Does libpcap have any disadvantages, which I should be aware of?

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Answer:

Yes, libpcap will only use in-kernel packet filtering when using BPF, which is found on BSD derived systems. This means any packet filters used on other operating systems which don't use BPF will be done in user space, thus losing out on a lot of speed and efficiency. This is not what you want, because packet loss can increase when sniffing a busy network.

DEC OSF/1 has an API which has been extended to support BPF-style filters; libpcap does utilize this.

In the future, libpcap may translate BPF style filters to other packet capturing facilities, but this has not been implemented yet as of version 0.3

Refer to question 1.4 to see how packet filters help in reliably monitoring your network.