NetBox VS Nmap

Compare NetBox VS Nmap and see what are their differences

Netumo

Ensure healthy website performance, uptime, and free from vulnerabilities. Automatic checks for SSL Certificates, domains and monitor issues with your websites all from one console and get instant notifications on any issues. featured

Contents:

» Base Details
» Videos
» Reviews
» Alternatives

NetBox

NetBox is an open source web application designed to help manage and document computer networks. NetBox was developed specifically to address the needs of network and infrastructure engineers.

Nmap

Nmap Free Security Scanner, Port Scanner, & Network Exploration Tool. Download open source software for Linux, Windows, UNIX, FreeBSD, etc.

Landing page //
2023-09-15

It encompasses the following aspects of network management:

IP address management (IPAM) - IP networks and addresses, VRFs, and VLANs Equipment racks - Organized by group and site Devices - Types of devices and where they are installed Connections - Network, console, and power connections among devices Virtualization - Virtual machines and clusters Data circuits - Long-haul communications circuits and providers Secrets - Encrypted storage of sensitive credentials

Landing page //
2022-06-15

NetBox

Website: netbox.readthedocs.io

Edit details

Nmap

Website: nmap.org

Edit details

NetBox features and specs

Open Source
NetBox is open-source software, which means you can use and modify it freely without having to pay for a license. This can significantly reduce costs and allows for customization according to specific needs.
Comprehensive IPAM and DCIM
NetBox includes both IP Address Management (IPAM) and Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) functionalities, offering a single platform to manage diverse aspects of network infrastructure.
Extensible via API
NetBox provides a robust API that allows integration with other tools and systems, enabling automation and enhanced functionality through scripting and third-party applications.
User-Friendly Interface
The web-based user interface is intuitive and easy to use, even for those who may not have extensive experience with network management tools.
Active Community and Support
NetBox has an active community of users and contributors, which helps in quickly addressing issues, sharing knowledge, and contributing to the continuous improvement of the software.

Possible disadvantages of NetBox

Initial Setup Complexity
The initial installation and configuration of NetBox can be complex and time-consuming, potentially requiring a good understanding of Python, PostgreSQL, and other dependencies.
Resource Intensive
As a web-based application, NetBox can be resource-intensive, requiring a capable server environment to run efficiently, which might not be suitable for very small-scale deployments.
Steeper Learning Curve
Despite its intuitive interface, the broad set of features and functionalities might overwhelm new users, leading to a steeper learning curve.
Limited Built-in Reporting
NetBox has limited built-in reporting capabilities, which might necessitate additional tools or custom reports to meet specific reporting needs.
No Built-in Alerting
NetBox does not have built-in alerting mechanisms for tracking changes or unusual activities, so additional monitoring and alerting systems may be required.

Nmap features and specs

Comprehensive Scanning
Nmap can perform a wide variety of scans, including port scanning, service detection, and OS fingerprinting, making it a versatile tool for network exploration and security auditing.
Open Source
As an open-source tool, Nmap is free to use and has a large community of users contributing to its development and improvement.
Scripting Engine
The Nmap Scripting Engine (NSE) allows users to write custom scripts to automate tasks, detect vulnerabilities, and extract information, significantly extending its capabilities.
Cross-Platform Support
Nmap is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux, and macOS, ensuring broad accessibility for users.
Large Knowledge Base
Nmap has extensive documentation and a wealth of online resources, tutorials, and community support, making it easier for beginners to learn and use the tool effectively.
Performance Optimization
Nmap is designed to be efficient and can handle large networks, making it suitable for both small-scale and enterprise-level scanning.

Possible disadvantages of Nmap

Complexity
Due to its extensive features and options, Nmap can be overwhelming for beginners, requiring a steep learning curve to fully utilize its capabilities.
Potential for Misuse
Nmap can be used for malicious activities such as unauthorized network scanning, potentially leading to security violations and ethical concerns.
Permission Issues
Using Nmap without proper authorization can be illegal in some jurisdictions, and unauthorized scans can be considered invasive or hostile by network administrators.
False Positives/Negatives
Like any scanning tool, Nmap can produce false positives and negatives, requiring additional verification and analysis to ensure accuracy.
Resource Intensive
Some Nmap scans, especially comprehensive ones, can be resource-intensive, potentially affecting network performance and consuming significant CPU and memory resources.
Network Disruption
Aggressive scanning techniques used by Nmap can disrupt network services and lead to denial of service, particularly in sensitive or critical environments.

