Port 19: Chargen
Port 19 is the Character Generator Protocol, which streams a continuous sequence of characters back to the client. It is best known today as a target for UDP amplification attacks, so it should never be exposed to the internet.
| Port number | 19 |
|---|---|
| Service | Character Generator Protocol |
| Protocol | TCP/UDP |
| Category | Legacy protocols |
| Default encryption | No |
How do I check whether port 19 is open?
Port 19 carries TCP, so a connection either completes its handshake or it does not, which makes the check definitive.
| Question | Command | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Is it open on a remote host? | nc -vz example.com 19 | A TCP handshake either completes or it does not, so netcat gives a definitive answer in one line. |
| Same check on Windows | Test-NetConnection example.com -Port 19 | Built into PowerShell. TcpTestSucceeded in the output is the answer; telnet is not installed by default on modern Windows. |
| What is listening locally? | ss -tlnp | grep ':19 ' | Lists the process bound to port 19 on Linux. On macOS use lsof -nP -iTCP:19 -sTCP:LISTEN, on Windows netstat -ano | findstr :19 |
| Is it open on a remote host? | sudo nmap -sU -p 19 example.com | UDP has no handshake, so there is nothing to complete. nmap infers the state from whether an ICMP port-unreachable comes back, needs root, and is slow and easy to misread. A silent port may be open, filtered, or simply not replying to a probe it does not recognise. |
| What is listening locally? | ss -ulnp | grep ':19 ' | Shows the UDP socket bound to port 19. This is the reliable way to answer the question, because you are asking the host itself rather than guessing from outside. |
Replace example.com with the host you are testing. A blocked port and a port with nothing listening on it look identical from the outside, so if a service should be running, check locally before blaming the firewall.
Frequently asked questions
What is port 19 used for?
Port 19 is the Character Generator Protocol, which streams a continuous sequence of characters back to the client. It is best known today as a target for UDP amplification attacks, so it should never be exposed to the internet.
Is port 19 TCP or UDP?
Port 19 (Chargen) uses TCP/UDP.
Is port 19 secure?
Port 19 is not encrypted by default. Where possible, use an encrypted alternative or tunnel it over TLS or a VPN.
Should I open port 19 on my firewall?
Only if you specifically need Chargen. Expose it to the smallest set of trusted sources, and never open database or Windows-service ports to the whole internet.