Zenmap is the official graphical user interface for the Nmap Security Scanner. It is a multi-platform, free and open-source application designed to make Nmap easy for beginners to use while providing advanced features for experienced Nmap users. Frequently used scans can be saved as profiles to make them easy to run repeatedly. A command creator allows interactive creation of Nmap command lines. Scan results can be saved and viewed later. Saved scan results can be compared with one another to see how they differ. The results of recent scans are stored in a searchable database. A typical Zenmap screenshot is provided by Figure 12.1, “Typical Zenmap screenshot”. See the official Zenmap web page for more screen shots.

Figure 12.1. Typical Zenmap screenshot

This guide is meant to make it easy to use Nmap and Zenmap together, even if you have used neither before. For the parts of this guide that deal specifically with Nmap (command line options and such), refer to the Nmap Reference Guide (see Chapter 15, Nmap Reference Guide).