Cybersecurity Lab
Nmap Network Scanning
A service detection scan of the Metasploitable2 target at 192.168.128.2 using Nmap 7.98.
Completed2026Beginner
Objective
Understand how Nmap scan types affect output, accuracy, and documentation quality in an authorized lab.
Tools Used
NmapKali LinuxLinux terminal
Steps Performed
- Identified the authorized Metasploitable2 lab target at 192.168.128.2.
- Ran Nmap service detection with `nmap --privileged -sV -oN scan_results.txt 192.168.128.2`.
- Confirmed the host was up with very low latency.
- Documented all open TCP services and detected versions.
- Saved the raw command output as a reusable evidence file.
Key Findings
- Nmap found 23 open TCP services and 977 closed TCP ports.
- Detected exposed services included FTP, SSH, Telnet, SMTP, DNS, HTTP, RPC, SMB, NFS, MySQL, PostgreSQL, VNC, X11, IRC, AJP13, and Tomcat.
- Port 1524 exposed a bindshell service identified as a Metasploitable root shell.
- Service detection identified legacy software such as vsftpd 2.3.4, Apache 2.2.8, MySQL 5.0.51a, PostgreSQL 8.3, ProFTPD 1.3.1, and ISC BIND 9.4.2.
- The output provides strong evidence for follow-up vulnerability assessment and service-specific research.
Screenshots
Host discovery output
Service detection output
Scan notes summary
Evidence Files
Lessons Learned
- Network scanning is evidence collection, not just tool execution.
- Responsible scanning requires explicit authorization and scope.
Future Improvements
- Compare default scans with SYN and version scans.
- Map findings to a simple asset inventory.
References
- Nmap Reference Guide
- Kali Linux tools documentation