Which is a command line utility that shows the path a packet takes from a source to a destination?

Which is a command line utility that shows the path a packet takes from a source to a destination?

• A. Tracert
• B. Traceroute
• C. Ping
• D. RouteTrace

Answer: (A)

Understanding how a packet traverses networks is about identifying the route from source to destination. The command-line tool that reveals that path in Windows is tracert. It shows each hop along the route and the time it takes to reach that hop, giving you a hop-by-hop map of the path to the final destination. Tracert works by sending packets with gradually increasing TTL values. When a router decrements the TTL to zero, it discards the packet and replies with an ICMP Time Exceeded message. This lets tracert identify the next hop in the route, along with the round-trip time to that hop. When the destination finally responds, you can see the final hop as well, completing the path. In contrast, traceroute is the typical name used on Unix-like systems for the same idea, serving the same purpose but under a different name. Ping, on the other hand, only checks whether a destination is reachable and measures round-trip time to that destination, not the path taken. RouteTrace isn’t a standard, widely used tool for this purpose.

Understanding how a packet traverses networks is about identifying the route from source to destination. The command-line tool that reveals that path in Windows is tracert. It shows each hop along the route and the time it takes to reach that hop, giving you a hop-by-hop map of the path to the final destination.

Tracert works by sending packets with gradually increasing TTL values. When a router decrements the TTL to zero, it discards the packet and replies with an ICMP Time Exceeded message. This lets tracert identify the next hop in the route, along with the round-trip time to that hop. When the destination finally responds, you can see the final hop as well, completing the path.

In contrast, traceroute is the typical name used on Unix-like systems for the same idea, serving the same purpose but under a different name. Ping, on the other hand, only checks whether a destination is reachable and measures round-trip time to that destination, not the path taken. RouteTrace isn’t a standard, widely used tool for this purpose.