Analysis of NetBox

Overall verdict

Yes, NetBox is considered a good tool for managing complex networks and data centers. Its strong community support and continuous development contribute to its robustness and reliability in production environments.

Why this product is good

NetBox is a popular open-source tool for network automation and management, favored for its comprehensive features such as IP address management (IPAM), data center infrastructure management (DCIM), and its extensibility through plugins and a REST API. It provides a user-friendly web interface and is highly customizable, making it suitable for various network configurations and workflows.

Recommended for

NetBox is recommended for network engineers, system administrators, data center managers, and IT professionals who need an effective solution for managing IP addresses, network devices, and cabling infrastructure in medium to large-scale operations. It is particularly advantageous for those looking for an open-source option with a strong community backing.

Analysis of Nmap

Overall verdict

Yes, Nmap is a highly effective and reliable tool for network scanning and security auditing. Its comprehensive suite of features and frequent updates ensure it remains relevant in the constantly evolving landscape of network security.

Why this product is good

Nmap is widely regarded as a powerful and versatile network scanning tool. It is known for its ability to discover hosts and services on a computer network, thus creating a 'map' of the network. Security professionals and system administrators use it to conduct network inventory, manage service upgrade schedules, and monitor host or service uptime. Its robustness, open-source nature, and support of a wide range of platforms make it a staple in the toolkit of network security experts.

Recommended for

Network security professionals
System administrators
Penetration testers
IT professionals responsible for network management
Anyone interested in learning more about network mapping and security

NetBox videos

+ Add

Accessing NAPALM via the NetBox API

Nmap videos

+ Add

Nmap Tutorial For Beginners - 1 - What is Nmap?

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to NetBox and Nmap)

NetBox

Nmap

Monitoring Tools

39 39%

Monitoring Tools

61% 61

Log Management

60 60%

Log Management

40% 40

Security

0 0%

Security

100% 100

DCIM Software

100 100%

DCIM Software

0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using NetBox and Nmap. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare NetBox and Nmap

NetBox Reviews

11 NetBox Alternatives

NetBox is a resource modeling application that is specially designed to automate networks and empower network engineering as well. It manages all the needs of networks and works under the license of Apache 2.

Source: www.justalternativeto.com

The 10 Best IP Address Management Tools for Linux

NetBox is certainly one of the best open-source IPAM solutions reviewed by our editors. It comes with a simple but elegant user interface that packs a serious punch in terms of functionalities. NetBox was initially developed by the network engineering team at DigitalOCean and has since evolved into a full-fledged IP management application. It is very popular among...

Source: www.ubuntupit.com

12 Open Source/Commercial Software for Data Center Infrastructure Management

NetBox is an open-source IP address management and data center infrastructure management platform, which was created by the network team at DigitalOcean to store the information about your networks, virtual machines, inventories, and many more.

Source: www.tecmint.com

Best IP Address Management Tools for Linux

NetBox is an open-source web based IP address management and data center infrastructure management application. It was developed more particulary to address the requirements of network and infrastructure engineers.

Source: www.tecmint.com

Nmap Reviews

The Top 5 Open Source Vulnerability Scanners

Nmap is a tool that scans ports, does service fingerprinting, and identifies versions of operating systems. Nmap also comes with a scripting engine that detects security vulnerabilities. Once these are detected, Vulcan’s platform can help you to prioritize and fix vulnerabilities.

Source: vulcan.io

9 Best Angry IP Scanner Alternatives Reviewed 2021 (Free & Paid)

If you’re a network administrator looking for more depth and raw power from a port scanner, look no further than Nmap. What Nmap lacks in frills and functional GUI it makes up for with sheer command-line based power. If you’re not a fan of strictly just a command-line interface, you can always use Zenmap, which is the exact same software just with a graphical interface. Both...

