Netstat – which comes from the words network and statistics – is a command-line tool used by system administrators to analyze network statistics.

It shows various kinds of information such as open ports along with their addresses on the host, the routing table, and masquerade connections.

In this article, we will guide you through the process of installing the netstat command across different Linux distributions.

How to Install netstat Command in Linux

The package that includes netstat is known as net-tools. On newer systems, the netstat utility is usually pre-installed, so there's no need to install it manually.

However, on older systems, you might encounter an error when trying to run the netstat command:

<code>bash: netstat: command not found</code>

To install netstat on various Linux distributions, execute the appropriate command for your system:

<code>$ sudo apt install net-tools         [On <strong>Debian, Ubuntu and Mint</strong>]
$ sudo yum install net-tools         [On <strong>RHEL/CentOS/Fedora</strong> and <strong>Rocky/AlmaLinux</strong>]
$ sudo emerge -a sys-apps/net-tools  [On <strong>Gentoo Linux</strong>]
$ sudo apk add net-tools            [On <strong>Alpine Linux</strong>]
$ sudo pacman -S net-tools           [On <strong>Arch Linux</strong>]
$ sudo zypper install net-tools      [On <strong>OpenSUSE</strong>]    </code>

Once installed, you can verify the version of netstat by running:

<code># netstat -v</code>

How to Use netstat Command in Linux

You can use the netstat command on any Linux distribution to retrieve various types of network-related statistics.

1. Viewing the Network Routing Table

Use the -r option to display the network routing table, producing output similar to what is shown below:

<code># netstat -nr</code>

The -n flag makes netstat display IP addresses in dotted format instead of resolving them to domain names. This helps avoid unnecessary network lookups.

2. Display Network Interface Statistics

To view statistics about configured network interfaces, use the -i flag. The -a option ensures all interfaces currently present in the kernel are displayed.

<code># netstat -ai</code>

3. Show Network Connections

The netstat utility offers options to show active or passive sockets using flags like -t, -n, and -a. These flags allow you to see RAW, UDP, TCP, or UNIX socket connections. Adding -a displays sockets waiting for incoming connections.

<code># netstat -ant</code>

4. Show Network Services

To list services, their status, and the associated port numbers, use the following command:

<code># netstat -pnltu</code>

This article has covered how to install and use the netstat command to gather various types of network-related data.

It's worth noting that netstat is now considered deprecated, and the ss utility is recommended as a more modern alternative for displaying detailed network statistics.

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