Netcut

Netcut is a lightweight but highly useful network monitoring application that can instantly provide you with a detailed breakdown of your network, including information of all the computers and devices that are connected to it such as IP/Mac address, data transfer usage, signal quality, uptime, and several other metrics. With a single click of a button, you can get an oversight of the devices that are having an impact on your local home or work network, with an option to scan a specific IP address of your choice. Scanning covers both the ethernet connections and the WiFi devices that are accessible directly via your local network. Another useful feature of Netcut is that it can be used preventively, leaving it on for a prolonged period of time in the hope of detecting ARP spoof attacks.

Even though the simpler than usual user interface and the lack of the advanced tools may focus this app much more toward inexperienced users who just want to gain simple breakdown of their networking status, it can still provide valuable info to the enthusiast who just wants a quick scan of the network neighborhood and to access some of its available tools such as network speed control, detect unknown (guest) users on the network, allow/disallow network access to a selected device with simple click & drag, schedule network access to specific device/user and several other features available only to Premium users of this app (Cut Off all access to the selected user, NetLock Wifi to any new user, keep detailed logs and more).

Installation and Use

Netcut comes in a small installation package that will try to install two distinct applications on your PC. After a brief installation is done, you can access the netcut not from a standalone app, but directly from your web browser.

Even though the developers of the app had a chance to design a visually appealing interface, they elected to only focus on essentials and users provide a clean, simplistic single-colored interface without any flourishes. The interface of this web app features a tabbed approach (User, Options, Pro, and Records), with the User tab holding all the basic tools for scanning your network and activating integrated support for managing network access to selected devices. Each discovered device is showcased with in-depth information listing which includes their name, IP and MAC address, the Brand name of the network device, connection status, and the status indicator for Attacker/Protected states.

Options tab does not offer many configuration options, with just a few available tools for selecting Fast Scan mode, Cut Off method, random MAC assigning, and Query Rate scan.

Features and Highlights

• Scan and control discovered devices on your local network
• Quickly gain valuable networking insight
• Spot unknown (guest) users on your network
• Schedule user on/offline access to the network
• Full Windows tablet support
• Available on modern versions of Windows (Win 7 and newer)
• 100% free access to basic tools
• Pro membership for advanced users – $1 a month, or $9.99 a year.
• Pro tool – Cut off all internet connection with one click
• Pro tool – NetLock. Lock your Wi-Fi network so that no other NEW users can join it.
• Pro tool – View historical records for each detected device

Note: Limited functionality in the demo version.