Introduction In penetration testing and cybersecurity, the first step is always reconnaissance. Before identifying vulnerabilities, you need to understand the target system—what services are running, which ports are open, and what technologies are in use. One of the most powerful tools for this purpose is Nmap (Network Mapper). What is Nmap? Nmap is an open-source network scanning tool used to discover hosts and services on a network. Security professionals use Nmap to: Identify active devices Detect open ports Discover running services Gather system information Why Nmap is Important Nmap plays a crucial role in the reconnaissance phase: Network Discovery It helps identify which systems are online. Port Scanning You can find open, closed, and filtered ports. Service Detection Nmap can detect the version of services running on ports. Security Assessment It helps identify potential entry points for attackers. Installing Nmap On Kali Linux: sudo apt install nmap Basic Nmap Commands ...