Network Security Tools

Name

pcap_lookupdev — Prototype: char *pcap_lookupdev(char *errbuf)

Synopsis

Purpose: pcap_lookupdev finds the first usable interface (active and supported by libpcap) for use with pcap_open_live and pcap_lookup_net returned by the operating system. The function returns a string containing the device’s name if successful. If not successful, the function returns NULL and errbuf contains a human-readable error message. pcap_lookupdev is not recommended in situations where multiple network interfaces are in use. Note that if the calling user does not have appropriate privileges, this function might not return a device even though usable devices are present. You can find an example of using pcap_lookupdev in the Section 10.2.2 section earlier in this chapter.