PathPing is a network troubleshooting tool that combines the functions of two other utilities: Ping and Traceroute. It’s used to diagnose network issues by measuring both the latency and packet loss along the route between your computer and a destination (like a website or server).
When you run PathPing, it first sends packets to every router along the path, like Traceroute. But unlike Traceroute, PathPing goes a step further by analyzing the quality of the connection over a period of time. It collects data on how many packets are being lost at each hop, making it easier to pinpoint network congestion or failures.
Why Use PathPing?
- Ping checks the time it takes for a packet to travel to a destination and back.
- Traceroute shows the path that packets take across multiple networks to reach the destination.
- PathPing combines these features, providing not only the route but also the quality of each hop, making it more thorough for diagnosing intermittent network problems or pinpointing where packet loss is occurring.
For example, if you’re having trouble with slow network speeds, PathPing helps you find out if a specific router along the way is overloaded or dropping packets. It’s more detailed than Ping and Traceroute alone and is especially useful when dealing with complex network issues.
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to use PathPing to troubleshoot network issues:
1. Open Command Prompt
- On Windows, press Win + R, type
cmd, and press Enter. - Alternatively, you can search for “Command Prompt” in the Start Menu.
2. Run PathPing
In the Command Prompt, type the following:
pathping [destination]Replace [destination] with the IP address or domain name of the server you want to test, such as:
pathping google.com3. Understand the Output
PathPing will perform the following steps:
- Step 1: It will run a Traceroute, identifying the path your data takes across the network.
- Step 2: PathPing will then ping each hop along the path multiple times, collecting information on packet loss and latency. This can take a few minutes to complete, so be patient.
4. Interpreting Results
After PathPing completes, you’ll see two main sections of data:
- Hop List (Step 1): A list of routers between your computer and the destination. Each hop represents a device (router) along the network path.
- Example:
1 <router IP> <response time> ms2 <router IP> <response time> ms...
- Example:
- Packet Loss & Latency (Step 2): PathPing will show you how much packet loss occurred at each hop. If packet loss or high latency is observed at a specific hop, it usually means there’s a problem with that router or the network link.
- Example:
Computing statistics for 100 seconds...Hop RTT Lost/Sent = Pct Address0 <Your IP> 1 15ms 0/100 = 0% <router IP>2 30ms 12/100 = 12% <problematic router>3 45ms 0/100 = 0% <destination>
- Example:
5. Analyzing Results
- RTT (Round Trip Time): Indicates the time it takes for packets to travel from your machine to the hop and back. High RTT times indicate potential network delays.
- Lost/Sent: If a hop has a significant percentage of lost packets, it suggests that there may be network congestion or a problem at that point.
- Focus on hops with high packet loss or increasing RTT values, as they might be causing the issue.
Example Use Case:
If you’re experiencing slow internet speeds while gaming or streaming, PathPing can help you see if there’s packet loss or high latency somewhere between your device and the game server or streaming service.