What Is Ping?

Date First Published: 13th April 2022

Topic: Computer Networking

Topic: Network Software

Article Type: Computer Terms & Definitions

Difficulty Level: 5/10

Learn more about what ping is in this article.

Ping is a command-line utility used to test the reachability of a computer network by sending a data packet to the host and receiving a response. Ping is often used for ensuring that a computer network is functioning as well as finding out the period of time it takes for it to respond, giving a measure of latency. In Windows, ping requests are performed through Command Prompt by typing ‘ping’ along with the domain name or IP address. ICMP packets are sent to that network in order for it to be pinged and the network will respond with an echo reply if the connection is available. All operating systems with internet access can use ping. The ping application was introduced by Mike Muus in 1983.

Ping is a backronym for packet internet groper and the word ‘ping’ comes from the sound that the sonar of a submarine makes when it bounces off objects underwater.

Ping Response Time

The ping response time is measured by the period of time that it takes for a data packet to be processed and travel to its destination node. There is a slight difference between ping response time and latency. The ping response time is the period of time that it takes for a data packet to travel over a network to the destination and back to you, whilst latency measures the period of time it takes for a data packet to transfer over any network.

The average ping response time is 30-50 milliseconds. Higher ping response times mean that it will take longer for the destination node to respond. Ping response times of over 500 milliseconds (half a second) will create a noticeable delay to all requests and this usually happens when the source and destination node are quite far away, such as in different continents. For online gaming, a ping response time of fewer than 50 milliseconds is recommended because a fast response time is needed for players to react. Little data needs transferring in online gaming, so bandwidth is not as important.

Ping Spoofing

Ping spoofing occurs when someone sends false information to a server. This causes the receiving device to get false data. An example of ping spoofing is making the server think that they have a higher ping than they actually have. Ping spoofing can be difficult to detect unless someone engages in it excessively.

Ping Errors

When a ping request is unsuccessful, a number of errors may be returned. Below are the possible errors that can occur whilst pinging a domain name or IP address.

How To Ping A Website?

Pinging a website is useful for testing whether a device can communicate with it. In Windows, a ping can be performed in Command Prompt.

1. Open the Start Menu. It is the Windows button in the bottom-left corner of the screen. The start menu can additionally be displayed by a simple keyboard shortcut. The keyboard shortcut is the button on the keyboard that has the Windows logo on it.
2. Find and open the folder 'Windows System' and right-click on 'Command Prompt' and select 'Run as administrator'.


3. Type 'ping' without the quotes along with the domain name or IP address.



4. Next, you should get a ping response, listing the packets sent, lost and received, minimum, maximum, and average ping response time, and the IP address.

Note:

Not all websites can be pinged. Some websites, such as microsoft.com and amazon.com have filtered ICMP to prevent pinging of their sites for preventing DoS attacks, since these are popular sites that are often targeted. Pinging these sites will result in packet loss or timeout errors. Below is what happens when one of these sites is pinged.