Round-trip time is the total duration measured in milliseconds from when a network packet is transmitted to when its acknowledgment is received. It serves as a primary metric for network latency and connection quality. High RTT causes sluggish performance in interactive applications like voice calls and remote desktop sessions.
We're seeing an RTT of over 300 milliseconds to the Sydney data center, which explains the application lag.
Network engineers often measure RTT using the ping command, though firewalls sometimes block the ICMP packets used for the test.
Also heard as
- round-trip time
Related terms
Round-trip time
The total time required for a data packet to travel from a source to a destination and for the acknowledgment to return.
Latency
The time it takes for a packet of data to travel from its source to its destination.
Jitter
The variation in the delay of received packets or the deviation of a digital signal from its precise timing.