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NetScan: User's Guide

Downloads & Runtimes

Download the latest release from the Releases page.

Each release contains one folder per framework and architecture:

Folder Target Framework Architecture Required Runtime
net8.0 x64 .NET 8.0 64-bit .NET 8.0 Desktop Runtime (x64)
net8.0 x86 .NET 8.0 32-bit .NET 8.0 Desktop Runtime (x86)
net10.0 x64 .NET 10.0 64-bit .NET 10.0 Desktop Runtime (x64)
net10.0 x86 .NET 10.0 32-bit .NET 10.0 Desktop Runtime (x86)

Which one do I need? On 64-bit Windows 10/11, use x64. Pick the .NET version whose Desktop Runtime you already have installed, or install one from the links above. The plain ".NET Runtime" is not enough; NetScan needs the Desktop Runtime.

To check which runtimes are installed, open a command prompt and run:

dotnet --list-runtimes

Look for a Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App 8.x or 10.x line.

Install

NetScan is portable: there is no installer.

  1. Download and extract the folder that matches your system (see the table above), e.g. net8.0 x64.
  2. Copy the whole folder to a location where you have write access, for example: D:\My Apps\NetScan\ The folder must contain all 4 files; NetScan won't start if any of them is missing:
    • NetScan.exe
    • NetScan.dll
    • NetScan.deps.json
    • NetScan.runtimeconfig.json
  3. Optional: copy oui.csv into the same folder to see device vendors (see Vendor lookup below).
  4. Double-click NetScan.exe.

NetScan saves its settings and presets next to NetScan.exe, so don't put it in a read-only folder such as C:\Program Files\.

If Windows blocks the file ("Windows protected your PC"), right-click NetScan.exe → Properties → check Unblock → OK, then try again.

Scan your network

  1. On start, the IP Range box is filled with the local network of every active network interface, e.g. 192.168.1.1-255.
  2. Edit the ranges if needed (see IP ranges below).
  3. Click Scan.

Every IP in the ranges is listed as Pending, then updated to Online or Offline as the scan runs. The progress bar at the bottom and the title bar show how far the scan is.

Column Description
Status Pending, Online, Offline, or Skipped (scan was stopped before this IP)
IP Address The scanned IP
Hostname Name returned by DNS, or Unknown
MAC Address Found with ARP; only works for devices on your local subnet
Vendor Network card manufacturer, from the MAC address (see Vendor lookup)
TTL Time To Live of the ping reply
Type Probable operating system, guessed from the TTL (e.g. 128 = Windows, 64 = Linux/Android/macOS)

Devices that block ping (for example, by a firewall) are shown as Offline.

IP ranges

Enter one range per line, in the form first-three-octets.from-to:

192.168.1.1-255
10.0.0.100-150

Only the last octet can be a range. If any line is not valid, the scan doesn't start and Invalid range is shown.

Right-click the IP Range box for more options:

Menu Description
Rescan Fill the box again with the local networks of all active network interfaces
Save as preset Save the current ranges to a .preset file
Load preset Replace the current ranges with the ones from a .preset file

Presets are saved by default in the Presets folder next to NetScan.exe.

Toolbar

Button Description
Scan Start scanning the IP ranges
Pause Pause / resume the scan; pings already sent finish, no new ones start. The progress bar turns orange while paused
Stop Stop the scan; pings already sent finish, the remaining IPs are marked Skipped
Hide Offline Remove offline IPs from the list during the scan
Hide Hostname Hide the Hostname column and skip the DNS lookup (faster)
Hide MAC Hide the MAC Address column and skip the ARP lookup (faster)
Hide Vendor Hide the Vendor column and skip the vendor lookup

Set Hide Offline, Hide Hostname, Hide MAC and Hide Vendor before you click Scan: they apply to IPs scanned after you click them.

Right-click the title bar → About... for version information.

Vendor lookup

The vendor is looked up offline, from the first 6 hex digits of the MAC address (the OUI), in a file named oui.csv next to NetScan.exe. The file has 2 columns:

Assignment,Organization Name
286FB9,"Nokia Shanghai Bell Co., Ltd."

When the vendor is not found, Unknown is shown. The title bar shows how many OUI entries were loaded. The OUI list is published by the IEEE: oui.csv. The IEEE file has more columns (it starts with Registry); keep only Assignment and Organization Name.

Uninstall

  1. Close NetScan.
  2. Delete the folder you copied in step 2 of Install (this also deletes your settings and presets).