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Service taxonomy - #1312

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service-taxonomy
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service-taxonomy

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@GyulyVGC

@GyulyVGC GyulyVGC commented Sep 17, 2026

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More than 6 thousand application-layer services were already identified by Sniffnet, and this PR aims to define a taxonomy of such services, associating each of them with a category.

This will make it easier to understand what an observed service is about.

The Sniffnet UI now shows a different icon for each of the defined categories, and hovering on the icon will show info about the category.


To keep the taxonomy relevant and on point, 20 categories were defined, plus a fallback for services that aren't reasonably assignable to a specific category.

Category Scope
Web Web content, generic web APIs, and web transfer protocols.
Examples: http, https, coap.
Email Email delivery, access, notification, and mail-specific routing.
Examples: smtp, imap, pop3.
Chat & messaging Human messaging, chat, discussion/news, SMS and paging.
Examples: irc, xmpp-client, matrix-fed.
Voice & media Audio/video delivery, calls, conferencing, and audiovisual sessions.
Examples: sip, rtsp, rtmp.
File transfer & sharing File/object transfer, synchronization, sharing, and network filesystems.
Examples: ftp, rsync, nfs, microsoft-ds.
Storage & backup Storage infrastructure, block/tape access, backup, restore, and protected replication.
Examples: iscsi, ndmp, bacula-sd.
Databases & caches Database/query engines, data caches, database access and replication.
Examples: mysql, postgresql, redis.
Remote access Interactive computer/desktop/application access and remote execution.
Examples: ssh, telnet, vnc, ms-wbt-server.
Monitoring & administration IT monitoring, logs, diagnostics, configuration, deployment, availability, and resource management.
Examples: snmp, syslog, netconf-ssh, zabbix-agent.
Naming & discovery Name resolution and locating network devices/services.
Examples: domain, mdns, llmnr, svrloc.
Network infrastructure Address assignment, network boot, time synchronization, routing, switching, mobility, and telecom/network control.
Examples: dhcps, ntp, bgp, vxlan.
VPN, tunnels & proxies General connection tunneling, network relays, VPN negotiation, and proxies.
Examples: openvpn, isakmp, socks, http-proxy.
Identity & directory Authentication, authorization, directories, identity lookup, and credential/key/certificate services.
Examples: kerberos, ldap, radius, kmip.
Printing & scanning Printing, document scanning, fax, and their dedicated peripheral protocols.
Examples: ipp, printer, jetdirect, sane-port.
Gaming Game sessions, multiplayer transports, game lobbies, and game-specific communication.
Examples: minecraft, quake3, xbox.
Industrial & device automation Physical process/equipment control, building/home automation, industrial telemetry and metering.
Examples: mbap, bacnet, opcua-tcp, zigbee-ip.
Software development Source control, compilation/build/test tools, debugging, and development support.
Examples: git, svn, distcc, gdbremote.
Application middleware General application messaging, RPC, distributed objects, transaction coordination and shared application infrastructure.
Examples: amqp, mqtt, msrpc, rtps-dd-ut.
Security tools Threat/vulnerability detection, prevention, integrity checking, security policy enforcement and incident exchange.
Examples: nessus, spamassassin, prelude, idxp.
Software licensing Software license distribution, entitlement verification, activation, and floating-license services.
Examples: flexlm, CodeMeter, WibuKey, keysrvr.
Other Single fallback for specialized applications outside this taxonomy, ambiguous identities, or insufficiently documented purposes.
Examples: dicom, bitcoin, NFS-or-IIS.

I made category icons with Inkscape to be lightweight SVGs that are visible and recognisable both on dark and light backgrounds.


Fixes #1102

@GyulyVGC GyulyVGC added this to the v1.6.0 milestone Sep 17, 2026
@GyulyVGC GyulyVGC self-assigned this Sep 17, 2026
@GyulyVGC GyulyVGC added the enhancement New feature, request, or improvement label Sep 17, 2026
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Add categories for well-known services

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