Technology Insights

Bluetooth CoD: Bluetooth Class of Device/Class of Service Explained

Insights5 Comments

While testing some tools in Backtrack Linux I was working with some Bluetooth tools including btscanner, BlueProPro, bluediving, etc. and wanted to know more about the Bluetooth Class of Device/Class of Service also know as just Bluetooth CoD. Not only how it was formatted but also what exactly it meant and what it could tell me exactly about Bluetooth devices. In the end I feel I have a pretty good understanding of Bluetooth CoD and what it can tell you about various hardware devices even though it appears the standard for assigning CoD numbers is fairly loose most people appear to adhere to it somewhat. It should be noted that Bluetooth CoD is easily modified such as on Linux you can set it using hciconfig and thus could provide fasle information if you wanted to do so. Obviously not many people are going to understand this or know how to accomplish this so typically if you are scanning for Bluetooth devices you will be getting whatever the manufacturer has set when the item was manufactured. Below we describe more specifics about Bluetooth CoD including what the CoD hex means and some examples of Bluetooth CoD. Check out our Bluetooth Class list by clicking here.

Information Security

btscanner Brute Force Bluetooth Crashes On Backtrack 5 R3

Security3 Comments

I have been playing around with some of the bluetooth tools within Backtrack recently and btscanner is one of the main tools I have bene using. The btscanner application in Backtrack Linux provides two bluetooth scanning functions it calls inquiry scanning and brute force scanning. Unfortunately the package installed with Backtrack 5 release 3 will crash when attempting to use it for brute force scanning however I was able to create a fix that isn’t too messy to accomplish. Below we describe the btscanner crash in more detail and provide a way to get btscanner bluetooth brute forcing operating properly.

Technology Errors

Backtrack Linux Configure Error: No package check found

ErrorsLeave a comment

While compiling some earlier versions of bluez, which provides support for core bluetooth layers and protocols, I ran into a minor error. The error complained about no check being available. Read below to see the initial error when running ./configure and how to install the check package to resolve the errors. Installing the check package will fix this problem likely on any platform but for sure on Ubuntu 10.04 since Backtrack Linux is currently built on that platform.

Technology Insights

Get Dell Wireless 350 Bluetooth Module Working With Backtrack, Dell Bluetooth 350 With Ubuntu

InsightsLeave a comment

Getting this module working is not very much fun if you are on a single boot system with Backtrack or Ubuntu installed however it is much easier if you are on a dual boot system that happens to also boot into Windows XP. I personally ran into the issue of the Dell Wireless 350 Bluetooth Module working with Backtrack on a development laptop that luckily didn’t have much data on it because to resolve the problem you need to install Windows XP, run a executable within XP from Dell to upgrade the firmware on the Dell Bluetooth 350 Module, and then reinstall Backtrack. Below is more information about how to get the Dell 350 Bluetooth Module working in Ubuntu or Backtrack Linux.

Technology Insights

Show Bluetooth Device MAC Address In Windows 7

InsightsLeave a comment

While working on a project this weekend I needed a quick way to see a specific Bluetooth devices MAC address in Windows 7 because it was not displaying properly under the Windows Bluetooth Devices section. The easiest way that I located to display Bluetooth device MAC addresses in Windows 7 was by using an application called BluetoothView. Below I describe how to download BluetoothView, run BluetoothView, and obtain the a Bluetooth devices MAC address in Windows 7.