How to Use Wireshark on Windows: A Complete, Practical, and Up-to-Date Guide

Have you ever wondered What's really happening on your network when you browse, play online, or manage connected devices? If you are simply curious about the mysteries circulating on your WiFi, or if you simply need a professional tool to Analyze network traffic and detect problems with your connection, surely the name of Wireshark has already caught your attention.

Well, in this article you will discover without detours all the details about Wireshark: What it is, what it's used for in Windows, how to install it, and the best tips before you start capturing data. Let's get to it.

What is Wireshark? Unpacking the network analysis giant

Wireshark is the most popular and recognized network protocol analyzer worldwide.This free, open source and powerful tool allows you to capture and examine all network traffic that passes through your computer, whether it's a Windows, Linux, macOS, or even systems like FreeBSD and Solaris. With Wireshark, you can see, in real time or after recording, exactly which packets are entering and leaving your computer, their source, destination, protocols, and even break them down to get details of each layer according to the OSI model.

Unlike many analyzers, Wireshark stands out for its intuitive graphical interface, but also offers a powerful console version called TShark for those who prefer the command line or need to perform automated tasks. The flexibility of Wireshark It is such that it allows you to analyze a connection while you browse, to perform professional security audits, solve network bottlenecks, or learn from scratch about how Internet protocols work, all from your own PC!

Download and install Wireshark on Windows

Installing Wireshark on Windows is a simple process., but it is advisable to do it step by step so as not to leave any loose ends, especially regarding permissions and additional drivers for the capture.

• Official Download: Accede to the official Wireshark website and choose the Windows version (32 or 64 bits depending on your system).
• Run the installer: Double-click the downloaded file and follow the wizard. Accept the default options if you have any questions.
• Essential drivers: During installation, the installer will ask you install NpcapThis component is essential, as it allows your network card to capture packets in "promiscuous" mode. Please accept its installation.
• Terminate and restart: Once the process is complete, restart your computer to ensure all components are ready.

That's it! You can now start using Wireshark from the Windows Start menu. Please note that this program is frequently updated, so it's a good idea to check for new versions from time to time.

How Wireshark Works: Packet Capture and Display

When you open Wireshark, The first thing you will see is the list of all the network interfaces available on your system.: wired network cards, Wi-Fi, and even virtual adapters if you use virtual machines like VMware or VirtualBox. Each of these interfaces represents an entry or exit point for digital information.

To start capturing data, You just have to double-click on the desired interface. Since then, Wireshark will display in real time all the packets that circulate by that card, sorting them by columns such as packet number, capture time, source, destination, protocol, size, and additional details.

When you want to stop capturing, press the red Stop button. You can save captures in .pcap format for later analysis, sharing, or even exporting them in different formats (CSV, text, compressed, etc.). This flexibility is what makes Wireshark is an indispensable tool for both spot analysis and full audits..

Getting Started: Tips Before Taking a Screenshot in Windows

To ensure that your first Wireshark captures are useful and don't end up filled with irrelevant noise or confusing data, there are several key recommendations to follow:

• Close unnecessary programsBefore starting a capture, exit any applications that generate background traffic (updates, chats, email clients, games, etc.). This will prevent you from mixing up irrelevant traffic.
• Control the firewallFirewalls can block or modify traffic. Consider temporarily disabling them if you're looking for a complete capture.
• Capture only what is relevantIf you want to analyze a specific app, wait a second or two after starting the capture to launch the app, and do the same when closing it before stopping the recording.
• Know your active interface: Make sure you select the correct network card, especially if you have multiple adapters or are on a virtual network.

By following these guidelines, your screenshots will be much cleaner and more useful for any further analysis..

Filters in Wireshark: How to Focus on What Really Matters

One of the most powerful features of Wireshark is the filtersThere are two basic types:

• Capture filters: They are applied before starting to capture, allowing you to collect only the traffic that interests you from the start.
• Display filters: These apply to the list of packets already captured, allowing you to display only those that meet your criteria.

Among the most common filters are:

• By protocol: Filters only HTTP, TCP, DNS, etc. packets.
• By IP address: For example, display only packets from or to a specific IP using ip.src == 192.168.1.1 o ip.dst == 8.8.8.8.
• By port: Limits results to a specific port (tcp.port == 80).
• By text string: Locates packages that contain a keyword within their content.
• By MAC address, packet length or IP range.

Additionally, filters can be combined with logical operators (and, or, not) for very precise searches, such as tcp.port == 80 and ip.src == 192.168.1.1.

