In this detailed guide, we’ll show you how to remove Wireshark from your Ubuntu machine step by step. Many people use Wireshark, which is a powerful network protocol analyzer, to capture and look at network data. But there are times when you might want to remove it for different reasons.
Table of Contents
We’ll give you clear instructions and commands to make sure the removal goes smoothly, so you can free up room and improve your Ubuntu environment.
Accessing the Terminal
The first step is to go to your Ubuntu system’s Terminal. In the Terminal, you’ll type all the instructions you need to tell the operating system what to do. To do this, just do these things:
To open the Terminal, press Ctrl, Alt, and T at the same time.
You can also open Terminal by clicking on the Ubuntu Dash icon in the upper left corner, searching for “Terminal,” and then clicking on the program icon.
Getting Root Permissions
Before we start the removal process, we need to make sure you have the administrative rights you need. By using sudo -i, you can turn your user account into a superuser or root account, which gives you the power to run administrative tasks.
Uninstalling Wireshark
Since you now have more rights, you can remove Wireshark from your machine. To get rid of all Wireshark tools, run the following command:
apt-get purge wireshark-*This command will get rid of Wireshark and all the tools it needs from your Ubuntu computer. Please keep in mind that this action can’t be undone, so make sure you really want to move forward before accepting.
Removing Residual Dependencies
Even after you remove Wireshark, your system may still depend on it. Run the following code to clean up and free up disk space:
apt autoremoveThis tool will automatically remove any packages and dependencies that were installed as part of Wireshark but are no longer needed.
Verifying Removal
You can use the whereis command to find out where Wireshark is on your machine to make sure it has been completely removed. Follow the instructions below:
whereis wiresharkIf Wireshark was uninstalled correctly, this command will not show any output. This means that the program is no longer on your machine.
Removing Wireshark Configuration Files
Even if you remove an app, it’s possible that some configuration files will still be on your machine. For a clean cleanup, we’ll use the rm command to get rid of the Wireshark directory in /etc/:
rm -rf etc/wiresharkThis command will remove the Wireshark directory and its files, if any, from the /etc/ directory.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You have taken Wireshark off of your Ubuntu system properly. This detailed guide gave you clear steps and clear orders to make sure that the uninstallation went smoothly and without any problems. By taking these steps, you have freed up space on your hard drive and made your Ubuntu environment run better.
If you have any problems with the removal process or questions about Wireshark, network research, or Ubuntu in general, don’t hesitate to ask for help.