In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Wireshark on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. For those of you who didn’t know, Wireshark is a powerful and widely used network protocol analyzer that allows users to capture, inspect, and analyze network traffic in real time. With its cross-platform support, including compatibility with Ubuntu Linux, Wireshark has become an essential tool for network administrators, security professionals, and developers alike. By using Wireshark, you can troubleshoot network issues, identify security vulnerabilities, and gain a deeper understanding of network communication protocols.
This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you the step-by-step installation Wireshark network analyzer on an Ubuntu 18.04 (Bionic Beaver) server.
Prerequisites
- A server running one of the following operating systems: Ubuntu 18.04 (Bionic Beaver).
- It’s recommended that you use a fresh OS install to prevent any potential issues.
- You’ll need an active internet connection.
- A
non-root sudo useror access to theroot user. We recommend acting as anon-root sudo user, however, as you can harm your system if you’re not careful when acting as the root.
Install Wireshark on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS Bionic Beaver
Step 1. To ensure that your Ubuntu system is up to date, open the terminal and run the following commands:
sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade
These commands will refresh the package list and upgrade any existing packages to their latest versions, providing a stable foundation for installing Wireshark.
Step 2. Installing Wireshark on Ubuntu 18.04.
To ensure that you have access to the latest stable version of Wireshark, it’s recommended to add the official Wireshark repository to your system. This repository is maintained by the Wireshark development team and provides timely updates and bug fixes. To add the repository, run the following command:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:wireshark-dev/stable
After adding the Wireshark repository, update the package list to include the newly available packages:
sudo apt update
Now that the system is updated and the necessary dependencies are installed, you can proceed with installing Wireshark. Run the following command in the terminal:
sudo apt install wireshark
During the installation process, you may be prompted to confirm the installation by pressing ‘Y’ and then Enter.
Once the installation is complete, you can verify that Wireshark is successfully installed by checking its version. Run the following command:
wireshark --version
Step 3. Starting Wireshark on Ubuntu 18.04.
Now that Wireshark is installed, you can start Wireshark from the Application Menu of Ubuntu, To start from CLI, just type Wireshark on your console:
wireshark
Congratulations! You have successfully installed Wireshark. Thanks for using this tutorial for installing the Wireshark network analyzer on the Ubuntu 18.04 LTS system. For additional help or useful information, we recommend you check the official Wireshark website.
