How to Know if My ISP is Getting Packet Loss & How to Fix It

Packet loss is one of the most common network problems that can occur at any moment, impacting various applications and services, including Internet performance. When users experience issues like slow loading times or dropped connections, their first instinct may be to wonder: Is the packet loss on my end or my ISP's end? How can I know if my ISP is experiencing packet loss?

This question is crucial for both customers and ISPs. For customers, understanding whether the problem lies with their home network or with their ISP is essential for resolving issues quickly. For ISPs, identifying and addressing packet loss can lead to improved service quality and customer satisfaction.

This article will guide both users and ISPs in monitoring and troubleshooting packet loss in an ISP's network. By understanding the signs and symptoms of packet loss and how to verify its source, both parties can work together to ensure a smoother and more reliable Internet experience.

Packet loss occurs when data travelling across a network doesn’t successfully reach its destination. These "packets" are small units of data that make up the larger pieces of information sent over the Internet, like video streams, file downloads, or website data. When packet loss happens, it can result in slow speeds, lag, dropped calls, or incomplete downloads, which can be frustrating for users and lead to overall poor network and Internet performance.

Packet loss can happen anywhere in your network, or your MSP’s or ISP’s network. It can also occur for several reasons, including network congestion, faulty hardware, or issues within your ISP’s network. To dive deeper into the causes of packet loss, check out our article: What Causes Packet Loss: Reasons Why Your Data is Going MIA.

Yes, packet loss can occur within your ISP’s network, and when it does, your end users experience performance issues like slow connections, buffering, or dropped calls. As an ISP, you manage a vast and complex infrastructure, handling data traffic for many users simultaneously. Network congestion, hardware failures, or even upstream provider issues can all contribute to packet loss within your network.

If you're noticing performance issues like slow connections or buffering, you might be wondering if the source of the problem is coming from your ISP's network and not just your own. This is definitely possible, especially when it comes to packet loss! If your ISP is experiencing packet loss, it can drastically affect the quality of your Internet service.

Since this issue occurs within their network, you won't be able to troubleshoot it yourself. Instead, you'll need to demonstrate to your ISP that the packet loss is on their end and open a support ticket to address the problem.

A Real-Life Example of ISP Packet Loss:

If there’s high traffic on your network, such as during peak usage hours, some data packets might not reach their destination, leading to performance issues for your users. For instance, users trying to join video calls could experience freezing or call drops, affecting their ability to communicate effectively.

Similarly, users streaming content from services like Netflix or YouTube might encounter lower video quality or buffering delays. Even if they have a high-speed plan, packet loss in your network could prevent data from flowing smoothly, disrupting their experience.

When packet loss happens within your network, it can directly impact the quality of service your customers receive, leading to frustration and complaints. To manage this proactively, having visibility into your network performance is crucial.

This can include a business network, a personal home network, or the network of an MSP or ISP. Regardless of whether you're an ISP or an everyday user, it's essential to identify where the packet loss is occurring to determine who is responsible for fixing it. Understanding your network infrastructure is crucial because packet loss can happen at various points throughout the network.

To effectively identify packet loss, it’s important to have an end-to-end network monitoring tool like Obkio. Obkio Network and Packet Loss Monitoring Tool helps remote and business users continuously monitor the performance of their local network towards their ISP’s network, to identify issues like packet loss happening in any network location.

For everyday users, Obkio serves as a reliable ally in pinpointing the source of packet loss, helping them understand whether the issue lies within their own network or with their ISP. With clear visibility into network performance, users can make informed decisions about troubleshooting and can present data to their ISP if necessary.

For ISPs, Obkio offers a comprehensive approach to network performance monitoring. By leveraging Obkio’s capabilities, ISPs can gain invaluable insights into their own network health and how their services are performing for customers. This enables them to proactively identify and address issues before they escalate, improving overall service quality and customer satisfaction.

With easy-to-read reports, real-time alerts, and historical performance data, Obkio empowers ISPs to optimize their network infrastructure, ensuring a smoother experience for all users.

Put It to the Test: Trying Is the Ultimate Way to Learn!

To effectively monitor packet loss, it’s important to understand the key parts of your network that need regular attention. For both ISPs and everyday users, monitoring critical components of the network will provide the insights needed to detect and address packet loss promptly.

For everyday users, this means keeping an eye on local elements such as routers, switches, Wi-Fi access points, and the connection between their home or business network and the ISP. Monitoring these areas helps determine whether packet loss is occurring within the user’s own network or if the issue is happening on the ISP’s side.

