IPMonitor Module

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The IPMonitor module is used to listen to network traffic.

Syntax

IPWorks.Ipmonitor

Remarks

The IPMonitor class will bind to a specific local host address and listen for network traffic received by the interface. The interface must support promiscuous mode (which may not work in many wireless cards because of security considerations) and must be installed on Windows 2000 or greater.

Note: If your computer connects to a switch, the switch will forward only those packets addressed to your computer. If your computer is on a hub, then you will receive everything.

The use of this component requires administrative permissions.

The first step in using the IPMonitor class is to set LocalHost to the IP address whose traffic you wish to monitor, and then set Active to True. For each packet that crosses the interface, the class will parse the header and fire an IPPacket event.

Property List

The following is the full list of the properties of the module with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Method List

The following is the full list of the methods of the module with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Event List

The following is the full list of the events fired by the module with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Config Settings

The following is a list of config settings for the module with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

AcceptData Property (IPMonitor Module)

This property enables or disables data reception (the IPPacket event).

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public var acceptData: Bool {
  get {...}
  set {...}
}

@property (nonatomic,readwrite,assign,getter=acceptData,setter=setAcceptData:) BOOL acceptData;

- (BOOL)acceptData;
- (void)setAcceptData :(BOOL)newAcceptData;

Default Value

True

Remarks

This property enables or disables data reception (the IPPacket event). Setting this property to False temporarily disables data reception (and the IPPacket event). Setting this property to True reenables data reception.

Note: It is recommended to use the PauseData or ProcessData method instead of setting this property.

Active Property (IPMonitor Module)

This property indicates whether the module is active.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public var active: Bool {
  get {...}
  set {...}
}

@property (nonatomic,readwrite,assign,getter=active,setter=setActive:) BOOL active;

- (BOOL)active;
- (void)setActive :(BOOL)newActive;

Default Value

False

Remarks

This property indicates whether the class is currently active and is monitoring network traffic.

Note: Use the Activate or Deactivate method to control whether the class is active.

IPPacket Property (IPMonitor Module)

This property includes the contents of the current packet.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public var ipPacket: String {
  get {...}
}

public var ipPacketB: Data {
  get {...}
}

@property (nonatomic,readonly,assign,getter=IPPacket) NSString* IPPacket;

- (NSString*)IPPacket;

@property (nonatomic,readonly,assign,getter=IPPacketB) NSData* IPPacketB;

- (NSData*)IPPacketB;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the contents of the current packet. This property is available only while the IPPacket event is being processed. An empty string is returned at all other times.

This property is read-only.

LocalHost Property (IPMonitor Module)

The name of the local host or user-assigned IP interface through which connections are initiated or accepted.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public var localHost: String {
  get {...}
  set {...}
}

@property (nonatomic,readwrite,assign,getter=localHost,setter=setLocalHost:) NSString* localHost;

- (NSString*)localHost;
- (void)setLocalHost :(NSString*)newLocalHost;

Default Value

""

Remarks

The LocalHost property contains the name of the local host as obtained by the gethostname() system call, or if the user has assigned an IP address, the value of that address.

In multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface) setting LocalHost to the value of an interface will make the class initiate connections (or accept in the case of server classs) only through that interface.

If the class is connected, the LocalHost property shows the IP address of the interface through which the connection is made in internet dotted format (aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd). In most cases, this is the address of the local host, except for multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface).

NOTE: LocalHost is not persistent. You must always set it in code, and never in the property window.

Activate Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method enables network monitoring.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func activate() throws -> Void

- (void)activate;

Remarks

This methods enables network monitoring. When called, the class will create a communication endpoint (socket) that can be used to monitor network traffic.

To stop monitoring traffic, call Deactivate.

Config Method (IPMonitor Module)

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func config(configurationString: String) throws -> String

- (NSString*)config:(NSString*)configurationString;

Remarks

Config is a generic method available in every class. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the class.

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

To set a configuration setting named PROPERTY, you must call Config("PROPERTY=VALUE"), where VALUE is the value of the setting expressed as a string. For boolean values, use the strings "True", "False", "0", "1", "Yes", or "No" (case does not matter).

