What is MTR?

MTR (My Traceroute) combines ping and traceroute to monitor network performance and detect issues like latency or packet loss.

Installation

  1. Linux: sudo apt install mtr (Debian/Ubuntu) or sudo yum install mtr (CentOS).

  2. Windows: Use WinMTR.

Basic Usage

mtr <destination_ip>

Options:

  • -r -c <n>: Generate a report after n tests (e.g., mtr -r -c 10 example.com).

  • -n: Skip DNS resolution, show IPs only.

  • --tcp or -u: Use TCP/UDP instead of ICMP.

  • --max-ttl <n>: Limit hops to n.

How to interpret the results

  1. Host: The intermediate devices (hops).

  2. Loss%: Packet loss percentage. High loss indicates issues.

  3. Last/Avg/Worst: Latency stats (in ms). High values = potential congestion.

Key Points:

  1. Consistent high loss: Likely a network issue, contact us.

  2. High latency only at the destination: Check the server, not the network.

  3. High loss on one hop: Often router configuration, not a real problem.

Example Commands

Test with 10 pings
mtr -r -c 10 deluxhost.net > output.txt
Testing an ip-address
mtr 192.168.1.1
Specific port test
mtr --tcp --port 80 deluxhost.net
Continuous monitoring
mtr google.com