Get started with NetBlade on iPhone and iPad

This article takes you from installation to a saved network with its own timeline. You will grant the one permission that matters, run a first scan, understand why iOS shows fewer MAC addresses than you might expect, and save the network so NetBlade can tell you what changed between visits. Everything here is free.

Before you start

• An iPhone or iPad with iOS 17 or later.
• A Wi‑Fi connection to the network you want to look at, ideally your own.
• No account needed. NetBlade has no ads and follows the language set in iOS.

1. Install and allow Local Network access

1. Install NetBlade from the App Store. It is the same app for iPhone and iPad.
2. Open it. The «Welcome to NetBlade» screen explains what the next permission is for. Tap «Get started».
3. When iOS asks to find and connect to devices on your local network, tap Allow.

Without this permission a scan finds nothing: iOS blocks every app from talking to devices on the local network until you allow it.

Warning: iOS asks only once, and it does not tell apps whether you said yes. If a scan comes back empty on a busy network, go to iOS Settings › Privacy & Security › Local Network and make sure NetBlade is turned on.

The location prompt

iOS also asks for location, only while using the app. It is needed for one thing: reading the name (SSID) of the Wi‑Fi you are on. If you decline, everything still works and NetBlade recognises the network by its subnet instead.

2. Run your first scan

Open the LAN tab: the first scan starts by itself and the list fills in as devices answer.

1. Follow the progress bar, the count of devices and the timer. «Stop» interrupts the scan; «Scan» runs it again.
2. When it finishes, the «Scan summary» opens. It says whether the router answered over SNMP and that names, vendors and MACs may still be coming in. Close it.
3. Sort by «IP», «Name» or «Latency», and filter with «All», «New» or «Open ports».

Each row shows the device’s name, IP, latency, vendor and model when known, its role (Gateway or This device) and open ports as pills coloured by risk. Names come from reverse DNS, Bonjour, NetBIOS, UPnP and SNMP, and NetBlade keeps the most reliable one.

Tap a device to open its details: identity, open ports, sharing and services, a «Security» score out of 100, and a place to give it a name, tag, notes and icon.

3. Understand why MACs and vendors are missing

You will probably notice that many devices have no MAC address and no vendor. That is not a fault.

iOS lets no app read the MAC addresses of its neighbours. NetBlade gets them from two places:

• The router or your switches, over SNMP. They know every MAC on the network, and NetBlade reads their tables read-only.
• Devices that announce their own, for example AirPlay devices.

Without SNMP the list is real but mostly without MACs, and a shared report says so. This is also why SNMP is free on iPhone: without it the free app would have no vendors and no network map.

Look at the «SNMP» chip under the LAN tab’s title. Green means something answered; amber means nothing did. Tapping it while amber takes you to the network settings, where you enter the community. The full setup is in Get MACs and vendors from your router over SNMP.

4. Save the network

Saving gives the network a name, keeps its SNMP credentials and starts its timeline.

1. On the LAN tab open the ⋯ menu and choose «Save this network». You can also tap «Save» next to the current Wi‑Fi at the top of the Saved tab.
2. Give the network a name, such as “Home” or “Office”.
3. If your router supports SNMP, turn on «Devices from router (SNMP)» now. Otherwise leave it for later.
4. Save.

The location is recorded once, when you save, so the network can appear on the networks map.

Note: The free version saves one network. From the second one on you need NetBlade Pro.

5. Use the network timeline

On iPhone the timeline is what takes the place of background alerts. It records what changed between one scan and the next: devices that are new, came back or left, and, if you inventory PCs, changes in their defences.

1. After saving, run a scan. The first one only creates the baseline.
2. Next time you are on the network, open the app and scan again.
3. Open Saved › your network › «Network timeline».

Tip: Events are recorded when you scan. A gap in the timeline means nobody scanned, not that nothing happened. Make scanning part of a routine, for example the first thing you do when you arrive at the office. The small «Scan LAN» widget on the Home Screen starts a scan in one tap.

Check that it worked

• The LAN tab’s title shows the name you gave the network instead of the subnet.
• The Saved tab shows a check mark next to the current Wi‑Fi.
• After a second scan, «Network timeline» shows events or, on a quiet network, stays empty with nothing new.

If something goes wrong

• The scan finds nothing. Check iOS Settings › Privacy & Security › Local Network.
• Some devices are missing. iOS scans without ICMP ping: presence is proven with TCP connections, and a device that answers nothing may not appear. Phones asleep with the screen off often do this.
• No SSID in the header. You declined the location permission. It is only needed for the network name; you can grant it later in iOS Settings › NetBlade.
• The «SNMP» chip stays amber. The router does not answer SNMP yet. See the next article.

Next

• Get MACs and vendors from your router over SNMP
• Build the network map from your switches
• The full NetBlade guide for iPhone and iPad

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