[ILUG] Network cracking toolkit?

[Donal Cunningham]

Conor Daly wrote:
> In the interests of securing a network server, I'm planning to attack it
> from the outside.  I have a (debian) laptop available and I want to set
> this up as a cracker's toolkit.  Alas, honest bloke that I am, I don't
> know my cracking tools from my elbow.  Can anyone advise on useful tools
> to have on hand?

I'd be looking at nmap and nessus as a starting point.
They'll give you an indication of what ports are open
on the target system, as well as alerting you to some
of the more common vulnerabilities (if you choose the
right options).

    D.