ping(8)ping(8)Nameping - send ICMP ECHO_REQUEST packets to network hosts
Syntax
/etc/ping [ options ] host [ datasize [ npackets ]]
Description
The DARPA Internet is a large and complex network of hardware connected
together by gateways. The command utilizes the ICMP protocol's manda‐
tory ECHO_REQUEST datagram to elicit an ICMP ECHO_RESPONSE from a host
or gateway. ECHO_REQUEST datagrams (pings) have an IP and ICMP header,
followed by a struct timeval, and then an arbitrary number of pad bytes
used to fill out the packet. The length of the default datagram 64
bytes, but this may be changed using the command-line option.
Typing ``ping host'' without any options will either report ``host is
alive'' or ``no answer from host''. To get more statistics use the -l
option or one of the other options.
When using for fault isolation, it should first be run on the local
host to verify that the local network interface is up and running.
Then, hosts and gateways further and further away should be pinged.
The command with options sends one datagram per second and prints one
line of output for every ECHO_RESPONSE returned. No output is produced
if there is no response. If an optional npackets is given, only that
number of requests is sent. Round-trip times and packet loss statis‐
tics are computed. When all responses have been received or the pro‐
gram times out with npackets specified, or if the program is terminated
with a SIGINT, a brief summary is displayed.
Options-d Turns on SO_DEBUG flag on the socket.
-l Gives more statistics than if is used without options. Long out‐
put.
-r Bypasses the normal routing tables and sends directly to a host on
an attached network. If the host is not on a directly-attached
network, an error is returned. This option can be used to ping a
local host through an interface that has no route through it. For
example, after the interface was dropped by
-v Lists ICMP packets other than ECHO RESPONSE that are received.
Verbose output.
Restrictions
This program is intended for use in network testing, measurement, and
management. It should be used primarily for manual fault isolation.
Because of the load it could impose on the network, it is unwise to use
during normal operations or from automated scripts.
See Alsonetstat(1), ifconfig(8c)ping(8)
