General Network Troubleshooting Tools (Ping, Traceroute)

GENERAL NETWORK TROUBLESHOOTING TOOLS

(Ping, Traceroute, PathPing, and PowerShell)

When troubleshooting network connectivity issues between your computer and a remote host (such as a WinHost server), several built-in tools can help determine where a problem may exist. This article covers the most commonly used tools on modern Windows systems.



  1. PING – BASIC CONNECTIVITY TEST

Purpose:


Ping tests whether a remote host is reachable and measures basic network latency using ICMP echo requests.

How to run:


  1. Open Command Prompt or PowerShell
    • Press the Windows key, type "cmd" or "PowerShell", and press Enter.
  2. Run the command:
    ping example.com
  3. Press Enter.

Optional: Run multiple pings and save output to a file:
ping example.com -n 100 > ping_results.txt


What to look for:


  • Successful replies indicate basic connectivity.
  • Timeouts or packet loss may indicate routing issues, firewall blocks, or an unreachable host.
  • Some servers may block ICMP traffic, which can cause ping to fail even if the site is online.


  1. TRACERT – ROUTE PATH ANALYSIS


Purpose:


Traceroute (tracert in Windows) shows each network hop between your computer and the destination. This helps identify where latency or packet loss occurs.


How to run:

  1. Open Command Prompt or PowerShell.
  2. Run:
    tracert example.com
  3. Press Enter.

Output explanation:

  • Each numbered line represents a hop.
  • High latency or timeouts at a specific hop may indicate network congestion or routing problems.
  • The final hop should resolve to the destination server.


  1. PATHPING – ADVANCED ROUTE AND PACKET LOSS ANALYSIS


Purpose:


PathPing combines ping and traceroute functionality. It analyzes packet loss and latency across the entire route.


How to run:

  1. Open Command Prompt or PowerShell.
  2. Run:
    pathping example.com
  3. Press Enter.

Notes:

  • PathPing can take several minutes to complete.
  • The final summary provides packet loss statistics per hop.
  • This tool is useful for diagnosing intermittent or performance-related issues.

  1. POWERSHELL NETWORK TROUBLESHOOTING (MODERN METHOD)

Modern versions of Windows include PowerShell networking cmdlets that provide richer diagnostics than traditional tools.


4a. TEST-NETCONNECTION – RECOMMENDED TOOL


Purpose:


Test-NetConnection is an all-in-one PowerShell command that can:

  • Test basic connectivity (ping-like)
  • Resolve DNS
  • Test TCP ports
  • Perform traceroute diagnostics

How to run:

  1. Open PowerShell (Run as Administrator if possible).
  2. Basic connectivity test:
    Test-NetConnection example.com
  3. Detailed diagnostics:
    Test-NetConnection example.com -InformationLevel Detailed


4b. TESTING A SPECIFIC PORT


To test whether a specific TCP port is reachable (for example, HTTPS on port 443):

Test-NetConnection example.com -Port 1433

This is useful for diagnosing issues with SMTP, FTP, HTTPS, database connections, or custom application ports.


4c. TRACEROUTE USING POWERSHELL


To perform a traceroute using PowerShell:

Test-NetConnection example.com -TraceRoute

This produces hop-by-hop route information similar to tracert.


  1. SAVING OUTPUT FOR SUPPORT


If support requests test results, redirect output to a file:

Command Prompt example:
ping example.com -n 50 > ping.txt

PowerShell example:
Test-NetConnection example.com -InformationLevel Detailed > nettest.txt

Attach the resulting text file to your support ticket.