Port Checker
Port checker is a free online port checking tool, which allows you to see if an internet connected device (As long as the device has an IP) is responding on a specific port. Below is some more information and some common port numbers.
Common Ports
FTP
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol, which is a very common protocol people use to upload and/or download files from their website, though it can be used for more then just that.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, FTP
Search: FTP
SSH
Secure Shell, or SSH, is a network protocol which allows two devices to exchange data securely. Other protocols like Telnet are somewhat like SSH, however, they are not secure as is SSH.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, Secure Shell
What is Secure Shell?
Search: SSH
Telnet
Telnet is a network protocol used on a Internet or a LAN. Usually it provides access to a command-line interface on a remote machine. Unlike SSH, Telnet is insecure.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, Telnet
The TELNET Protocol
Search: Telnet
SMTP
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol is a standard for sending email across Internet Protocol networks. Mainly SMTP handles the sending of emails, it does not retrieve the emails but other protocols such as POP3 do that.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, SMTP
SMTP, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
Search: SMTP
DNS
DNS is Domain Name System, his service associates names with IP addresses. When you type in an address into your browser, such as www.live.com your browser queries DNS to find the right IP associated with the domain live.com. Why is this done? To put it in easy terms, a domain is just an alias of an IP, which makes it much easier for us to remember websites instead of having to remember something like 67.222.6.216, all you have to remember is mschat.net.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, Domain Name System
HowStuffWorks, DNS
Search: DNS
TFTP
TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) is basically a simple and unrealiable form of FTP. TFTP uses UDP, unlike FTP which uses TCP.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, Trivial File Transfer Protocol
Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP)
Search: TFTP
HTTP
HTTP is the Protocol of the web, it is called Hypertext Transfer Protocol, and you are using it right now. HTTP in very simple terms transfer web pages from the server to the client, the client being you.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, Hypertext Transfer Protocol
HTTP - Hypertext Transfer Protocol
Search: HTTP
POP3
POP3 is v3 of the Post Office Protocol, which is used to download email from a remote server. There are other protocols which download email such as IMAP, however, POP is more common.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, POP3
What is POP3?
Search: POP3
HTTPS
HTTPS is HTTP with security. This security uses SSL which encrypts data being sent to and from the server and client, which of course makes your connection a lot more safe and secure. HTTPS is usually used on websites where you purchase things online such as eBay or Amazon or when other sensitive data is going to be sent. TLS can also be used in place of SSL.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, HTTPS
What is HTTPS?
Search: HTTPS
MySQL
MySQL (SQL means Structured Query Language) is a database management system. MySQL is an open source database system, it is the most widely used database systems in the world. Many websites use MySQL (such as this one) for forums, guestbooks, and so on.
Sources/References:
WikiPedia, MySQL
Search: MySQL
Information
Q: Why when I enter an address it turns it into an IP address?We put the address you give us through a function which translates it into an IP, why do we do this? We just do ;)
Q: I keep getting "Could not translate the host to an IP.", what does it mean?
You are probably getting this error because you added something like http:// or ftp://, etc. to the front of the address, which you should not do.
Q: Sometimes I get a message saying "... refused the connection", but I can access it. Why does it say this?
There are times when this server itself cannot access the site because there are some network issues, though usually unlikely. Another cause could be that the site is very slow to respond, this tool will only attempt to make a connection at the most of 5 seconds.
Q: Where can I find more port numbers?
You can find a list of port number at the IANA website.
Q: I enter an IP address, and I get a message saying "IP Address invalid.", what did I do wrong?
It simply means what it says, the IP address you have entered is either a private address (Which is not allowed to go on the internet, RFC 1918), or the IP address isn't correctly formed, such as 67.222.6..216 would be invalid, and 67.222.6 would be invalid.
Q: Are there any limits to this port checking tool?
This tool does have a couple restrictions, such as you may only use this 5 times every 15 minutes. We do that to stop abuse and to protect ourselves. You are forbidden to use this tool for any illegal practices or law breaking stuffs. Got it? :)
