LIBRARY ONLINE

FREE COMMANDS / TOOLS / CONTEXT

Commands are easy.
Context is the skill.

A growing collection of commands I actually reach for—plus the question each one helps answer.

ENTRIES: 18
CATEGORIES: 06
ACCESS: FREE

RULE 00Permission before packets.

Every active-security command here is for systems you own or are explicitly authorized to test.

01 // COMMAND LIBRARY

Pick the question first.

SHOWING 18 ENTRIES

SEARCH COMMANDS

Search by tool, task, command, category, or tag.

LNX-01LINUX

See listening services

Check which local processes are waiting for network connections.

$ ss -tulpn

CONTEXTRun this on a machine you control. Some process details may require elevated privileges.

LNX-02LINUX

Search a directory

Find a string recursively without wasting time inside Git metadata.

$ grep -Rni --exclude-dir=.git "needle" .

CONTEXTReplace needle with the exact text you are investigating.

LNX-03LINUX

Find recently changed files

List regular files modified during the last 24 hours.

$ find . -type f -mtime -1 -print

CONTEXTUseful for a lab directory or a controlled investigation folder.

RCN-01RECON

Identify services

Ask which services and versions are exposed on an authorized target.

$ nmap -sV -Pn <authorized-target>

CONTEXTUse only on systems you own or have explicit permission to test.

RCN-02RECON

Focus common web ports

Run default scripts and version checks against ports 80 and 443.

$ nmap -p 80,443 -sC -sV <authorized-target>

CONTEXTA smaller question usually produces cleaner evidence than scanning everything immediately.

RCN-03RECON

Resolve a domain

Return the current IPv4 records for a domain.

$ dig +short A example.com

CONTEXTUse a domain you control or a deliberately public example during practice.

WEB-01WEB

Inspect response headers

Request only the response headers and keep the output readable.

$ curl -sSI https://example.com

CONTEXTLook for status, server behavior, caching, redirects, and security headers.

WEB-02WEB

Follow a redirect chain

See each response while curl follows redirects to the final URL.

$ curl -sSIL https://example.com

CONTEXTUseful for understanding canonical hosts, HTTPS upgrades, and authentication redirects.

WEB-03WEB

Read robots.txt

Retrieve the site’s crawler instructions without opening a browser.

$ curl -sS https://example.com/robots.txt

CONTEXTrobots.txt is not authorization and does not make private paths fair game.

NET-01NETWORK

Summarize local interfaces

Get a compact view of interface names, state, and assigned addresses.

$ ip -brief address

CONTEXTStart here before blaming the network—or the tool.

NET-02NETWORK

Trace DNS delegation

Follow the resolution path from the root servers to the answer.

$ dig +trace example.com

CONTEXTThis sends several DNS queries; use it when delegation is the actual question.

NET-03NETWORK

Watch local DNS traffic

Capture DNS packets visible on your own machine’s interfaces.

$ sudo tcpdump -i any -nn port 53

CONTEXTPacket capture may contain sensitive data. Capture only where you are authorized and store evidence carefully.

SCR-01SCRIPTING

Create a Python environment

Keep project dependencies isolated from the system Python installation.

$ python3 -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate

CONTEXTUse one environment per project and avoid running unknown scripts outside a disposable lab.

SCR-02SCRIPTING

Pretty-print JSON

Turn a dense JSON response into something a human can inspect.

$ python3 -m json.tool response.json

CONTEXTValidate the file first if the command reports malformed JSON.

SCR-03SCRIPTING

Fail safer in Bash

Stop a script when a command fails, a variable is missing, or a pipeline breaks.

$ set -Eeuo pipefail

CONTEXTPlace it near the top of a script, then test the failure paths instead of assuming they work.

MTH-01METHODOLOGY

Write the scope down

Create a tiny scope note before touching an authorized lab target.

$ printf '%s\n' 'target: lab.local' 'scope: authorized' > scope.txt

CONTEXTA written boundary keeps the engagement clear when tools and tabs start multiplying.

MTH-02METHODOLOGY

Hash collected evidence

Record a SHA-256 digest so you can detect later changes to a file.

$ sha256sum evidence.bin

CONTEXTA hash supports integrity; it does not prove where the evidence came from.

MTH-03METHODOLOGY

Record UTC time

Add a consistent timestamp to notes, screenshots, or collected output.

$ date -u +"%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ"

CONTEXTUTC makes it easier to compare evidence across machines and platforms.

02 // HOW TO USE THIS

Copy less. Understand more.

Read the purpose and context before running a command. Replace placeholders deliberately. Save the output that supports your conclusion.

SEE THE METHOD IN WRITEUPS →