macOS
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brew install synscanlocal Homebrew formula metadata
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Install synscan with Homebrew
Asynchronous half-open TCP portscanner. Version 5.02 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-25.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Asynchronous half-open TCP portscanner
Project links
Commands and aliases
- sslog
- synscan
history
Project history and usage
synscan is a small security CLI: an asynchronous half-open TCP port scanner packaged by Homebrew for users who want a fast SYN-scan tool outside larger scanner suites.
Project history
The official digit-labs page describes Synscan as an asynchronous half-open TCP port scanner that sends TCP packets with the SYN flag to blocks of destination addresses as fast as the host interface and kernel can support.
The same page records a compact lineage: Synscan versions up to 3.9b6 were based on version 1.6 by psychoid/tCl, while Synscan 5.0 was a complete rewrite with a cleaner codebase, efficiency improvements, checksum fixes, adjustable scan timing, and a simpler design intended to allow future IPv6 support.
Adoption history
The input package facts show Homebrew packaging for `synscan`. Upstream also lists releases as tarballs and says the tool was known to compile on Linux, xBSD, Mac OS X, and Solaris, which explains why a portable Unix package manager would carry it.
How it is used
synscan is used from the command line to perform half-open TCP port scans against ranges of destination addresses. Its companion executable `sslog` is also listed in the Homebrew-derived input facts.
The tool sits in the older Unix security-tool tradition: focused source tarballs, direct packet behavior, and terse CLI usage rather than a large service or framework.
Why package nerds care
Package nerds care about synscan because it is the kind of sharp, single-purpose network tool that package managers preserve even when its upstream surface is just a small project page and release tarballs.
Its portability notes across Linux, BSD, macOS, and Solaris make it a good example of formula maintenance for low-level networking code.
Timeline
- Pre-5.0: Synscan versions through 3.9b6 were based on version 1.6 by psychoid/tCl.
- 5.0: Synscan was rewritten with efficiency, checksum, timing, and design changes.
- 5.02: The digit-labs page lists synscan-5.02.tar.gz as the newest non-beta release.
Related projects
- The official page points to the earlier bindshell.net synscan page and credits version 1.6 by psychoid/tCl as the base for older releases.
- In package taxonomies, synscan is adjacent to other TCP port scanners and packet-level security utilities.
Sources
- https://www.digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan/
- input source_facts.executables and source_facts.package-manager
security posture
Risk level: blue
broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.
Risk classifier
blue risk · medium confidence · tool
Why
- broad file, network, media, or database tool signal
Signals
- text:sync
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 13 platform targets.
- Installs with 1 runtime dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
sslog | cli | global executable | |
synscan | cli | global executable |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-07-08
manager version5.02
manager updated2026-06-25
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
https://digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan/
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:synscan |
|---|---|
| Version | 5.02 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/synscan |
| Homepage | https://digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan/ |
| Upstream docs | https://digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Source archive | https://digit-labs.org/files/tools/synscan/releases/synscan-5.02.tar.gz |
| Last updated | 2026-06-25T13:38:09+02:00 |
| Pulse | updated |
| Dependencies | libpcap |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | synscan |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 1 |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- Nucleus package database
- av.db category and tag curation
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment