Description
Ping uses the ICMP echo-request/echo-reply protocol. This network test enables an agent to verify whether it can reach a destination host, measuring the round-trip time (RTT), expressed in milliseconds, between the source and the destination host. The test also reports packet loss. NetBeez has also implemented the calculation of the network jitter, expressed as variation in delay, and estimate of the Mean Opinion Score (MOS) for voice/video communications.
Ping tests are configured as part of a target, or can also run standalone as an ad-hoc test (please review Ad-Hoc Testing).
How to create a ping test
Ping tests are created as part of a target. In the target setup form click on the PING button and input the following fields:
Source (Ad-hoc only, required): The agent that will conduct the test.
Destination (Ad-hoc only, required): The IP address or hostname of the remote device to ping.
Count (Ad-hoc only): This number tells the Agent how many ICMP echo-request packets it should have before exiting. The default value is 10.
Interval (required): The inter-packet leave, or time in seconds interceding between two consecutive ICMP echo-request packets. The default value is 5 second and the minimum value can be 1 second.
Timeout per datapoint (required): The number of seconds that the Agent will wait for an ICMP echo-reply before declaring that datapoint has failed. The default value is 5 seconds and the minimum value can be 1 second.
Test Type: Choose between ICMP (default) and TCP. The TCP ping test enables NetBeez Agents to verify the availability and performance of TCP/IP services. If you select TCP, you can edit:
Port Number: The TCP port number to run pings against
Flags: Check all applicable TCP flags
Jitter and MOS (optional): Click on the checkbox if you would like to enable Jitter and MOS. The ping interval must be 5 seconds or less for Jitter and MOS data to be generated.
Specify MTU size (optional): Click on the checkbox if you would like to increase the default packet size of the PING packets. By default, a PING packet sends 64 bytes over the network - 56 bytes of payload data and 8 bytes of header data.
Advanced options, such as:
DF set: Set the Don't Fragment bit in the ICMP echo-request packet to avoid fragmentation.
DF is not set: Don't set the Don't Fragment bit in the ICMP echo-request packet.
Payload: Set the payload between 12 and 9,000 bytes. Container agents require a minimum of 24 bytes.
Select TOS/DSCP Class (optional): Select one of the options from the drop-down list. The default is no TOS flag.