NetFlow

NetFlow is a network protocol developed by Cisco for collecting IP traffic statistics, often used in network monitoring and analysis. It records metadata about flows, such as source and destination IPs, ports, protocols, and volume of traffic. Analysts can use NetFlow data to detect anomalies, investigate security incidents, or optimize network performance. Many collectors and visualization tools exist to process NetFlow or IPFIX data, such as nfdump, NfSen, and commercial solutions. NetFlow helps organizations maintain situational awareness and provides valuable data for security and network engineering teams.