The ICSI Netalyzr Beta
Introduction » Analysis » Results

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Can you show me an example of your test results?
  • Yes, we provide one here.
  • I have a question about my results. How can I get in touch?
  • We run a mailinglist at http://mailman.ICSI.Berkeley.EDU/mailman/listinfo/netalyzr. To contact us privately, please send email to netalyzr-help@icsi.berkeley.edu. If you have a question about a particular session, please include the session ID. It is shown in the status bar during the analysis, and stated explicitly as the session's permalink at the top of the summary page. You can also just cut-and-paste the URL shown by your browser for the summary page.
  • What information do you collect?
  • We collect effectively the same information we present to you in the summary page, and nothing else. All of this information is collected from network connections the applet initiates itself.
  • There is no launch link on the start page. Why?
  • Your system needs to provide a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) for applets to operate in. Please ensure that a JRE is installed on your machine, and that Java is enabled in your browser. You can test your installation by visiting Sun's Java detector.
  • Why Java?
  • We are unable to perform all of the tests we provide using more lightweight alternatives, such as JavaScript. In particular, JavaScript does not enable the browser to create arbitrary network connections.
  • Why JavaScript?
  • Some information, such as cookies or framing, can't be detected within Java but can be detected by JavaScript. Thus in addition to the Java applet, there is a small amount of JavaScript on our analysis page to perform these checks.
  • Are you accessing any information on my computer?
  • We do not touch any files on your disk. The only system-local information we use is your local time, what IP address Java believes has been assigned to your machine, and what information your browser routinely exposes (its "user agent" and cookies it automatically provides because you have visited our sites before). All other information is obtained from the network.
  • Are you probing my local network?
  • No. All network connectivity is exclusively with your DNS resolver, our servers, and any proxies in front of them.
  • The results state the applet was not permitted to conduct all tests. How can I allow the tests?
  • The applet operates within the confines of the security policy enforced by your Java runtime. When the applet attempts to perform an operation that violates this policy, a security exception is thrown, and the operation is not executed. Browsers handle these security restrictions in a variety of ways. By confirming that you trust the applet, many browsers will allow the applet to conduct all tests. However, some Java installations will not allow certain tests to run, even if the user gives consent. If you are asked to conform individual operations, we suggest to permit them as required to complete the tests.
  • My anti-virus program triggered an alert while Netalyzr was running. Why?
  • As part of our content-filtering tests, we download the EICAR antivirus test file into the applet. This file is harmless and designed to test correct functionality of antivirus software. Any related warnings or alerts thus merely signal correct functioning of your antivirus installation and can safely be ignored.
  • Who developed Netalyzr?
  • Netalyzr is developed by the Networking Group at the International Computer Science Institute, an independent non-profit research institute affiliated with the University of California, Berkeley, USA.
  • Who funded this work?
  • We gratefully acknowledge the National Science Foundation's financial support for this project.