For ISPs, it’s crucial to monitor the performance of their own network infrastructure, including backbone connections as well as the connections to their upstream providers and customers. By keeping an eye on these critical elements, ISPs can identify and address packet loss effectively, ensuring a more stable and reliable service for their customers.

Here are the key areas to monitor:

1. Customer Connections

Monitoring subscriber equipment (modems, routers) and access technologies (DSL, cable, fibre, wireless) helps identify issues like equipment failures, signal strength problems, and connectivity issues. Quickly detecting and resolving these problems ensures better service for individual users.

2. Local ISP Network Infrastructure

The "last mile" link between the customer’s location and the ISP’s nearest point of presence (PoP) is where data first travels. By monitoring this segment, ISPs can detect bottlenecks, signal degradation, or outages. Addressing these issues minimizes downtime and ensures consistent service quality.

3. Central ISP Network Infrastructure (PoPs)

At the central office or headend, local connections are aggregated, and data flows through routers and switches. Monitoring this core infrastructure is vital to detecting routing errors, equipment failures, or other issues that could cause widespread disruptions.

4. Core ISP Backbone Network

The backbone infrastructure connects different parts of your network, often via fibre-optic cables. Monitoring the backbone helps detect congestion, equipment failures, or unusual routing that could lead to packet loss.

5. Internet Exchange Points (IXPs)

IXPs allow ISPs to exchange traffic directly with other ISPs, ensuring efficient data routing. By monitoring IXPs, ISPs can spot congestion or connectivity issues that might affect overall internet performance.

6. External Networks & CDN Connections

Transit providers and CDNs (Content Delivery Networks) help deliver data to areas outside of your network. Monitoring these connections ensures data is delivered reliably and without latency, enhancing the user experience.

How to Measure Packet Loss & Detect Packet Loss Issues

How to measure packet loss with Obkio’s Network & Packet Loss Monitoring tool. Check for packet loss in your network & read packet loss measurements.

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It’s often difficult to pinpoint exactly where packet loss is happening in your network without the right tools. That’s where having a "little network spy" – a Network Monitoring tool – comes in.

1. Boost Network Performance: Network monitoring is essential to maintaining a high-performing network. It helps identify and resolve packet loss issues quickly, improving network efficiency and preventing performance degradation before it affects end users.

2. Proactively Detect Problems: ISP networks are complex, and issues like performance slowdowns or connectivity outages can arise at any time. Monitoring allows ISPs to proactively detect these problems – whether it's a fibre cut, power outage, or intermittent performance issue – before they escalate.

3. Optimize End-User Experience: Monitoring ensures a seamless user experience by identifying and resolving network issues before customers even notice them. It leads to quicker support for end-user problems and boosts overall customer satisfaction.

4. Capacity Planning & Network Optimization: Monitoring traffic and resource usage helps ISPs identify potential bottlenecks and plan capacity expansions accordingly. This ensures network efficiency and scalability to meet growing demand.

5. Reduce Costs & Maximize ROI: Network monitoring helps ISPs save costs by identifying inefficiencies, maximizing resource usage, and preventing unplanned outages. By ensuring optimal network performance, ISPs can boost ROI and improve customer satisfaction.

While network monitoring is vital for any ISP, having the right tool is just as important. Obkio is a powerful network monitoring and performance optimization tool that gives ISPs deep visibility into their entire infrastructure, from customer connections to core networks and external peering points.

Key Features of Obkio for ISPs:

• End-to-End Visibility: Obkio provides ISPs with real-time insight into every segment of their network, including customer equipment, access technologies, backbone infrastructure, and Internet Exchange Points (IXPs). This level of detail allows ISPs to pinpoint exactly where packet loss, latency, or other performance issues are occurring.
• Proactive Issue Detection: Obkio’s advanced monitoring detects network issues, like packet loss, as they happen, enabling ISPs to resolve problems before they affect end users. This means fewer complaints and faster response times.
• Comprehensive Reporting: With detailed performance data and reporting capabilities, Obkio helps ISPs track network health over time, identify recurring problems, and make data-driven decisions for future improvements.
• Cloud & On-Prem Solutions: Whether you need cloud-based or on-premises monitoring, Obkio offers flexible deployment options to suit your infrastructure needs.
• Monitoring External Providers: Obkio allows ISPs to monitor both internal infrastructure and external providers (like transit providers and CDNs). This helps ISPs ensure that problems within external networks don’t affect their end users’ experience.
• User-Friendly Interface: Designed to be intuitive and easy to use, Obkio’s interface simplifies network troubleshooting, even for teams without specialized IT expertise.

