Wireshark vs Nethogs

Struggling to choose between Wireshark and Nethogs? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Wireshark is a Network & Admin solution with tags like network, troubleshooting, analysis, packet-capture, protocol-analyzer.

It boasts features such as Network protocol analyzer, Real-time capturing and offline analysis, Rich VoIP analysis, Read/write many different capture file formats, Live data can be read from Ethernet, IEEE 802.11, PPP/HDLC, ATM, Bluetooth, USB, Token Ring, Frame Relay, FDDI, and others, Decryption support for many protocols and pros including Powerful feature set, Cross-platform, Open source, Large user community support.

On the other hand, Nethogs is a Network & Admin product tagged with bandwidth, network, monitoring, linux.

Its standout features include Monitors bandwidth usage per process in real time, Displays network usage in a terminal using a text-based user interface, Shows program name, PID, sent/received data, and total usage, Can filter processes by name or PID, Lightweight and non-intrusive, and it shines with pros like Easy to use and understand, Provides granular visibility into bandwidth usage, Helpful for identifying and troubleshooting network hogs, Works on most Linux distributions without setup.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Wireshark

Wireshark

Wireshark is an open-source packet analyzer software used for network troubleshooting, analysis, and communications protocol development. It allows users to see what's happening on their network at a microscopic level.

Categories:
network troubleshooting analysis packet-capture protocol-analyzer

Wireshark Features

  1. Network protocol analyzer
  2. Real-time capturing and offline analysis
  3. Rich VoIP analysis
  4. Read/write many different capture file formats
  5. Live data can be read from Ethernet, IEEE 802.11, PPP/HDLC, ATM, Bluetooth, USB, Token Ring, Frame Relay, FDDI, and others
  6. Decryption support for many protocols

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Powerful feature set

Cross-platform

Open source

Large user community support

Cons

Steep learning curve

Can be resource intensive

Capturing raw packets requires admin privileges


Nethogs

Nethogs

Nethogs is a Linux tool that provides real-time network traffic usage by process. It shows bandwidth usage on a per-process basis in an easy to understand format.

Categories:
bandwidth network monitoring linux

Nethogs Features

  1. Monitors bandwidth usage per process in real time
  2. Displays network usage in a terminal using a text-based user interface
  3. Shows program name, PID, sent/received data, and total usage
  4. Can filter processes by name or PID
  5. Lightweight and non-intrusive

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Easy to use and understand

Provides granular visibility into bandwidth usage

Helpful for identifying and troubleshooting network hogs

Works on most Linux distributions without setup

Cons

Terminal-only interface lacks graphical view

Can only monitor bandwidth usage, not other metrics

Requires root access to monitor all processes

Not well-suited for remote monitoring