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hcxtools

Converts captured Wi-Fi frames into hash formats analysis tools read

What it does

A set of conversion and inspection utilities that turn pcapng captures into the hash formats used by offline analysis tools, and report what a capture actually contains.

Why you would want it

A capture is not usable until it is converted, and hcxpcapngtool is what reports whether the capture contains anything useful at all -- which saves discovering hours later that the handshake was never there.

Before it will work

A capture, usually from hcxdumptool.

How it installs

  • apt: hcxtools

Known problems

Version-matched to hcxdumptool: mixing a 6.x tool with a 7.x capture produces confusing errors. Debian 13 and Parrot ship 6.3.5, Kali ships 7.1.2, and Ubuntu 26.04 ships mismatched halves — 7.1.0 tools beside a 7.0.0 hcxdumptool (apt-cache policy on all four, 2026-08-28).

Keeping it current

  • probe: apt policy
  • strategy: apt_upgrade

Source: catalog/packages/hcxtools.yaml