Network Commands Cheatsheet

Essential CLI commands for network troubleshooting and administration

Select Your Operating System

Commands are available for Windows, Linux, and macOS

🚀 Quick Command Reference

ping -t google.com Continuous connectivity test

ipconfig /flushdns Clear DNS cache (Windows)

netstat -tuln Show listening ports (Linux)

traceroute -n 8.8.8.8 Trace route without DNS

arp -a Display ARP cache

nslookup google.com 8.8.8.8 DNS lookup using specific server

Network Diagnostic Commands

Essential commands for testing network connectivity and troubleshooting issues

ping

Test connectivity to a host

Windows

ping google.com

Linux

ping google.com

macOS

ping google.com

Common Options:

-t Continuous ping (Windows)

-c Count of packets (Linux/Mac)

-n Number of packets (Windows)

-s Packet size

-i TTL value

traceroute/tracert

Trace route to destination

Windows

tracert google.com

Linux

traceroute google.com

macOS

traceroute google.com

Common Options:

-h Maximum hops

-w Timeout for each reply

-d Do not resolve addresses

nslookup

Query DNS servers

Windows

nslookup google.com

Linux

nslookup google.com

macOS

nslookup google.com

Common Options:

server Specify DNS server

type= Query type (A, MX, TXT, etc.)

debug Enable debug mode

dig

Advanced DNS lookup

Windows

Not native (use nslookup)

Linux

dig google.com

macOS

dig google.com

Common Options:

+short Brief output

@server Specify DNS server

-x Reverse DNS lookup

ANY Query all record types

pathping

Combination of ping and tracert

Windows

pathping google.com

Linux

mtr google.com

macOS

mtr google.com

Common Options:

-n No DNS resolution

-h Maximum hops

-q Number of queries per hop

Network Configuration Commands

Commands for viewing and modifying network configuration

ipconfig/ifconfig

Display network configuration

Windows

ipconfig /all

Linux

ifconfig -a

macOS

ifconfig -a

Common Options:

/all Detailed configuration (Windows)

/release Release DHCP lease (Windows)

/renew Renew DHCP lease (Windows)

/flushdns Clear DNS cache (Windows)

up/down Enable/disable interface (Linux/Mac)

Modern Linux network configuration

Windows

Not available

Linux

ip addr show

macOS

Not native

Common Options:

addr Manage IP addresses

link Manage network interfaces

route Manage routing table

neigh Manage ARP cache

route

Display/modify routing table

Windows

route print

Linux

route -n

macOS

netstat -rn

Common Options:

add Add a route

delete Delete a route

print Display routing table (Windows)

-n Numerical output

arp

Display/modify ARP cache

Windows

arp -a

Linux

arp -a

macOS

arp -a

Common Options:

-a Display all entries

-d Delete an entry

-s Add static entry

-n Numerical addresses

Network Monitoring Commands

Commands for monitoring network connections and traffic

netstat

Display network connections

Windows

netstat -an

Linux

netstat -tuln

macOS

netstat -an

Common Options:

-a All connections and ports

-n Numerical addresses

-t TCP connections

-u UDP connections

-l Listening ports

-p Show process ID

-r Routing table

-s Statistics

Modern socket statistics

Windows

Not available

Linux

ss -tuln

macOS

Not native

Common Options:

-t TCP sockets

-u UDP sockets

-l Listening sockets

-a All sockets

-n Numerical output

-p Show processes

lsof

List open files/connections

Windows

Not native

Linux

lsof -i

macOS

lsof -i

Common Options:

-i Internet connections

-P Numerical ports

-n Numerical hosts

:port Specific port

tcpdump

Packet capture and analysis

Windows

Use Wireshark

Linux

tcpdump -i eth0

macOS

tcpdump -i en0

Common Options:

-i Interface

-n No DNS resolution

-v Verbose output

-w Write to file

port Filter by port

host Filter by host

Wireless Network Commands

Commands for managing wireless connections

netsh wlan

Windows wireless management

Windows

netsh wlan show profiles

Linux

Use iwconfig/nmcli

macOS

Use airport

Common Options:

show profiles List saved networks

show interfaces Show wireless adapters

connect Connect to network

disconnect Disconnect from network

iwconfig

Linux wireless configuration

Windows

Not available

Linux

iwconfig

macOS

Not available

Common Options:

essid Set network name

mode Set operating mode

channel Set channel

power Power management

airport

macOS wireless utility

Windows

Not available

Linux

Not available

macOS

airport -s

Common Options:

-s Scan for networks

-I Current connection info

-z Disconnect from network

Advanced Network Commands

Advanced commands for network administration

nmap

Network discovery and security auditing

Windows

nmap -sn 192.168.1.0/24

Linux

nmap -sn 192.168.1.0/24

macOS

nmap -sn 192.168.1.0/24

Common Options:

-sn Ping scan

-sS SYN scan

-sV Version detection

-O OS detection

-p Port specification

-A Aggressive scan

curl

Transfer data from/to servers

Windows

curl https://example.com

Linux

curl https://example.com

macOS

curl https://example.com

Common Options:

-I Headers only

-X Request method

-d POST data

-H Custom header

-o Output to file

-v Verbose

wget

Download files from web

Windows

wget https://example.com/file

Linux

wget https://example.com/file

macOS

wget https://example.com/file

Common Options:

-O Output filename

-c Continue download

-r Recursive download

-b Background download

hostname

Display or set system hostname

Windows

hostname

Linux

hostname -f

macOS

hostname

Common Options:

-f Fully qualified domain name

-i IP addresses

-I All IP addresses

Related Resources

Port Database →

Check which ports services are using

Protocol Reference →

Learn about network protocols

Security Guide →

Security best practices