Tools I use — no fluff, no ads, just raw power.
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| nmap | Network scanner | nmap -sV 192.168.1.0/24 |
| masscan | High-speed port scanner | masscan -p1-65535 10.0.0.0/8 |
| netstat | Show network connections | netstat -tulnp |
| iftop | Real-time bandwidth usage | iftop -i eth0 |
| lsof | List open files | lsof -i |
| tcpdump | Network packet capture | tcpdump -i eth0 |
| htop | Interactive process viewer | htop |
| arping | Send ARP requests | arping 192.168.1.1 |
| hostname | Display/set hostname | hostname |
| cron | Manage scheduled tasks | crontab -e |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| jq | JSON parser | jq . file.json |
| ansible | Configuration management | ansible-playbook playbook.yml |
| docker | Containerization tool | docker run -it ubuntu |
| git | Version control | git clone https://github.com/repo.git |
| make | Build automation | make install |
| vim | Text editor | vim script.sh |
| tmux | Terminal multiplexer | tmux new -s dev |
| curl | Transfer data | curl -I https://example.com |
| awk | Pattern scanning | awk '{print $1}' file.txt |
| cron | Job scheduling | crontab -e |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| hashcat | Password cracker | hashcat -m 0 hash.txt wordlist.txt |
| nmap | Network scanning with scripts | nmap --script vuln 192.168.1.1 |
| john | Password cracking tool | john --wordlist=passwords.txt hashes.txt |
| hydra | Network login cracker | hydra -l admin -P passwords.txt 192.168.1.1 ssh |
| nikto | Web server vulnerability scanner | nikto -h http://example.com |
| tcpdump | Packet capture tool | tcpdump -i eth0 |
| gpg | Encryption utility | gpg -c secrets.txt |
| lynis | Security auditing tool | lynis audit system |
| clamav | Antivirus scanner | clamscan -r /home |
| fail2ban | Ban IPs with failed logins | fail2ban-client status sshd |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| dd | Disk cloning | dd if=/dev/sdX of=backup.img |
| rsync | Sync files/directories | rsync -avh source/ dest/ |
| tar | Archive/compress files | tar -czvf archive.tar.gz folder/ |
| gzip | Compress files | gzip filename.txt |
| parted | Partition management | parted /dev/sda |
| fdisk | Manage disk partitions | fdisk /dev/sda |
| mount | Mount devices | mount /dev/sda1 /mnt |
| umount | Unmount devices | umount /mnt |
| lsblk | List block devices | lsblk |
| df | Disk usage info | df -h |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| traceroute | Trace network route | traceroute google.com |
| ping | Check network connectivity | ping 8.8.8.8 |
| dig | DNS lookup | dig example.com |
| nslookup | Query DNS records | nslookup example.com |
| mtr | Network diagnostics tool | mtr google.com |
| ip | Show/manipulate routing | ip a |
| netcat | TCP/UDP tool | nc -lvp 1234 |
| tcpflow | Capture TCP traffic | tcpflow -i eth0 |
| arp | Show ARP cache | arp -a |
| whois | Domain info lookup | whois example.com |
| Command | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| show ip interface brief | Show interface summary | show ip interface brief |
| show cdp neighbors | Show connected devices | show cdp neighbors |
| show vlan | Show VLAN configuration | show vlan |
| show mac address-table | Show MAC table | show mac address-table |
| show ip route | Show routing table | show ip route |
| show arp | Show ARP table | show arp |
| show run | Show running config | show run |
| show start | Show startup config | show start |
| ping | Test connectivity | ping 192.168.1.1 |
| traceroute | Trace path | traceroute 8.8.8.8 |
| show ip bgp | Show BGP routes | show ip bgp |
| show ip ospf neighbor | Show OSPF neighbors | show ip ospf neighbor |
| show interfaces | Show interface details | show interfaces GigabitEthernet0/1 |
| show log | Show system logs | show log |
| show version | Show hardware/software info | show version |
| show inventory | Show hardware inventory | show inventory |
| show stackwise | Show stack configuration | show stackwise |
