John the Ripper
Cryptography 6 commands

John the Ripper

Fast password security auditing and recovery tool. Supports hundreds of hash and cipher types including Unix, Windows, and many more.

passwordcrackinghashbrute-force
Official docs

Installation

sudo apt install john
# or
brew install john-jumbo
# or build from source at openwall.com/john

Commands & usage

6 entries
  • john <hashfile>

    Crack with default settings

  • john --wordlist=<wordlist> <hashfile>

    Dictionary attack

  • john --format=<format> <hashfile>

    Specify hash format

  • john --show <hashfile>

    Show cracked passwords

  • john --incremental <hashfile>

    Brute force mode

  • unshadow /etc/passwd /etc/shadow > hashes.txt

    Combine passwd and shadow

Use cases

Password auditingHash crackingSecurity compliancePenetration testingPassword policy testing