Source: www.comparitech.com

15 Best Nmap Alternatives Network Security Scanner

Nmap is an open-source tool that lots of IT professionals find useful in their careers. It is a tool that can locate available hosts and other services that they offer within a network. The Nmap program makes use of raw IP packets to find the hosts and services that are available.

Source: technicalustad.com

10 Best WireShark Alternatives for Android Devices in 2021

Nmap is a popular open-source network scanning app for Android and desktop. While it works on both rooted and non-rooted Android, you get more functionality during a rooted Android smartphone. Like some apps, Nmap is not available on Google play store or their website.

Source: techreen.com

Alternatives to Nmap: from simple to advanced network scanning

This month marks the 20th anniversary of Nmap, the open-source network mapping tool that became the standard used by many IT professionals, but that can be a bit much if you only need to do general network maintenance and are intimidated by its command-line interface.

Source: www.networkworld.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Nmap should be more popular than NetBox. It has been mentiond 202 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

NetBox mentions (21)

Share your greatest free tools
Netbox. https://netbox.readthedocs.io/en/stable/ Your “Source of Truth” for your network. NetBox is an infrastructure resource modeling (IRM) application designed to empower network automation. Initially conceived by the network engineering team at DigitalOcean, NetBox was developed specifically to address the needs of network and infrastructure engineers. NetBox is made available as open source under the Apache... Source: over 3 years ago
What do you use to track disks and other hardware?
Currently we are using [SnipeIT](https://snipeitapp.com/) to track our disks, hardware and machines, and [Netbox](https://netbox.readthedocs.io/en/stable/) to track physical layout and locations. Source: over 3 years ago
What does a longer career related to computing infrastructure look like?
You might find it educational/interesting to have a look at Netbox. It's a fairly well respected piece of software that manages network hardware and configuration. Source: over 3 years ago
How does proper documentation look like?
You could take a look at netbox . It’s a little hard to set up at first but worth it in the end IMO. Source: over 3 years ago
Web Application That Shows Switch Ports Mapping
However I'd suggest that Netbox is the more modern and functional solution to this problem. Source: over 3 years ago

Nmap mentions (202)

Network Reconnaissance with Nmap: The Complete Guide
-- Example NSE script Local nmap = require "nmap" Local shortport = require "shortport" Local http = require "http" Description = [[ Example HTTP service detection script. ]] Author = "Your Name" License = "Same as Nmap--See https://nmap.org/book/man-legal.html" Categories = {"safe", "discovery"} Portrule = shortport.http Action = function(host, port) local response = http.get(host, port, "/") if... - Source: dev.to / 23 days ago
Would you like to be a movie star by contributing to open source?
As described on its web site nmap is a Network exploration tool and security / port scanner. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
🛡️ Top 10 Free Penetration Testing Tools Every Security Team Should Use in 2025
Nmap (Network Mapper) is like a GPS for your network. Scan ports, find devices, and discover what’s alive and vulnerable. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
3 Types of Chaos Experiments and How To Run Them
Start by mapping out your network’s topology, including routers, switches, gateways, and the connections between different segments. Tools like Nmap or network diagram software can help visualize your network’s structure. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
How to Install and Use Nmap in Termux
If you want to scan a website, Nmap can help you find its open ports, see active IPs, and get other important details quickly. For anyone serious about cybersecurity, Nmap is a necessary tool. To learn more, visit their official website at Nmap.org. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing NetBox and Nmap, you can also consider the following products

phpIPAM - phpipam is an open-source web IP address management application (IPAM).

Angry IP Scanner - Open-source and cross-platform network scanner designed to be fast and simple to use

RackTables - Racktables is a nifty and robust solution for datacenter and server room asset management.

Zenmap - Zenmap is the official cross-platform GUI for the Nmap Security Scanner.

DCImanager - DCImanager is a platform for managing physical equipment. Connect any physical equipment to a single platform. Use the platform to manage your servers, switches, PDU as well as physical and virtual networks.

Fing - Discover which devices are connected to any Wi-Fi network, map devices, detect intruders, assess...

phpIPAM vs NetBox

phpIPAM vs Nmap

Angry IP Scanner vs NetBox

Angry IP Scanner vs Nmap