Traceroute is a network diagnostic tool used to track the path that data takes from your computer to a specific destination, like a website. It shows each hop along the route, which represents a different router or server that the data passes through.
When you run a traceroute command, your computer sends a series of packets to the destination. Each packet has a Time-to-Live (TTL) value that determines how many hops it can make before being discarded. The TTL starts at a low value, and with each hop, it increases until it reaches the destination.
As the packets travel, each router that handles them sends back a response, allowing traceroute to record the time taken for each hop and the IP address of the router.
What It Shows:
- Path: The sequence of devices (routers) the data travels through.
- Response Times: How long it takes for each hop to respond, which can help identify where delays are occurring.
- Destination IP: The final destination's IP address.