# libpnet/libpnet

Cross-platform, low level networking using the Rust programming language.

Repository: https://github.com/libpnet/libpnet
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/libpnet
Language: Rust
License: Apache-2.0
License Family: permissive
Topics: rust, packets, transport-protocols, libpnet, winpcap, cross-platform, networking, datalink
Last push: 2026-05-01T16:51:59+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 59/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 80, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4385, "days_push": 124, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2588, forks 330 (observed 2026-08-28T04:07:02.761799+00:00)

## What it is
libpnet is a cross-platform Rust library for low-level networking, providing safe packet construction and parsing, transport protocol implementation, and direct data link layer access. It combines C-level performance with Rust's memory and thread safety.

## Use cases
- build a custom transport protocol in Rust
- parse and manipulate raw network packets
- send and receive packets at the data link layer
- implement tools like ping or traceroute
- capture packets on the wire for network diagnostics
- do packet-level traffic shaping

## When to choose
- you need raw packet access or custom protocol implementation in Rust
- you want C-level networking performance with memory safety
- you're building network diagnostics, capture, or traffic-shaping utilities

## When to avoid
- you only need standard TCP/UDP sockets, which std or higher-level crates handle
- you're working in a language other than Rust
- you need a full packet-capture application rather than a library

## Facets
- artifact type: library
- maturity: stable
- function: networking, parser, serialization
- domain: networking, developer-tools, security
- platform: windows, rust, cross-platform
- tags: packet-crafting, datalink, raw-sockets, packet-capture, transport-protocols, winpcap, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- libpnet/libpnet (main) score 59

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:02.761799+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T02:22:24.195699+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/libpnet/libpnet (fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:02.761799+00:00, sha d0514e7ab5c8)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.