| show vtp status | Show VTP status | show vtp status |
| show etherchannel summary | Show port channels | show etherchannel summary |
| show spanning-tree | Show STP status | show spanning-tree |
| show ip dhcp binding | Show DHCP leases | show ip dhcp binding |
| show ip dhcp snooping | Show DHCP snooping | show ip dhcp snooping |
| show access-lists | Show ACLs | show access-lists |
| show ip nat translations | Show NAT table | show ip nat translations |
| show ip firewall access-list | Show firewall rules | show ip firewall access-list |
| show ip ssh | Show SSH connections | show ip ssh |
| show users | Show active sessions | show users |
| terminal length 0 | Show full config output | terminal length 0 |
| terminal monitor | Show logs on console | terminal monitor |
| conf t | Enter config mode | conf t |
| exit | Exit current mode | exit |
| end | Exit config mode | end |
| copy run start | Save config | copy run start |
| write memory | Save config (alt) | write memory |
| reload | Reboot device | reload |
| clear mac address-table dynamic | Clear MAC table | clear mac address-table dynamic |
| clear ip arp | Clear ARP table | clear ip arp |
| clear ip route | Clear routing table | clear ip route |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| rpi-imager | Write OS images | GUI |
| gpio | Control GPIO pins | gpio readall |
| i2cdetect | Scan I2C bus | i2cdetect -y 1 |
| avrdude | Flash AVR firmware | avrdude -p m328p -c usbasp -U flash:w:file.hex |
| esptool | Flash ESP boards | esptool.py write_flash 0x00000 firmware.bin |
| platformio | Embedded dev platform | pio run -t upload |
| minicom | Serial terminal | minicom -D /dev/ttyUSB0 |
| picocom | Lightweight serial comms | picocom /dev/ttyUSB0 |
| wiringPi | GPIO control tools | gpio -g mode 17 out |
| arduino-cli | Arduino command line | arduino-cli compile --fqbn arduino:avr:uno sketch |
| Tool | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| winget | Package manager | winget install nmap |
| powershell | Task automation shell | Get-Process |
| choco | Chocolatey package manager | choco install curl |
| tasklist | Show running tasks | tasklist |
| ipconfig | Network config | ipconfig /all |
| netstat | Network connections | netstat -ano |
| reg | Registry editor | reg query HKCU\Software |
| sfc | System file checker | sfc /scannow |
| msinfo32 | System information | msinfo32 |
| schtasks | Schedule tasks | schtasks /query /fo LIST |
| Get-ADUser | Active Directory user lookup | Get-ADUser -Identity jdoe |
| Restart-Computer | Remote restart | Restart-Computer -ComputerName SRV01 |
| Test-Path | Check file existence | Test-Path C:\temp\file.txt |
| Copy-Item | Copy files | Copy-Item C:\src\file.txt -Destination C:\dest\ |
| Get-ChildItem | List directory contents | Get-ChildItem -Path C:\logs |
| Get-Service | List Windows services | Get-Service -Name Spooler |
| Get-Process | Process details | Get-Process -Name chrome |
| Get-NetAdapter | Network adapter info | Get-NetAdapter | Where-Object {$_.Status -eq "Up"} |
| Test-NetConnection | Modern ping/traceroute | Test-NetConnection google.com -Port 443 |
| Get-HotFix | Installed updates | Get-HotFix | Sort-Object InstalledOn -Descending |
| Command | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| Get-Process | Lists running processes | Get-Process |
| Get-Service | Lists Windows services | Get-Service |
| Set-ExecutionPolicy | Change script execution policy | Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned |
| Get-EventLog | Read event logs | Get-EventLog -LogName System |
| Test-Connection | Ping with PowerShell | Test-Connection google.com |
| Get-Content | View file content | Get-Content .\file.txt |
| Invoke-WebRequest | Download a file | Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://site -OutFile file.zip |
| Start-Process | Run a new process | Start-Process notepad.exe |
| New-Item | Create a new file or folder | New-Item -Path . -Name test.txt -ItemType File |
| Remove-Item | Delete file or folder | Remove-Item test.txt |