Software "Must Haves"

[ProcalX]

This is what i intend to end up as a serious discussion & Q&A regarding the many different types of networking software - in all costs & sizes and what those who have experienced these programs think of them. For both Windows & Linux.

Software as in: Any software to help automate, monitor or diagnose subjects within networking.

First off, curiosity is getting the better of me, so.. what unique & fantastic software would you like to recommend - and why?

Please provide links to vendor website.

If you post more than one program/review, please compare them as much as you can.

 

[ProcalX]

I personally recommend Sophos Anti-Virus (Enterprise Edition), i've used and installed this across 7 different companys now.

It use's very little system resources, can be installed & updated automatically via a web server / local network drive / cd. Client side it does not prompt the user for any input at anytime, even if there is a virus, you can change this in the preferences of the program, but you can set it so that it notifies the relevent personell via e-mail.

Sophos has always been a business anti-virus software vendor, and i believe have never released a home edition. this is recommended to anyone needing Windows based or Linux based anti-virus.

www.sophos.com

 

[Anti-Trend]

All open-source Linux software, but also has applications on Windows networks:

Nessus - The vulnerability scanner
Tripwire - De Facto system integrity tool
NMap - Network exploration and security auditing
ChkRootKit - Locally checks for signs of a rootkit
RootKitHunter - Scans for rootkits, backdoors, and sniffers
Snort - Intrusion detection, prevention and log analysis
ClamAV - Adds virus-scanning capability to Linux mail and SMB servers
Ethereal - Network protocol analyzer