xping

Command line ping re-imagined. Sends ICMP echo requests and measures round-trip time to target host, with bells and whistles.

Usage

Command line ping, re-imagined.

Usage: xping [OPTIONS] <TARGET>...

Arguments:
  <TARGET>...  Address or name of target host

Options:
  -r, --rate <RATE>          Number of packets per second
  -i, --interval <INTERVAL>  Packet interval in milliseconds [default: 1000]
  -c, --count <COUNT>        Number of attempts (default infinite)
  -w, --timeout <TIMEOUT>    Timeout waiting for response in milliseconds [default: 1000]
  -l, --length <LENGTH>      Length of ICMP payload in bytes [default: 64]
  -d, --display <DISPLAY>    Display mode [default: classic] [possible values: classic, char, dumb, char-graph, debug, plot, none, influx]
  -t, --ttl <TTL>            Time to live [default: 64]
      --api <API>            [default: icmp-socket] [possible values: icmp-socket]
  -4, --ipv4                 Force using IPv4
  -6, --ipv6                 Force using IPv6
  -a, --all                  Target all resolved addresses
      --summary <SUMMARY>    [default: text] [possible values: text, json, csv, none]
  -h, --help                 Print help (see more with '--help')
  -V, --version              Print version

Differences to classic ping

• Continues sends echo requests without blocking while waiting for responses or timeout
• Allows sending at very high packet rates (thousands of packets per second, use with caution)
• Displays sent packets and updates display of received packets asynchronously
• Multiple display modes (--display option):
  • Classic mode (default): similar to classic ping (but with async update)
  • Char mode: displays a character for each probe, updated on reception or timeout
  • Debug: displays all internal data
• No need for root/administrator privileges

Features

• IPv4 and IPv6 support
• Configurable packet rate, length, & TTL
• Supports Windows and Linux, with multiple APIs (--api=...):
  • Windows: IP Helper API (iphelper, default) and raw ICMP sockets (icmp-socket)
  • Linux: ICMP sockets (icmp-socket)
• IP_RECVERR support on Linux (for detailed error messages)
• Packet loss statistics (like classic ping)
• Show latency statistics (min, max, avg)
• Ping multiple targets
• OS timestamping (SO_TIMESTAMP) on Linux

Missing features & ideas

• Latency graph
• Support more than 64 outstanding packets on Windows (currently limited by WaitForMultipleObjects)
• Show receive TTL
• Horizontal scrolling display
• IPv4 route recording
• IPv4 timestamp

Limitations

• OS timestamping is not supported on Windows. Latency is measured entirely in user space.
  • SO_TIMESTAMP is not supported
  • SIO_TIMESTAMPING is not supported with SOCK_RAW/IPPROTO_ICMP sockets