To read (query) the value of a configuration setting, you must call Config("PROPERTY"). The value will be returned as a string.

Deactivate Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method disables network monitoring.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func deactivate() throws -> Void

- (void)deactivate;

Remarks

This methods disables network monitoring. When called, the class will stop monitoring network traffic.

DoEvents Method (IPMonitor Module)

Processes events from the internal message queue.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func doEvents() throws -> Void

- (void)doEvents;

Remarks

When DoEvents is called, the class processes any available events. If no events are available, it waits for a preset period of time, and then returns.

ListIPAddresses Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method lists the valid IP addresses for this host.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func listIPAddresses() throws -> Void

- (void)listIPAddresses;

Remarks

Use this method to list all valid addresses that can be monitored. Before monitoring the network, LocalHost must be set to a valid address on the host. After a call to this method, an IPAddress event will fire for each address.

ParsePcapFile Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method parses the specified pcap file.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func parsePcapFile(fileName: String) throws -> Void

- (void)parsePcapFile:(NSString*)fileName;

Remarks

This method parses the specified pcap (packet capture) file and fires events as if the traffic were received directly.

The class supports both the standard pcap and the newer pcap-ng file formats used by a variety of popular network capture tools. When calling this method, the file will be parsed and the IPPacket event will fire for each parsed packet.

PauseData Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method pauses data reception.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func pauseData() throws -> Void

- (void)pauseData;

Remarks

This method pauses data reception when called. While data reception is paused, the IPPacket event will not fire. Call ProcessData to reenable data reception.

ProcessData Method (IPMonitor Module)

This method reenables data reception after a call to PauseData .

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func processData() throws -> Void

- (void)processData;

Remarks

This method reenables data reception after a previous call to PauseData. When PauseData is called, the IPPacket event will not fire. To reenable data reception and allow IPPacket to fire, call this method.

Note: This method is used only after previously calling PauseData. It does not need to be called to process data by default.

Reset Method (IPMonitor Module)

Reset the component.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

public func reset() throws -> Void

- (void)reset;

Remarks

This method will reset the class's properties to their default values.

Error Event (IPMonitor Module)

Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

func onError(errorCode: Int32, description: String)

- (void)onError:(int)errorCode :(NSString*)description;

Remarks

The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the class .

The ErrorCode parameter contains an error code, and the Description parameter contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to the Error Codes section.

IPAddress Event (IPMonitor Module)

This event is fired for each valid IP address on this host.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

func onIPAddress(ipAddress: String)

- (void)onIPAddress:(NSString*)ipAddress;

Remarks

Before monitoring the network, LocalHost must be set to a valid address on the host. Use the ListIPAddresses method to list all valid addresses that can be monitored. After a call to the method, an IPAddress event will fire for each address.

IPPacket Event (IPMonitor Module)

This event is fired whenever a packet is received.

Syntax

• Swift
• Objective-C

func onIPPacket(sourceAddress: String, sourcePort: Int32, destinationAddress: String, destinationPort: Int32, ipVersion: Int32, tos: Int32, id: Int32, flags: Int32, offset: Int32, ttl: Int32, checksum: Int32, ipProtocol: Int32, payload: Data, timestamp: Int64)

- (void)onIPPacket:(NSString*)sourceAddress :(int)sourcePort :(NSString*)destinationAddress :(int)destinationPort :(int)IPVersion :(int)TOS :(int)id :(int)flags :(int)offset :(int)TTL :(int)checksum :(int)IPProtocol :(NSData*)payload :(long long)timestamp;

Remarks

When Active is True or ParsePcapFile is called, the class will listen for network traffic or parse the provided file, respectively. For each packet sent across the interface in LocalHost, the class will parse the packet and fire an IPPacket event with the header fields and payload. The parameters are defined as follows:

TOS

Precedence

Flags

IPProtocol (For a full list, visit www.iana.org.)

Config Settings (IPMonitor Module)

IPMonitor Config Settings

Socket Config Settings

Base Config Settings

Trappable Errors (IPMonitor Module)

IPMonitor Errors

SSL Errors

TCP/IP Errors