Networking

netstat -e

The netstat -e command shows the activity for the NIC and displays the number of packets that have been both sent and received. An example of the netstat -e command is shown here:

C:\WINDOWS\Desktop>netstat -e
Interface Statistics
                           Received            Sent
Bytes                      17412385        40237510
Unicast packets               79129           85055
Non-unicast packets             693             254
Discards                          0               0
Errors                            0               0
Unknown protocols               306

As you can see, the netstat -e command shows more than just the packets that have been sent and received:

  • Bytes The number of bytes that have been sent or received by the NIC since the computer was turned on.

  • Unicast packets Packets sent and received directly to this interface.

  • Non-unicast packets Broadcast or multicast packets that were picked up by the NIC.

  • Discards The number of packets rejected by the NIC, perhaps because they were damaged.

  • Errors The errors that occurred during either the sending or receiving process. As you would expect, this column should be a low number. If it is not, it could indicate a problem with the NIC.

  • Unknown protocols The number of packets that were not recognizable by the system.