How to Execute the traceroute command

Today's TipsMake will guide you through executing the 'traceroute' command on your computer or smartphone. The 'traceroute' command allows you to trace the various stops an IP packet took from the computer to the destination. This is helpful in determining whether network issues are causing problems with your connection.

On Windows

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 1

Open Start . Click the Windows logo in the lower left corner of the screen. The Start menu will pop up.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 2

Enter command prompt. The Command Prompt program will be found on the computer.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 3

Click Command Prompt, which appears at the top of the menu. Command Prompt will open.

Identify the website you want to track. For example, if you want to see a list of ports between your computer and Facebook, you will use Facebook's website.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 4

Enter the command "traceroute". Enter . Don't forget to replace website.com with the name and extension of the website you want to check (here is ) and then press .tracert website.comfacebook.com↵ Enter

You do not need to enter "https://" or "www." of website address.

If you have the website's IP address, you can use it instead of the URL.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 5

See results. Command Prompt will provide up to 30 different ports (also called "hops") that the IP packet passes through. When the status "Trace complete" appears below the hop list, the process is complete.

Don't worry if there are any blank lines, this indicates that the trace command is being returned as a result instead of going through a port.

On Mac

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 6

Open Spotlight. Click the magnifying glass icon in the upper right corner of the screen.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 7

Enter network utility. The Network Utility program will be found on the computer.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 8

Open Network Utility. Double-click Network Utility, which appears near the top of the search results list. The Network Utility window will open.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 9

Click Traceroute . This tab is at the top of the Network Utility window.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 10

Enter the website address. In the text box near the top of the window, enter the address (or IP address) of the website you want to visit.

For example, to get the link to the wikiHow website, you need to enter wikihow.comit here.

You do not need to enter "https://" or "www." of website address.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 11

Click Trace . This blue button is on the right side of the page. Network Utility will begin retrieving the path to the website you selected.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 12

See results. The trace command will return a list of ports going from the computer to the destination.

Don't worry if there are any blank lines, this indicates that the trace command is being returned as a result instead of going through a port.

On iPhone

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 13

Download the iNetTools application. Skip this step if you already have iNetTools installed on your iPhone. If not installed, open the App Store and proceed as follows:

Click Search _

Click the search bar.

Importinettools

Click inettools - ping,dns,port scan

Tap GET next to the iNetTools app.

Enter your Touch ID or Apple ID password.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 14

Open iNetTools. Tap OPEN on the App Store, or select the iNetTools app with the radar icon on your iPhone's Home screen.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 15

Click Trace Route . This option is in the middle of the screen.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 16

Click the "Host Name or IP Address" text box. This option is near the top of the screen. The iPhone's virtual keyboard will appear on the screen.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 17

Enter the website address. Enter the website address (or IP address) of the website you want to access.

For example, if you want to find the path to the nearest Google server, you need to enter google.com.

You do not need to enter "https://" or "www." of website address.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 18

Tap Start. It's in the upper right corner of the screen. iNetTools will start tracing the path to the address you specified.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 19

See results. Once the spinning wheel opposite the "Result" heading disappears, you can see the address of each port the trace command passed through to reach its destination.

Don't worry if there are any blank lines, this indicates that the trace command is being returned as a result instead of going through a port.

On Android

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 20

Download the PingTools application. Skip this step if you already have iNetTools installed on Android. If you haven't installed it yet, open the Google Play Store and proceed as follows:

Click the search bar.

Importpingtools

Click PingTools Network Utilities in the results.

Click INSTALL (Install)

Tap ACCEPT .

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 21

Open PingTools. Click OPEN on the Google Play Store, or select the PingTools application located in Android's App Drawer.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 22

Tap ACCEPT when prompted. This will accept PingTools' terms of use and open the application.

If you have opened PingTools before, you can skip this step.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 23

Tap the ☰ button located in the upper left corner of the screen. A menu will appear.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 24

Click Traceroute . This option is in the middle of the menu that appears.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 25

Click on the text box at the top of the screen to make the Android virtual keyboard appear.

If any website address is still in this text box, delete it before continuing.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 26

Enter the website address. Enter the website address (or IP address) of the website you want to access.

For example, to find the path to the nearest Twitter server, you need to enter twitter.comhere.

You do not need to enter "https://" or "www." of website address.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 27

Tap TRACE in the upper right corner of the screen. PingTools will begin tracing routes to the selected address.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 28

See results. Once the process is complete, you can view the address of each port that the trace command passed through to reach its destination.

Don't worry if there are any blank lines, this indicates that the trace command is being returned as a result instead of going through a port.

On Linux

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 29

Open Terminal. This step will vary depending on the Linux version, but most distributions will require you to open the Menu and select Terminal from the list of programs.

You can also press Alt+ Ctrl+ Tto open Terminal on most Linux distributions.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 30

Install Traceroute as follows:

Enter sudo apt install tracerouteand press ↵ Enter.

Enter the password then press ↵ Enter.

Enter yand tap ↵ Enterif prompted.

Wait for Traceroute to finish installing.

Identify the website you want to track. For example, if you want to see a list of ports between your computer and YouTube, you will use YouTube's website.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 31

Enter the command "traceroute". Enter and don't forget to replace website.com with the name and extension of the website you choose (in this example ) and then press .traceroute website.comyoutube.com↵ Enter

You do not need to enter "https://" or "www." of website address.

If you have the website's IP address, you can use it instead of the URL.

How to Execute the traceroute command Picture 32