Promiscuous Mode with a Guest Virtual Machine

One method to troubleshoot a potential networking problem is to make use of the tools already available on the guest virtual machine. For example, a virtual machine running Linux® may already have networking diagnostic tools available such as tcpdump or ethereal. In cases where the networking problem appears to be reduced to a limited number of guests on the virtual switch or guest LAN, the Guest promiscuous mode option can be employed. Once the Guest Virtual Machine is in promiscuous mode, tcpdump or ethereal can collect and analyze the LAN traffic sent to the Guest. Promiscuous mode is a mode of operation where the network adapter intercepts all data flowing over the network regardless of destination MAC or IP address. Promiscuous mode in a guest virtual machine environment provides the guest's virtual NIC with a copy of all data flowing on its configured LAN or VLANs.