RouteSpider Documentation (1.6.28)
What is RouteSpider?
RouteSpider is a tool with a traceroute and a portscan intergrated into a visual output. In a broken down way, It scans a ip segment or just one ip for open tcp ports and traces the route the packets take to get there onto the visual view. A ip segment or ip range is a collection of ip addresses to scan.
What could i use RouteSpider for?
RouteSpider doesn't and more than likely wont serve any actual uses that a alot of people could use, mainly its for fun and learning. Although i have found a few uses for it. One would be finding another computer if it changes its ip address, this i had a problem with. Since i help run a irc server, i usally have to update the dns records when ever it changes ips. The problem is i remotely administrate it. So when it would change ip addresses i would have no idea what its new address was. So, i used RouteSpider to scan the segment of ip addresses the server's isp owns checking each active ip for the port 6667 witch means a irc server is running on that ip. This would take about 45min to 1hour, so i would just leave it running then come back later and find the server in the visual view.
How do i use RouteSpider?
When i first wrote RouteSpider i started with the core code, and finshed the interface last witch is mainly the reason why the interface may look quite complicated. Actually it isnt that bad, but first to understand how to use RouteSpider you must understand the main interface control, Adding Ip Ranges and Portchecks
Adding Ip Ranges and Portchecks, A ip range is a collection of ip address defined by numbers. As we all know and i hope you all know ip address currently have 4 numbers seperated by dots in decimal form(eg. 63.98.16.193). In RouteSpider the Ip Range section contains 5 number boxs with 1 long box below it, and to the far right their is a button named "Add Range". When RouteSpider is first loaded it has no Ip Ranges added so the first thing we are going todo is add one. Place your cursor in the white long box below the 5 number boxs and type "63.98.16.193". Did you notice as you typed in the box it filled the 4 boxes above with the values? This is the only purpose of the long box you just typed in. Now, take a look at the [193] To [255] boxs. What does this mean now? Well, go ahead and click the Add Range button and i'll tell you... Your boxs should look like this ([63][98][16]([193] to [255])), If you havnt already pushed the Add Range button go ahead and push it now. You should notice you've created a new entry in the list below (bottom of the window). This entry tells RouteSpider to scan all the ip address from 63.98.16.193 to 63.98.16.255, lets use a easier example. ([63][98][16]([193] to [195]), This will tell RouteSpider to scan the following address.. "63.98.16.193","63.98.16.194","63.98.15.195". The list at the bottom of the window is called the param box, or settings box. You'll also notice it already contains some other items. These items have a little set of colored crayons, they are port params. They control what ports to check when a active ip is found. You might want to add your own ports to check by using the Port Check Addition box on the interface. To remove params from the list, simply select the items(params) you want to remove and use the menu at the top of the window called Params. It should contain a 'remove' command.
Adding map bases, Map bases should be used after you've gotton a better feel for the application. If you've have no trouble understanding the application so far. Then you could go ahead and read about map bases. A map base is a param added that tells RouteSpider to not add anything from the traces it performs unless it has passed though this ip.
What is the visual view telling me?
The visual view is telling you one major concept. What path your computer's data takes when being send to one of the scanned ips. It does this by displaying everything starting from the first item on the map view, it should be called 'The Cloud'. For most of us this is actually our computer and shouldnt be called the 'Cloud' but for other reasons i was forced to name it. You could kinda think of the visual view as a roadmap telling the directions of how to get somewhere, the problem is these paths are not the only ways to get something. For example if could drive a diffrent number of ways from the state of Alabama to Florida right? Well, RouteSpider usally picks the most commonly used route, and then displays it on the visual view. At the end of the route you will notice a lightning icon, witch another ip address or hostname beside it. Possibly you will also notice a few ports it has found on the ip. Mabye somewhere below that you will notice a icon with a red and white lifesaver, This icon repersents a link to a current path from another path. In other words it was another route one or some of your data took to get to its destination.
Im kinda sure this might have been the worse documentation you have ever read, but i suppose it worked for most of you in giving you and idea of how RouteSpider works and what it actually does. RouteSpider is a advanced network tool and to be fully understood you have to at least have a basic knowledge of how a network works. If not your kinda lost at float in the sea to sorta speak :o) My main problem with writting this documentation really well if that i have to decided how much i need to tell the user as in how much do you know? Some people who read this might figure it out in 5min other might take longer and some might understand it just by using the program. If anyone would like to write a better one by my guest. Demon31@eezznet.com