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tcpdump vs SmartSniff: catalog facts
tcpdump	SmartSniff
Free Free and open source under the BSD licence.	Free Freeware from NirSoft; free to redistribute as long as nothing is charged.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows
Available on practically every Unix system, including embedded ones Writes standard pcap files that every other tool can read	Shows traffic as readable client-server conversations Can capture without installing a driver via Raw Sockets
Needs elevated privileges to capture Output is dense and takes practice to read	Official system requirements list Windows versions up to Windows 8 Raw Sockets mode misses outgoing UDP and ICMP packets and is unreliable on some systems
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Closed source
License: BSD-3-Clause	License: Freeware
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 8, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.