How to test network quality of server

Yesterday when I tried to solve the performance of Nextcloud, I learned how to test Internet quality for server. Finally it turned out that the limit is the transfer bandwidth instead of performance of Nextcloud. I should test internet quality at first then question about quality of synchronization software, which is the proper order and can save a lot of time. Now I would like to record useful tool to test internet quality.

Speedtest

Speedtest is used to test bandwidth of network for your machine.

Installation of speedtest

For Linux

1. Installation via apt

      ## If migrating from prior bintray install instructions please first...
      # sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/speedtest.list
      # sudo apt-get update
      # sudo apt-get remove speedtest
      ## Other non-official binaries will conflict with Speedtest CLI
      # Example how to remove using apt-get
      # sudo apt-get remove speedtest-cli
      sudo apt-get install curl
      curl -s https://packagecloud.io/install/repositories/ookla/speedtest-cli/script.deb.sh | sudo bash
      sudo apt-get install speedtest
   
   2. Installation with binary
   
      ```bash
      wget https://install.speedtest.net/app/cli/ookla-speedtest-1.2.0-linux-x86_64.tgz
      tar -xvzf ookla-speedtest-1.2.0-linux-x86_64.tgz
      # You do not need to give exectuable permission as it already has after extraction
   
   
   ### For macOS
   
   ```zsh
   brew tap teamookla/speedtest
   brew update
   # Example how to remove conflicting or old versions using brew
   # brew uninstall speedtest --force
   # brew uninstall speedtest-cli --force
   brew install speedtest --force

Usage of speedtest

speedtest # or ./speedtest if you install with binary

Iperf3

Iperf3 is used to test bandwidth or network speed between client and server.

Installation of iperf3

For Linux

1. Installation via apt

   sudo apt-get install iperf3

For macOS

brew install iperf3

Usage of iperf3

1. Server

   iperf3 -s # Do not forget to open 5201 port in firewall

2. Client

   iperf3 -c domain_or_ip_of_server -i 1 -t 30 # Run a 30 second upload(data from client to server) tests, giving results every 1 second
   iperf3 -c domain_or_ip_of_server -i 1 -t 30 -R # Run a 30 second download(data from server to client) tests, giving results every 1 second

NextTrace

NextTrace is an open source visual routing tool that pursues light weight, developed using Golang.

Installation of NextTrace

For Linux

1. One-click installation script

   curl nxtrace.org/nt |bash

2. Installation with binary

   wget https://dl-na-lax1.nxtrace.org/dist/core/v1.3.7/nexttrace_linux_amd64
   mv nexttrace_linux_amd64 nexttrace
   chmod +x nexttrace

For macOS

brew install nexttrace

Usage of NextTrace

nexttrace domain_or_ip # or nexttrace domain_or_ip if you install NextTrace with binary

mtr

The mtr(my traceroute) command is a useful tool for testing package loss status.

From email content of CEO of RackNerd, Dustin Cisneros

MTR is indeed an invaluable tool for visualizing the path and performance of network traffic to a specific destination.

Installation of mtr

For Linux

I think most of Linux releases has mtr installed already. In case of not installed, just install as below.

apt-get update
apt-get -y install mtr

For macOS

macOS also contains mtr in default if I do not remember wrong. In case of not installed, just install as below.

brew install mtr

Usage

mtr -c 100 -r domain_or_ip # MTR with 100 report cycles.

Reference

1. https://www.speedtest.net/apps/cli
2. https://iperf.fr/iperf-download.php
3. https://github.com/esnet/iperf/releases
4. https://fasterdata.es.net/performance-testing/network-troubleshooting-tools/iperf/
5. https://serverfault.com/questions/985586/using-iperf3-to-test-upload-and-download
6. https://cnboy.org/2588
7. https://github.com/nxtrace/NTrace-core
8. https://www.servermania.com/kb/articles/ubuntu-how-to-install-mtr
9. https://support.cpanel.net/hc/en-us/articles/360062300093-How-to-use-MTR-on-MacOS