Scan these CGI directories. Special words "none" or "all" may be used to scan all CGI directories or none, (respectively). A literal value for a CGI directory such as "/cgi-test/" may be specified (must include trailing slash). If this is option is not specified, all CGI directories listed in config.txt will be tested.

Specify an alternative config file to use instead of the config.txt located in the install directory.

Check the scan databases for syntax errors. Also checks the plugins to ensure they are called properly and have an entry in the plugins_order.txt.

Specify the LibWhisker IDS evasion technique to use (see the LibWhisker docs for detailed information on these). Use the reference number to specify the type, multiple may be used:

1 - Random URI encoding (non-UTF8)

2 - Directory self-reference (/./)

3 - Premature URL ending

4 - Prepend long random string

5 - Fake parameter

6 - TAB as request spacer

7 - Change the case of the URL

8 - Use Windows directory separator (\)

Only discover the HTTP(S) ports, do not perform security scan. This will attempt to connect with HTTP or HTTPS, and report the Server header.

Save the output file specified with -o (-output) option in this format. If not specified, default is "txt". Valid formats are:

csv - a comma-seperated list

htm - an HTML report

txt - a text report

xml - an XML report

Host(s) to target. Can be an IP address, hostname or text file of hosts.

Display extended help information.

ID and password to use for host Basic host authentication. Format is "id:password".

Specify mutation technique. A mutation will cause Nikto to combine tests or attempt to guess values. These techniques may cause a tremendous amount of tests to be launched against the target. Use the reference number to specify the type, multiple may be used:

1 - Test all files with all root directories

2 - Guess for password file names

3 - Enumerate user names via Apache (/~user type requests)

4 - Enumerate user names via cgiwrap (/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~user type requests)

Do not perform name lookups on IP addresses.

Write output to the file specified. Format is defined in -F (-Format), default is text. Existing files will have new information appended.

TCP port(s) to target. To test more than one port on the same host, specify the list of ports in the -p (-port) option. Ports can be specified as a range (i.e., 80-90), or as a comma-delimited list, (i.e., 80,88,90). If not specified, port 80 is used.

Seconds to delay between each test.

Control the output that Nikto shows. See Chapter 5 for detailed information on these options. Use the reference number or letter to specify the type, multiple may be used:

1 - Show redirects

2 - Show cookies received

3 - Show all 200/OK responses

4 - Show URLs which require authentication

D - Debug Output

V - Verbose Output

Prepend the value specified to the beginning of every request. This is useful to test applications or web servers which have all of their files under a certain directory.

Only test SSL on the ports specified. Using this option will dramatically speed up requests to HTTPS ports, since otherwise the HTTP request will have to timeout first.

Perform a single request to a target server. Nikto will prompt for all options which can be specified, and then report the detailed output. See Chapter 5 for detailed information.

Seconds to wait before timing out a request. Default timeout is 2 seconds.

Tuning options will control the test that Nikto will use against a target. By default, if any options are specified, only those tests will be performed. If the "x" option is used, it will reverse the logic and exclude only those tests. Use the reference number or letter to specify the type, multiple may be used:

0 - File Upload

1 - Interesting File / Seen in logs

2 - Misconfiguration / Default File

3 - Information Disclosure

4 - Injection (XSS/Script/HTML)

5 - Remote File Retrieval - Inside Web Root

6 - Denial of Service

7 - Remote File Retrieval - Server Wide

8 - Command Execution / Remote Shell

9 - SQL Injection

a - Authentication Bypass

b - Software Identification

g - Generic (Don't rely on banner)

x - Reverse Tuning Options (i.e., include all except specified)

Use the HTTP proxy defined in the config.txt file.

Update the plugins and databases directly from cirt.net.

Display the Nikto software, plugin and database versions.

Specify the Host header to be sent to the target.