High-resolution network monitoring with ping
The ping
command is used to determine whether a particular host on the network is accessible and to reveal the packet turnaround time, usually known as the round trip time (RTT). The RTT of a ping request is longer when packets need to pass through network devices or long stretches of wire. In this article, I develop a utility that uses the ping RTT to track down switches and transparent bridges and determine cable lengths.
Known Pings
Common ping programs under Linux, like that from the iputils package [1], create RTT statistics with a mean value. However, the average of thousands of pings can vary so greatly that it is impossible to achieve high resolution within the framework of a few microseconds to nanoseconds.
These subtleties, however, are interesting when exploring the network and the equipment in it. Expert evaluation, that is, filtering out RTT outliers before computing an average, can return a resolution of less than one microsecond (1µs). Several available ping programs offer additional features that remain mostly unused, such as the ability to send a bit pattern in the ping packet to determine data rot (i.e., damage to data on the network).
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Plasma 6.3 Now Available
Plasma desktop v6.3 has a couple of pretty nifty tricks up its sleeve.
-
LibreOffice 25.2 Has Arrived
If you've been hoping for a release that offers more UI customizations, you're in for a treat.
-
TuxCare Has a Big AlmaLinux 9 Announcement in Store
TuxCare announced it has successfully completed a Security Technical Implementation Guide for AlmaLinux OS 9.
-
First Release Candidate for Linux Kernel 6.14 Now Available
Linus Torvalds has officially released the first release candidate for kernel 6.14 and it includes over 500,000 lines of modified code, making for a small release.
-
System76 Refreshes Meerkat Mini PC
If you're looking for a small form factor PC powered by Linux, System76 has exactly what you need in the Meerkat mini PC.
-
Gnome 48 Alpha Ready for Testing
The latest Gnome desktop alpha is now available with plenty of new features and improvements.
-
Wine 10 Includes Plenty to Excite Users
With its latest release, Wine has the usual crop of bug fixes and improvements, along with some exciting new features.
-
Linux Kernel 6.13 Offers Improvements for AMD/Apple Users
The latest Linux kernel is now available, and it includes plenty of improvements, especially for those who use AMD or Apple-based systems.
-
Gnome 48 Debuts New Audio Player
To date, the audio player found within the Gnome desktop has been meh at best, but with the upcoming release that all changes.
-
Plasma 6.3 Ready for Public Beta Testing
Plasma 6.3 will ship with KDE Gear 24.12.1 and KDE Frameworks 6.10, along with some new and exciting features.