Re: distributed nmap?

[Thomas Reinke <reinke () e-softinc com>]

Lorell Hathcock wrote:
> Greetings!
>
> I understand that in version 2.0 of nmap, nmap will run parallel processes
> or scans simultaneously.  Has anyone done any work with a nmap scan from a
> distributed set of servers?  What are the pros and cons of such an approach?
>
> It seems like a few of the pros would be a faster scan is possible of
> larger networks.  Also, it seems a scan could be done more "stealthily" if
> a broad set of servers were brought to bear on it.  It would look like a
> decoy attack when in fact it wasn't.
>
> Some of the cons are that it could be difficult to distribute commands to
> each of the member servers and to recombine the results of the scan.

We've scoped out something very similar to what you're describing.
Essentially, we've laid out nmap as a "service" on Unix, accepting
a very specific set of input parameters, and generating a very
specific set of output parameters (essentially its log file plus
some added tidbits of info).  Then, a master "controller" simply
hands off requests to the various servers running these services
and waits for the response.  It results in a scalable architecture,
in the sense that if you want another system in your network,
you just drop in this 'service' and add the IP of the service
to the master controller.

Cheers, Thomas

> Any thoughts?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Lorell Hathcock
>
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-- 
------------------------------------------------------------
Thomas Reinke                            Tel: (905) 331-2260
Director of Technology                   Fax: (905) 331-2504
E-Soft Inc.                         http://www.e-softinc.com