Diagnosing Network Latency

Network latency isn't always caused by the server itself. Often, the bottleneck lies somewhere in the path between the user (client) and the server.

What is a "Hop"?

When you connect to a website, your request jumps through multiple routers owned by different ISPs and backbone providers. Each jump is called a "hop".

Using Traceroute

This tool visualizes each hop. If you see latency suddenly spike from 20ms to 200ms at a specific hop (e.g., Hop #5), you know exactly which network provider is causing the slowdown. This is invaluable when troubleshooting slow loading times for specific geographic regions.