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Network troubleshooting

Traceroute (MTR)

See every router between our server and a destination, with packet loss and latency per hop (MTR report) – find where a connection slows down or breaks.

Live test from our server in Australia – nothing is stored.

When a site is slow or unreachable, a traceroute shows the path the traffic takes – every router between our server and the destination – and where delay or loss begins. This tool runs MTR, which probes each hop several times and reports loss and average, best and worst latency, so intermittent problems show up as well as hard failures.

How to use it

  1. Enter the hostname or IP address that has the problem.
  2. Choose 5 probes per hop (or 10 for an intermittent fault) and press Trace. It takes 10–20 seconds.
  3. Read from the top: hops 1–3 are our hosting network, the middle is transit providers, the last hops are the destination’s network.

How to read loss and latency

  • Loss on one middle hop only – normal. Routers rate-limit replies to probes while still forwarding traffic.
  • Loss that starts at a hop and continues to the end – a real problem at or just after that hop.
  • A jump in latency that stays – distance (for example an undersea cable), not a fault.
  • “No reply” hops – routers that don’t answer probes at all. Harmless if later hops answer.

Reporting a problem to your ISP

Run MTR from your own network too (mtr -rwc 50 example.com on Linux, or WinMTR on Windows) and send both reports. ISPs act much faster on an MTR that shows where the loss starts.

常见问题

A middle hop shows 100 % loss – is it broken?

Usually not. Many routers don’t answer traceroute probes, or answer them slowly, while still forwarding traffic. Only loss that starts at a hop and continues to the final destination points to a real problem.

Why do latencies jump between countries?

Undersea cables and long distances add delay – for example Australia to the US west coast adds about 150 ms. A jump that stays for all later hops is distance, not a fault.

What is the difference between traceroute and MTR?

Traceroute sends a few probes once. MTR repeats them and reports loss and average, best and worst latency for each hop, which makes intermittent problems visible.