By integrating Obkio into your network operations, ISPs can ensure top-tier service quality, minimize downtime, enhance security, and deliver a better overall experience to their customers. With Obkio’s detailed insights, you’ll always know exactly what’s happening in your network, so you can stay ahead of potential issues and keep your users satisfied.

Ready to tackle packet loss? Start by confirming that packet loss is the problem you're dealing with.

Whether you are an ISP looking to enhance your network performance and ensure high-quality service for your customers, or a business or home user aiming to pinpoint packet loss within your own network or in your ISP's network, having visibility is crucial. Packet loss can severely affect user experience, leading to issues like slow internet speeds, buffering, and dropped connections.

To effectively monitor and troubleshoot packet loss, deploying a reliable network monitoring tool is the first step. Obkio offers a free trial that allows both ISPs and end-users to experience its robust features without any commitment. By using Obkio's easy-to-navigate onboarding wizard, users can quickly set up the tool, customize their monitoring parameters, and begin tracking performance metrics.

• 14-day free trial of all premium features
• Deploy in just 10 minutes
• Monitor performance in all key network locations
• Measure real-time network metrics
• Identify and troubleshoot live network problems

This initial step sets the foundation for understanding where packet loss occurs in the network. With Obkio, users can gain insights into their local network conditions as well as their ISP’s performance, enabling them to identify the source of issues and take informed actions to resolve them.

To find packet loss, use Obkio’s packet loss monitoring tool. This tool helps you keep track of packet loss between two points in your local or ISP’s network and gives you the information you need to solve the problem.

To effectively troubleshoot packet loss, it's essential to start by verifying that it's indeed the issue at hand. This involves accurately replicating the problem and closely monitoring network performance. This approach will provide a clear picture of the extent of packet loss and its impact on network functionality.

Deploy Monitoring Agents:

Monitoring Agents are specialized software deployed in key locations within a network to continuously monitor performance and identify potential issues. They work by exchanging synthetic traffic with each other, simulating real user activity, and collecting data on various performance metrics. This ongoing exchange helps provide insights into network performance and alerts users to any problems that may arise.

1. Local Agents: Install these in targeted locations experiencing connectivity issues, such as offices or data centers. They can be deployed on various operating systems, including MacOS, Windows, and Linux.

2. Public Monitoring Agents: Managed by Obkio, these agents monitor performance over the Internet and help determine if issues are global or localized. For example, you can deploy an AWS or Google Cloud Agent to check connectivity between your head office and Google Cloud, or between Google Cloud and your data center.

Take a look at a more detailed approach tailored for ISPs here: Pro Way to Setting Up Your ISP Performance Monitoring Tool.

Once your monitoring agents are set up, they will exchange synthetic traffic to gather performance data. Allow the agents to run and collect data for a period – ideally, at least 3 hours – to get a comprehensive view of packet loss rates.

Evaluate Packet Loss Data:

1. Analyze Performance Data:

Review the Network Response Time Graph and other performance metrics to assess packet loss rates. This will help you determine if the packet loss is within acceptable limits or if it’s significant enough to warrant further investigation.

2. Determine Acceptable vs. High Packet Loss:

High Packet Loss: Typically above 10%, this level of packet loss can severely impact Internet connectivity, causing issues such as sluggish page loads, choppy video playback, and delays in online gaming. In extreme cases, it may even lead to complete disconnections.

Acceptable Packet Loss: Generally below 1%, this level of packet loss is considered normal and often goes unnoticed in everyday Internet use. However, even low levels of packet loss can contribute to increased latency, which can affect the responsiveness of applications and services.

To effectively tackle packet loss, it's essential to determine where it's happening within your network. Packet loss can occur at various points, including your local network, Wide Area Network (WAN), Internet Service Provider (ISP), or the destination network. Each location can have different causes and solutions, so pinpointing the exact area is crucial for resolving the issue.

For everyday users or businesses, understanding where the packet loss is occurring is key to determining responsibility for fixing it. If the packet loss is happening within your local network, it is your responsibility to address it. However, if it originates from your ISP's network, you'll need to open a support ticket to notify them of the issue.

For ISPs, identifying packet loss within their own network is equally important. If the problem lies on the ISP's end, it is essential to troubleshoot the issue promptly before it impacts customer experience. By addressing the problem swiftly, ISPs can maintain service quality and customer satisfaction.