What can you capture and analyze with Wireshark on Windows?

Wireshark is capable of interpreting more than 480 different protocols, from the basics like TCP, UDP, IP, to application-specific protocols, IoT, VoIP, and many others. This means you can examine all types of network traffic, from simple DNS queries to encrypted SSH sessions, HTTPS connections, FTP transfers, or SIP traffic from Internet telephony.

Furthermore, Wireshark supports standard capture formats such as tcpdump (libpcap), pcapng and others, and allows you to compress and decompress captures on the fly using GZIP to save space. For encrypted traffic (TLS/SSL, IPsec, WPA2, etc.), if you have the right keys, you can even decrypt the data and view its original content.

Detailed traffic capture: additional recommendations

Before starting any important capture, follow this protocol to maximize the usefulness of the information collected.:

• Choose the right interface: Typically, your active adapter will be the one for the connection you're using. If you're unsure, check which one is connected in Windows' network settings.
• Set the scene: Open only the programs or apps that will generate the traffic you want to analyze.
• Isolate the phenomenonIf you're looking to analyze app traffic, follow this sequence: launch the app after starting the capture, perform the action you want to analyze, and close the app before stopping the recording.
• Save the screenshot: Stop recording, go to File > Save and choose .pcap or your preferred format.

This is how you will get clean and easy to analyze files, without any junk traffic mixed in.

Illustrative examples: traffic analysis with Wireshark

Let's say you have two computers on your local network and one of them stops accessing the Internet. You can use Wireshark to capture traffic from that machine. and see if there are errors resolving DNS addresses, if packets are not reaching the router, or if a firewall is blocking communications.

Another typical case: detect if a website does not properly encrypt your loginIf you log into a website without HTTPS and apply an HTTP filter combined with your username, you might even see your password traveling in the clear across the network—a real-life example of the risk of insecure websites.

Wireshark and Security: Risks, Attacks, and Protective Measures

Wireshark's power is also its greatest risk: In the wrong hands, it can facilitate credential capture, espionage, or reveal sensitive information.Here are some threats and recommendations:

• Credential stuffing (credential brute force attacks)If you capture SSH, Telnet, or other service traffic, you may notice automated login attempts. Pay attention to longer sessions (these are usually successful), packet sizes, and the number of attempts to detect suspicious patterns.
• Risk of external traffic: Filter all SSH traffic that is not coming from your internal network: if you see connections from outside, be alert!
• Plaintext passwordsIf a website transmits unencrypted usernames and passwords, you'll see it in the screenshot. Never use Wireshark to obtain this data from other networks. Remember, doing so without permission is illegal.
• Consent and legality: Only analyze traffic from your own networks or with explicit authorization. The law is very clear on this point, and misuse can have serious consequences.
• Transparency and ethicsIf you work in a corporate environment, inform users about the analysis and its purpose. Respecting privacy is just as important as technical security.

Wireshark Alternatives: Other Options for Network Analysis

Wireshark is the undisputed reference, but there are other tools that can complement or, in specific situations, replace its use:

• tcpdumpIdeal for Unix/Linux environments, it runs on the command line. It's lightweight, fast, and flexible for quick captures or automated tasks.
• Cloudshark: Web platform for uploading, analyzing, and sharing packet captures from the browser. Very useful for collaborative environments.
• Smart Sniff: Focused on Windows, easy to use for spot captures and viewing of conversations between clients and servers.
• ColaSoft Capsa: Graphical network analyzer that stands out for the simplicity of its interface and specific options for port scanning, exporting, and compact visualization.

Choosing the best alternative depends on your specific needs.: speed, graphical interface, online collaboration, or compatibility with specific hardware.

Advanced Settings: Promiscuous Mode, Monitor, and Name Resolution

Promiscuous mode allows the network card to capture not only the packages intended for her, but all traffic that circulates through the network to which it is connectedIt is crucial for analyzing corporate networks, shared hubs, or pentesting scenarios.

On Windows, go to Capture > Options, select the interface and check the Promiscuous Mode box. Keep in mind that on Wi-Fi networks, except for very specific hardware, you'll only see traffic from your own device.

On the other hand, Name resolution converts IP addresses into readable domain names (for example, 8.8.8.8 in google-public-dns-a.google.com). You can enable or disable this option from Edit > Preferences > Name Resolution. It helps a lot to identify devices during a scan, although it can slow down the process if there are many addresses being resolved.