If you work in networking or IT, you know the drill. One app for traceroutes, another for a speed test, a paid tool for SSL checks, a script for subnet maths, and a folder of utilities you half remember the names of. The tools do the job, but keeping track of them is a job in itself.
So we built Netforge: a free desktop app that brings 22 network tools together in one place. It runs natively on Windows, macOS and Linux, not in a browser, most of it works offline, and there is no account or subscription.
One app, 22 tools
Netforge pulls together the tools network engineers, IT admins and managed service providers reach for every day. That is 22 tools, including:
- Path analysis - MTR traceroute showing per-hop latency and packet loss
- Speed test - download, upload and latency via M-Lab's ndt7, benchmarked against local ISP medians
- Switch discovery - CDP and LLDP neighbour detection
- Diagnostics - DNS lookup, port scan, SSL/TLS certificate check, WHOIS/RDAP and Wake-on-LAN
- LAN scan - subnet sweep, DHCP and rogue DHCP detection, and service discovery
- IP tools - subnet and VLSM calculator, OUI lookup, IP inspector, config diff, encoders and hashing
- Devices - SNMP polling, TFTP server, Syslog and trap receiver
- Topology - an auto-generated map of discovered devices, exportable as SVG or PNG
- Terminal - SSH, Telnet and Serial console with an encrypted credential vault
Because Netforge runs natively rather than in a browser, it can reach raw network interfaces and perform packet-level operations that web-based tools simply cannot.
Two ways to use it
Netforge has two modes, so it works whether or not you live in the command line.
Health Check is a guided wizard built for non-technical users and structured audits. It runs a baseline scan, diffs the results against previous runs, and exports a branded PDF evidence report you can hand straight over. Advanced gives engineers the full tool sidebar and direct access to everything.
Alex Mumford, Support and Systems Engineer at Purple and lead developer on Netforge, put it well:
"Juggling lots of different tools in IT can be a bit of a chore, so we wanted to bring everything into one simple interface. Personally, I love not having heaps of apps open cluttering up my screen. But the real win is that anyone can use it. Non-techy users get easy-to-read general checks, and tech teams get the exact detailed reports they need to solve issues fast."
Offline-first, nothing leaves your machine
Netforge is offline-first, so most tools work with no internet connection at all, which is handy on locked-down client sites and secure networks. Any credentials you use are held in a local encrypted vault, and nothing is sent to Purple's servers.
Why we made it free
We already had most of these tools in-house, built by the same team behind Purple's guest WiFi , captive portals and location analytics. Making them free for everyone felt like the right thing to do. As a certified B Corp, we have always believed the internet should be open and it should work for people, and giving something back to the engineering community we have been part of for years is a small part of that.
Try Netforge
Netforge is free right now, with no account and no subscription, on Windows, macOS and Linux.