Common Locations for Packet Loss:

1. Local Network: Packet loss within your local network can occur between devices like computers, routers, or switches. Common causes include network congestion, outdated or faulty equipment, incorrect configurations, or interference from other devices.

2. Wide Area Network (WAN): When data travels across a WAN, which connects multiple local networks over larger distances, packet loss can result from network congestion, limited bandwidth, high latency, or infrastructure issues such as damaged cables or faulty routers.

3. Internet Service Provider (ISP): Packet loss can also originate from your ISP. This may be due to congested routers, faulty hardware, routing issues, or network congestion during peak usage times.

4. Destination Network: Packet loss can occur on the destination network where your data is being sent. Causes might include network congestion, inadequate capacity, hardware or software issues, or limitations in the destination network's infrastructure.

When packet loss occurs, Obkio’s tool can pinpoint the exact source of the issue by analyzing the data collected from Monitoring Agents. For instance, if an agent deployed in a local office is experiencing packet loss, while another agent in the ISP’s network shows stable performance, it’s clear that the problem lies within the local network. Conversely, if both agents show packet loss, it indicates that the issue may be originating from the ISP’s network.

This capability allows users – whether everyday consumers, businesses, or ISPs – to quickly identify where the packet loss is happening. By understanding the location and source of the problem, users can take appropriate action, whether that means troubleshooting their local network or reaching out to their ISP for assistance.

The troubleshooting steps will depend on where the packet loss is coming from:

• For Businesses or Remote Users: If the packet loss is happening within your own network, it’s essential to troubleshoot internally. This may involve checking hardware, verifying network configurations, and ensuring there are no issues with bandwidth or network congestion.
• For ISPs: If the packet loss is occurring within their own infrastructure, they need to take immediate action to identify and resolve the issues before they impact customer experience. This might involve examining network devices, analyzing traffic patterns, or addressing potential congestion points.
• For Users Experiencing ISP-Related Packet Loss: If you determine that the packet loss is happening in your ISP's network, you will need to open a support ticket with your ISP. It’s essential to provide proof of the packet loss, which Obkio's monitoring tool can supply. This evidence will help expedite the resolution process and ensure the ISP takes your concerns seriously.

Troubleshooting Packet Loss in Your Local Network

Once you have identified packet loss, you can start troubleshooting by comparing monitoring sessions between different agents.

• Check Monitoring Sessions: Look at the graph to see the exact times and impact of packet loss. If packet loss is visible on graphs from multiple monitoring agents, it indicates that the issue may be within your local network or ISP.
• User Workstation Check: If packet loss isn't evident in the network but users are still experiencing issues, install a monitoring agent on a user’s workstation. This will help determine if the problem is localized to that user’s environment or if it’s a broader network issue.

Troubleshooting Packet Loss on Multiple Network Sessions

Check Common Network Segments: If packet loss is occurring across multiple network sessions, it likely indicates a problem with a specific network segment, such as a LAN segment or a subnet. Potential causes include:

• Network Congestion: High traffic can lead to packet loss if bandwidth is insufficient.
• Hardware Issues: Faulty network equipment like switches or routers can contribute to packet loss.
• Interference or Cabling Problems: Issues like electromagnetic interference or faulty cabling can cause packet loss.
• Misconfigured Network Settings: Incorrect configurations, such as improper QoS settings, can lead to packet loss.

To resolve these issues, analyze network traffic, check device configurations, inspect cabling, and verify network settings.

Troubleshooting Packet Loss on a Single Network Session

Localized Issues: If packet loss occurs only on one network session towards a specific destination, the problem may be localized to that connection. Possible factors include:

• Network Congestion at Intermediary Networks: Packet loss might be happening at intermediary networks between your network and the destination.
• Issues with the Destination Network: The destination network could be experiencing congestion or infrastructure problems.
• Routing Issues: Incorrect or suboptimal routing decisions can result in packet loss.
• ISP Problems: Your ISP or the ISP of the destination network might be experiencing issues causing packet loss.

When packet loss is observed in your network sessions, it's crucial to determine whether the issue originates within your own network or from your Service Provider's network. This step is essential for both everyday users troubleshooting in their own networks and ISPs examining their infrastructure.

Obkio’s Device Monitoring feature allows you to track the performance and health of network devices like routers and switches. This data helps you identify if packet loss is occurring within your network, indicating potential issues such as hardware failures, misconfigurations, or network congestion.

