Do you experience lag and stutter when playing online games, experience sudden disconnects while surfing the web, struggle with slow loading speeds, or encounter network connection errors? These are all signs of an unstable internet connection. Slow internet connections tend to have more stability problems, but faster ones are also susceptible.
Knowing whether your connection is unstable, you can take the necessary steps to stabilize it on time. But how can you know that? Below, you’ll find different ways to assess the stability of your internet connection by performing a ping test.
Let’s First Understand What “Ping” Is…
Before running the test, let’s break down what “ping” is. Ping refers to the process through which a client (your device) sends a request to a server to retrieve data, and the server returns the data to the client. Measured in milliseconds, it tells you how long a request takes to reach the remote server and return to your device.
The lower the ping rate, the quicker the response time means better data transmission between your client and the remote server. Having learned about ping, let’s look at how you can test its stability with the ping test.
How Can a Ping Test Help Determine Network Stability?
In a ping test, your device sends a request to your selected server at regular intervals and records how quickly it receives a response. The test displays the response time for every ping you make and notifies you when the request time out, indicating that the server is unavailable.
The test pings the server frequently and shows the response times for each request so that you can have a sufficient dataset to analyze. Your network connection could be unstable if the response time varies greatly for different requests, such as a few milliseconds for some pings but much longer for others.
Always ping a server that always remains online, such as Google’s DNS server. This way, if you receive an error message during the test, you’ll know your connection has a problem, not the server.
Things You Should Do Before Running a Ping Test
Before running the test, ensure there are no temporary problems with your connection that could disrupt the testing process. Follow these steps to rule that out:
- Reboot your router once to clear the cache.
- Disconnect other devices connected to the same internet connection so that your primary device can access the maximum amount of bandwidth.
- Close any network-hungry tasks currently active on your primary device.
Once you’ve completed the above steps, you can run the ping test.
How to Run the Ping Test in Windows Using the Command Prompt
Follow the below steps to run a ping test using the Windows Command Prompt:
- Type “Command Prompt” in Windows Search.
- Right-click the Command Prompt icon and select Run as administrator. Internet Stability
Performing highly network-intensive tasks, such as playing online games, requires a stable internet connection. Running a ping test is a great way to check your internet connection’s stability. If the internet turns out to be unstable, check for possible issues and take the necessary actions to prevent it from getting worse.
If the internet already turns out to be stable, look for other factors limiting your ability to take advantage of your fast internet connection.