may have implications of some sort. (But I would expect it just to
affect the etheral port, not the network as a whole.)
--
Richard Urwin, Private
"No 9000 series computer has ever made a mitsake or corrubiteddatatato."
-----Original Message-----
From: Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan [mailto:zulfiqar_ahmed@xxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: 06 September 2002 04:29
To: 'ethereal-users@xxxxxxxxxxxx'
Subject: [Ethereal-users] Query Ethereal
Hi,
Please suggest is there any possibility, by using ethereal we can monitor
problematic network interface cards (eg: generating bad packets)?
Further, does it cause network congestion, if implemented on permanent
basis?
I will look forward to your kind reply.
Thanks
Regards
Zulfiqar
RHBBANK Malaysia
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