The Linux ping Command: Network Reachability

The Linux ping Command: Network Reachability

ping sends ICMP ECHO_REQUEST packets to test host reachability and measure round-trip time.

Basic Usage

ping 8.8.8.8
ping google.com

Continuous ping until Ctrl+C.

Limit count

ping -c 4 8.8.8.8

Exact packet count.

Interval

ping -i 2 8.8.8.8

2 seconds between packets.

Options

• -c count — Packet count
• -i interval — Seconds between packets
• -t ttl — Set TTL
• -W timeout — Wait timeout seconds

Understanding Output

• time — Round-trip latency (lower is better)
• ttl — Time to live remaining
• packet loss — Network reliability indicator

Further Reading

• ping Manual
• ping Command Builder