Ethereal vs Cocoa Packet Analyzer

Struggling to choose between Ethereal and Cocoa Packet Analyzer? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Ethereal is a Network & Admin solution with tags like packet, network, analyzer, sniffer, protocol.

It boasts features such as Packet capture and real-time network traffic analysis, Powerful display filters for analyzing captured data, Protocol dissection of hundreds of protocols, TCP reassembly and stream following, VoIP analysis and RTP streams playback, Supports common capture file formats like pcap and pcapng, Extensible via plugins and dissectors and pros including Free and open source, Available for multiple platforms like Windows, Linux, macOS, Rich feature set for deep inspection and analysis, Support for wide range of network protocols, Active community support and development.

On the other hand, Cocoa Packet Analyzer is a Network & Admin product tagged with networking, troubleshooting, analysis, inspection, macos.

Its standout features include Real-time packet capture, Filtering and searching packets, Protocol decoding, Packet statistics and reports, Exporting packet captures (PCAP), and it shines with pros like Native macOS application, Clean and intuitive UI, Powerful filtering capabilities, Support for common protocols, Free and open source.

Feature	Ethereal	Cocoa Packet Analyzer
Overall Score	N/A	N/A
Primary Category	Network & Admin	Network & Admin

Product Overview

Ethereal

Description: Ethereal is a free and open-source packet analyzer and network protocol analyzer software for Unix-like operating systems. It allows users to examine data from a live network or from a capture file on disk. Ethereal has powerful features to inspect hundreds of protocols, and provides the ability to reconstruct TCP sessions and browse data as it presents itself on the wire.

Cocoa Packet Analyzer

Description: Cocoa Packet Analyzer is a native macOS packet capture, inspection and analysis tool. It allows capturing packets, inspection protocols, analysis and processing. Useful for network troubleshooting, analysis, software and communications protocol development.

Key Features Comparison

Ethereal Features

• Packet capture and real-time network traffic analysis
• Powerful display filters for analyzing captured data
• Protocol dissection of hundreds of protocols
• TCP reassembly and stream following
• VoIP analysis and RTP streams playback
• Supports common capture file formats like pcap and pcapng
• Extensible via plugins and dissectors

Cocoa Packet Analyzer Features

• Real-time packet capture
• Filtering and searching packets
• Protocol decoding
• Packet statistics and reports
• Exporting packet captures (PCAP)

Pros & Cons Analysis

Ethereal

Pros

• Free and open source
• Available for multiple platforms like Windows, Linux, macOS
• Rich feature set for deep inspection and analysis
• Support for wide range of network protocols
• Active community support and development

Cons

• Steep learning curve
• Capturing and analysis limited by available bandwidth
• Lacks some features found in commercial analyzers
• User interface not very intuitive

Cocoa Packet Analyzer

Pros

• Native macOS application
• Clean and intuitive UI
• Powerful filtering capabilities
• Support for common protocols
• Free and open source

Cons

• Limited to macOS platform
• Less advanced compared to Wireshark
• Lacks some advanced features like packet injection

Pricing Comparison

Ethereal

• Open Source

Cocoa Packet Analyzer

• Open Source