See where packets travel and where they stall, by watching each hop along the route. 18.05.2026 | reading time: 2 min Want to know which router between you and a server adds delay or drops packets? The Linux command `traceroute` reveals each hop along the path so you can pinpoint where latency or failure occurs. Follow the hops Case: a web service feels slow from a workstation; run `traceroute` to inspect the path and timings. ```bash traceroute -n example.com traceroute to example.com (93.184.216.34), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets 1 192.168.1.1 0.456 ms 0.389 ms 0.410 ms 2 203.0.113.1 11.223 ms 11.198 ms 11.305 ms 3 198.51.100.5 22.987 ms 22.912 ms 22.945 ms 4 * * * 5 93.184.216.34 45.120 ms 45.003 ms 44.978 ms ``` Interpretation: hops 1–3 respond normally, hop 4 drops probes (possible firewall or rate-limiting), and the final host is reached with increased latency around hop 3 to 5. Options that change behavior Try `-n` to skip DNS lookups for faster output, `-I` to use ICMP echo (like Windows `tracert`), `-T` for TCP probes to port 80 or another port, `-m` to set max TTL, `-q` to change probes per hop, and `-w` to tune timeouts; combine options to test specific hypotheses and to work around firewalls that block the default UDP probes. When traceroute isn't enough Use `mtr` for continuous, interactive latency and loss statistics, `tracepath` when you need a tool that doesn't require root, and `tcptraceroute` to emulate TCP handshakes toward a specific port; each tool gives a different angle on reachability and performance. Read the route, act on it Traceroute tells the story of a packet's journey; read that story, locate the choke points, and follow up with targeted tests or contact the ISP for upstream issues; keep exploring network tools and practices to move from observation to resolution. Join Bits & Bytes Academy First class LINUX exam preparation. network troubleshooting utilities
