XMap: Fast Internet-wide IPv4 and IPv6 Network Scanner

2026-02-10

AI Summary

Existing network scanning tools struggle to efficiently support internet-wide probing of both IPv4 and IPv6 address spaces, with a particularly pronounced technical gap in IPv6. To address this limitation, this work proposes XMap—an open-source, high-performance scanner capable of rapid, internet-scale IPv6 scanning, first demonstrated in 2020. XMap features an optimized packet transmission and response handling architecture that enables massive parallelism, intelligent address generation, and cross-platform deployment. The tool has significantly contributed to the development of multiple RFC standards and vulnerability disclosures, has been cited in 52 academic publications—including 15 top-tier security conference papers—and has garnered over 450 stars on GitHub, alongside adoption or endorsement by several international enterprises.

Technology Category

• Application Domains: Internet of Things, Sensor Networks & Smart Cities
• Search and Optimization: Distributed Search
• Data Mining & Knowledge Management: Scalability, Parallel & Distributed Systems

Application Category

• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Web performance, measurement, and characterization
• Security and Privacy: Large-scale security measurements
• Web Mining and Content Analysis: Web measurements

Abstract

XMap is an open-source network scanner designed for performing fast Internet-wide IPv4 and IPv6 network research scanning. XMap was initially developed as the research artifact of a paper published at 2021 IEEE/IFIP International Conference on Dependable Systems and Networks (DSN'21) and then made available on GitHub. XMap is the first tool to support fast Internet-wide IPv6 network scanning in 2020. During the last five years, XMap has made substantial impact in academia, industry, and government. It has been referenced in 52 research papers (15 published at top-tier security venues and 11 in leading networking societies), received over 450 GitHub stars, featured in multiple news outlets, and deployed or recommended by international companies up to date. Additionally, XMap has contributed to the implementation of RFC documents and the discovery of various vulnerabilities. This paper provides fundamental details about XMap, its architecture, and its impact.

Problem

• Internet-wide scanning
• IPv4
• IPv6
• network scanner

Innovation

• Internet-wide scanning
• IPv6 network scanning
• network measurement
• open-source scanner
• XMap