Actions:

• Analyze performance metrics and status reports from Obkio to check for internal packet loss.
• Investigate if specific devices or network segments are affected.

SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) provides detailed performance data from network devices. It helps track packet loss statistics over time and identify trends or anomalies.

Actions:

• Collect data on packet loss from SNMP-enabled devices.
• Compare this data with Obkio’s Device Monitoring results to determine if the issue is internal.

By comparing results from Obkio’s Device Monitoring and SNMP monitoring, you can determine whether packet loss is internal or external:

• Internal Packet Loss: Significant packet loss within your network suggests issues like network congestion, faulty devices, or misconfigurations.
• External Packet Loss: Minimal internal packet loss but persistent issues on both network sessions indicate a problem with your Service Provider.

CPU Issues: High CPU usage on network devices can lead to packet loss. Elevated CPU usage during packet loss periods indicates your devices may be struggling with traffic.

Troubleshooting Steps:

1. Identify the device with high CPU usage.
2. Investigate the cause (e.g., excessive traffic or misconfigurations).
3. Optimize configurations or upgrade hardware to alleviate the issue.

Bandwidth Issues: High bandwidth utilization can cause congestion and packet loss. Persistent high utilization suggests your network link(s) may be saturated.

Troubleshooting Steps:

1. Identify links with high bandwidth utilization.
2. Assess bandwidth needs for affected segments.
3. Consider upgrading capacity or implementing traffic management.

1. Network Congestion:

• Monitor traffic and bandwidth utilization.
• Implement QoS, traffic shaping, or upgrade network equipment.

2. Hardware Limitations:

• Assess and upgrade outdated or inadequate hardware.
• Consider load balancing to distribute traffic.

3. Buffer Overflows:

• Monitor buffer usage and increase buffer sizes if needed.
• Implement traffic shaping to manage bursty traffic.

4. Network Configuration Issues:

• Review and validate configurations for QoS and routing protocols.
• Use network monitoring tools to identify and fix misconfigurations.

5. Faulty Cabling or Connectors:

• Inspect and replace damaged cables or connectors.
• Use cable analyzers to ensure integrity.

6. Software or Firmware Bugs:

• Keep devices updated with the latest software and patches.
• Monitor for known bugs and apply fixes as needed.

7. Security Measures:

• Review and fine-tune security settings to avoid false positives.
• Test and adjust security measures to prevent packet loss.

Troubleshooting Packet Loss: The Comprehensive Guide

Lost packets? No problem! Follow our guide and master the art of troubleshooting packet loss and say goodbye to network issues for good!

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Once you’ve gathered sufficient data from your local network, it’s time to pinpoint where the packet loss may be occurring within your ISP’s network. This is crucial for effectively communicating the issue to your Service Provider.

Utilize Obkio Vision, a free Visual Traceroute tool that continuously interprets Traceroute results, helping you identify network problems in your WAN and across the Internet.

Note: If the packet loss is solely occurring on your end, this step may not be necessary; it will just confirm your conclusion.

Using Traceroutes, the Network Map, and the Quality Matrix, you can identify specific packet loss issues:

Troubleshooting Packet Loss Towards One Internet Location

If you’re experiencing packet loss directed towards a specific location, this indicates that the problem is localized. The issue likely affects only the connection between your network and that specific destination.

• Specific Location Affected: When packet loss is seen exclusively with a particular site, the problem is likely not widespread but rather limited to the communication path between your network and that destination.

Common causes of localized packet loss include network congestion, routing issues, equipment malfunctions, or limitations in the network infrastructure along that path.

Troubleshooting Steps:

1. Confirm the Issue: Verify consistent packet loss by conducting multiple tests to establish a clear pattern.

2. Investigate Network Path: Use tools like traceroute to trace the network path to the affected location, identifying any problematic hops or segments.

3. Contact the Destination: Reach out to the technical support team of the affected site, sharing details of the packet loss for collaborative troubleshooting.

4. Engage ISPs: If the issue persists and is not in your network or the destination site, involve both your ISP and the destination site's ISP. Provide relevant data, such as traceroute results, to assist in their investigation.

By focusing on the specific location experiencing packet loss, you can effectively collaborate with the necessary parties to diagnose and resolve the issue.

ISP Packet Loss refers to data packets lost within the ISP’s network infrastructure. This loss can happen due to several factors, including:

• Network Congestion: High traffic volumes can overwhelm network equipment.
• Infrastructure Issues: Faulty hardware or outdated network setups may contribute to packet loss.
• Routing Problems: Inefficient routing paths can lead to dropped packets.
• Quality of Service (QoS) Policies: If certain types of traffic are prioritized, non-prioritized packets may be dropped.
• External Factors: Environmental interferences can also impact packet transmission.

