-
In computer networking, a hop represents one portion of the full path between source and destination. When communicating over the Internet, for example, data passes through a number of intermediate devices (routers and switches) rather than flowing directly over a single wire. Each such device causes data to “hop” between one point-to-point network connection and another.
The hop count represents the total number of devices a given piece of data (packet) passes through. Generally speaking, the more hops data must traverse to reach their destination, the greater the transmission delay incurred.
Network utilities like ping can be used to determine the hop count to a specific destination.
Ping generates packets that include a field reserved for the hop count. Each time a capable device receives these packets, that device modifies the packet, incrementing the hop count by one. In addition, the device compares the hop count against a predetermined limit and discards the packet if its hop count is too high.
This prevents packets from endlessly bouncing around the network due to routing
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.