#Network inspector code#
#Network inspector series#

It can identify specific attacks that your firewall, intrusion prevention, and intrusion detection systems cannot adequately detect. It can act as both an intrusion detection system or a combination of intrusion prevention and intrusion detection. There are several uses for deep packet inspection. As it became more thorough and complete, it became more comparable to picking up a book, cracking it open, and reading it from cover to cover. With the advent of new technologies, deep packet inspection became feasible. In other words, conventional packet filtering was similar to reading the title of a book, without awareness or evaluation of the content inside the cover.

Firewalls had very little processing power, and it was not enough to handle large volumes of packets. This was a basic approach that was less sophisticated than the modern approach to packet filtering largely due to the technology limitations at the time. Conventional Packet FilteringĬonventional packet filtering only reads the header information of each packet. In addition, it can work with filters in order to find and redirect network traffic from an online service, such as Twitter or Facebook, or from a particular IP address. Using rules that are assigned by you, your Internet service provider, or the network or systems administrator, deep packet inspection determines what to do with these packets in real time.ĭeep packet inspection is able to check the contents of these packets and then figure out where it came from, such as the service or application that sent it. It is applied at the Open Systems Interconnection's application layer.ĭeep packet inspection evaluates the contents of a packet that is going through a checkpoint. How Deep Packet Inspection Worksĭeep packet inspection is a form of packet filtering usually carried out as a function of your firewall. Unlike plain packet filtering, deep packet inspection goes beyond examining packet headers.

#Network inspector code#

In short, deep packet inspection is able to locate, detect, categorize, block, or reroute packets that have specific code or data payloads that are not detected, located, categorized, blocked, or redirected by conventional packet filtering.

Deep packet inspection evaluates the data part and the header of a packet that is transmitted through an inspection point, weeding out any non-compliance to protocol, spam, viruses, intrusions, and any other defined criteria to block the packet from passing through the inspection point.ĭeep packet inspection is also used to decide if a particular packet is redirected to another destination. What is DPI?ĭeep packet inspection, which is also known as DPI, information extraction, IX, or complete packet inspection, is a type of network packet filtering.

#Network inspector series#

Learn about deep packet inspection in Data Protection 101, our series on the fundamentals of information security.