ISP packet loss can lead to significant internet performance issues, causing delays and degraded service quality. If you identify packet loss on your ISP's side, it’s essential to open a service ticket with as much collected information as possible.

To ensure that your service ticket receives prompt attention, consider escalating it beyond the initial support level. Present comprehensive evidence gathered through Obkio, strengthening your case for higher-level support from the ISP's network engineers.

• Clearly communicate the impact of the packet loss on your operations, emphasizing any critical applications affected. This will help convey the urgency of the situation.

Contacting Your ISP:

• Use screenshots from Monitoring Sessions, Dashboards, or Traceroutes in Obkio Vision to support your case.
• Share Live Traceroute results with your ISP via a public link.
• If further analysis is needed, you can create a temporary Read-Only User in your Obkio account for them to access your data.

By following these steps, you can effectively troubleshoot packet loss issues and ensure timely resolution with your ISP.

Packet loss can stem from a variety of sources, and pinpointing the exact cause can be challenging. For businesses managing extensive enterprise networks, having a monitoring tool like Obkio is invaluable for diagnosing packet loss issues. By using Obkio's solution and following the previous troubleshooting steps, you can identify the root causes of packet loss in your network. Here are some common causes:

1. Network Congestion: Network congestion occurs when traffic volume exceeds the available bandwidth, leading to delays or packet drops. This can happen within your local network or across wide area networks (WAN). High traffic demand can overwhelm network resources, causing packets to be lost.

2. Faulty Network Hardware: Defective network hardware, such as routers, switches, or cabling, can contribute to packet loss. Malfunctions or wear-and-tear in hardware components may prevent proper packet processing or forwarding. Issues like hardware failures, outdated equipment, or physical damage to cables are common culprits.

3. Software Bugs: Bugs or glitches in network-related software—such as operating systems, network protocols, or firmware—can lead to packet loss. These software issues can disrupt packet handling and transmission. Regular updates and patches are essential to minimize the risk of packet loss due to software bugs.

4. Security Measures: Security tools like firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDS), or filtering mechanisms can sometimes block or filter legitimate packets, causing packet loss. Overly aggressive or misconfigured security settings may mistakenly categorize valid packets as threats and discard them.

5. Latency: Latency refers to the delay in transmitting data between network devices. High latency, often caused by long distances or multiple network hops, can increase the likelihood of packet loss. As packets experience delays, they become more susceptible to being dropped due to congestion or other issues.

6. Quality of Service (QoS) Settings: QoS settings prioritize certain types of network traffic over others based on predefined rules. Misconfigured QoS settings can lead to excessive prioritization of critical traffic, resulting in packet loss for less critical traffic. Properly configuring QoS is crucial for balanced network resource allocation.

By using Obkio's network monitoring tool, you can understand the real cause of your dropped packet and effectively troubleshoot packet loss in your network in minutes.

ISPs face significant challenges when it comes to identifying and resolving packet loss, primarily due to the scale and complexity of the networks they manage. Large ISPs oversee vast, multi-layered infrastructures that span different regions and technologies. This complexity makes it hard to achieve full visibility into every point of the network where packet loss might occur.

Packet loss can happen for a variety of reasons, often localized to specific network segments, and it’s not always easy for ISPs to detect it in real-time. Their monitoring tools are designed to handle massive volumes of data, but they may not always provide the granular insights necessary to catch intermittent or small-scale packet loss before it affects users.

Additionally, ISPs often rely on user reports to pinpoint performance issues, especially if the packet loss isn't widespread or severe enough to trigger alarms within their own systems. This reactive approach can lead to delays in identifying and resolving the root cause of the problem.

Given these challenges, it's crucial for ISPs to have the best possible visibility into network performance. Accurate data on packet loss, whether from their own tools or from third-party monitoring solutions, can significantly speed up the troubleshooting process.

Tools like Obkio's Packet Loss Monitoring empower businesses to track packet loss independently, providing detailed insights that can assist ISPs in resolving issues faster and more effectively, ultimately improving service quality for everyone involved.

Ready to Fix Your ISP’s Packet Loss?

• 14-day free trial of all premium features
• Deploy in just 10 minutes
• Monitor performance in all key network locations
• Measure real-time network metrics
• Identify and troubleshoot live network problems